Time to Get off the Fence: 7 Tips to Simplify Decision-Making (Part 1 of 2)
We’ve all been there. We’ll all be back. We’re human, and sitting on the fence a bit too long, pondering a decision, comes with the territory. I’m not referring to the fence sitting that is necessary when we’re facing major life decisions. I’m referring to those less critical, should-I-go-to this-event-or-not, or do-I-hire-this-person-or-not type of decisions — the kind of a decision that we can get stuck agonizing over, yet later might look back and chuckle at the energy we spent while ambivalent.
In my view, I think it all comes down to that final moment when we have to trust ourselves and just choose. We can review, analyze and get opinions from others all day long, but the end result is the same: we need to listen to our Inner Wisdom and just decide. To help you do so, I’ve put together a list of my favorite decision-making tips.
I’ve used each of the following tips and tools myself and select from among them, taking into account the nature of the decision I’m making.
Depending upon the importance, type and immediacy of the decision you face at the moment, some of these tips and tools will be more useful and applicable to you than others. Just don’t get stuck trying to decide which tool to use!
I’ll give you the first 4 Tips in this post, and provide the rest of the 7 in my next installment.
7 Tips to Simplify Decision-Making (Tips 1-4)
1. Stop…Breathe…Notice…Choose I first introduced this 4-step practice to you in my book, Seven Sacred Attitudes. I find that using the process when I’m stuck in indecision can be quite valuable. To do so, simply Stop action the next time you are struggling to make a choice. Just freeze in one spot. Now take a deep breath and pay close attention to what you are doing to yourself while you are struggling. Notice the details of your breath, shoulders, position of your body and any tension in your muscles. Notice the prison of indecision you have created in your mind – are you telling yourself that the choice of a movie or book is critical? Are you stressing yourself out wondering whether you should attend a social event or not? Just notice. Then take another deep breath and, using your intuition, simply Choose.
Notes: This technique is useful when you have already analyzed the heck out of a situation or when the stakes are not too high to risk an unanalyzed choice.
2. Ask your Board of Directors what they would do. Don’t worry if you don’t have an actual Board of Directors. This technique involves some active imagination and is, as those of you who work with me will testify, often better accessed while in the shower.
When you have a few minutes of solitude, close your eyes and bring to mind a large oak table in a beautiful meeting room – perhaps a room with large windows overlooking a forest and creek. Now picture your ideal Board of Directors sitting around the table — all of them present to help you in your decision-making process. Your Board Members can be anyone you choose, presently living or not, and real or animated.
You can vary who you “invite” to sit on your Board, depending upon the type of decision you’re making. [I’ve been known to “invite”: Walt Disney, if I’m facing a creative decision; Donald Trump, if I’m making a real estate decision; Loral Langemeier, if I’m making a business development decision; an entire football team (okay, the Buffalo Bills right now) and their coach if I’m making a hiring decision and want good teamwork input; and John F. Kennedy, if I’m making a leadership decision.]
Go ahead and put anybody around that imaginary table that your big heart desires. Now put the decision in question before your Board. I even dare you to talk aloud while doing this. Take on the voice of any and all of your Board Members as they each tell you what they would do. When you have had enough input, thank them all and send them on their way. Emerge from the “session” (or shower) with a fresh perspective on the decision.
Notes: This is one of my favorite tools. It can be used in either the beginning or final phases of making decisions that are as important as whether or not to hire a specific employee, or which product to sell, or as simple as which color to paint your office.
3. Act “as if” for an hour or a day. This tool also requires some imagination. If you are deciding between two options (i.e. deciding which of two new pieces of office equipment to purchase) or two actions to take (i.e. deciding whether to attend a week-long seminar or stay home and work on that new book), this technique will be helpful in the decision between the two options you’re considering.
Depending upon how much time you have available, and also depending upon how big of a choice this is, set aside an appropriate time period (1 hour, 1 day, 1 week).
For that entire period, act “as if” you have decided on Option 1. Get into it. Absolutely pretend that you have decided on this option, are excited about the choice, and get on with the rest of that period “as if” you’d really made the choice. Put aside any consideration for the other option. Don’t even think about it.
Speak “as if” you’ve made the choice for Option 1, try it out by telling someone else you made the choice, and feel the freedom of having made a decision. Now, when the hour, day or week ends, go ahead and set another time period aside, identical in duration.
You guessed it – you’ll now act “as if” you’ve made the choice for Option 2. The same guidelines apply. Talk, walk, and act “as if” you’ve opted for Option 2. When the entire experiment is over, you will have a much better idea of which Option is the right one for you (and I’ll bet you’ll know even before you’re finished acting “as if” for the entire period!)
4. Try this “Basic Option Evaluation” technique by Brian Clegg. Click here and try out this exercise from Brian Clegg‘s book, Crash Course in Personal Development. Likely to appeal to you when you want to make a logical, well-reasoned decision, this exercise provides a great way to evaluate your options when you are choosing among a number of different things. It will help you rank the options according to logical criteria.
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Now Take Action! Choose one tip above that you are willing to put into practice. When is NOW a good time to get started? No fence-sitting allowed:) I’ll be back in the next post to give you 3 more tips for making other decisions. Just pick one of these for now and give it a try.
Enjoy!
I look forward to hearing about your experience…
