You’ve been presented with an idea. You’ve come to a fork in the road, and you must make a decision. Can you do it?
What if both roads seem to hold promise? How do you make a decision?
People handle decisions in different ways. That’s why some people end up in a life with little change because they are scared to make decisions that will have a major impact, and others make decisions daily that change their world.
I’ve been reading quite a bit about decision making, and how to change your processing to allow you to make effortless decisions. What follows is a brief guide to help you make effortless decisions.
Lose Your Perfectionism
One of the major things that holds us back is our desire to be perfect, never make a mistake, and show the world that we are best at everything. So instead of trying, we become paralyzed, and don’t try at all. Start by telling yourself there is no such thing as the perfect choice. Every choice has potential; it’s up to you to take it to fruition.
Start With A Research Phase
If you are presented with an idea you know little about, give yourself a time limit to learn more. It can be as simple as 30 minutes to think about it, or a day to do a little research online. By giving yourself a time limit, you won’t over think the situation, and end up doing nothing. Make sure you stick with your time limit. Then make a choice.
Go With Your Gut
Sometimes you are presented with a great idea that others might not agree with. Or you have an idea that others love, and you’re not crazy about. What is your gut telling you? Can you see yourself doing this? Sometimes it’s important to listen to your intuition, and go with your first inclination. While intuition can be wrong, it also is a driving factor in the amount of passion you will put into something. Listen carefully.
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Evaluate
While its important to evaluate your ideas and the research behind it, don’t get carried away with it. At some point you just have to choose. Make the choice and never look back. If you revisit things again and again, you will always find plusses and minuses. Instead, evaluate once based on the criteria you have in place, and give it a try. The only thing you should evaluate from that point forward is whether to stick with your choice and give it more time. Or to go with another decision.
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Stop Worrying
If you follow these steps each time, it’s easy to see there is nothing to worry about. No one will agree with everything you do, so why worry about it? Instead, look at each situation as to how it will impact your future, evaluate, and make a decision. Yes, people make bad decisions all the time. You can read books to learn from the failures of others. But if you’ve ever looked at the lives of people that are truly successful, you will also see that they have a history of failure. Decisions involve risk. If you aren’t willing to take a little risk, you’ll avoid the decisions that can be a major turning point in your life.
It’s time to see your next decision as an opportunity.