How To Make Decisions That Actually Work

How do the most successful people in business get to be so successful? Donald Trump, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet have many traits in common. However, they all started at the same place.

At some point, they all made a decision to be successful. Their tremendous success did not just happen by accident. They made a decision to take control of their future and not let the future just happen to them.

Once these decisions are made, goals are then established. Goals are the destination in a journey that begins with a single decision. Through focus on the goals, plans are put in place and success is achievable.

One good thing about being a manager is I learned how and when to make decisions. Some decisions are easy to make, some are complex. Sometimes, not making a decision at all is necessary as certain problems tend to take care of themselves, but you need to be careful with this.

Say a problem arises, you sit on it for awhile without making a decison hoping it will go away. Some problems will go away if you ignore them, but when you do that, they may come back even worse, leaving you with a bigger mess than had it been taken care of earlier.

After you make your decision what do you do? How do you get the results? Just writing the problem on paper helps start the process. These suggestions may help.

How to deal with complex decisions

1. Define the problem. What is the cause and effect of the decision? Write it down. For example: "I don't make enough money to cover all my bills, get school clothes for my kids, and the pay the light bill on time". Notice there are 4 things here. 1. You don't make enough money. 2. Can't cover the bills 3. Kids need clothes. 4. light bill is past due. Problem one is the cause and problems 2,3&4 are the effects. They are all needed to completely define the problem. Just to say "I don't make enough money" is not a clear enough definition.
2. Define your objective or goal. This is your destination - what you expect to happen when the problem is solved. It should be specific and attainable. Example: "To create an opportunity to earn $100,000 per year by the end of this year"
3. Brainstorm potential solutions.Sit down in a quiet place, free from distractions and start writing. You don't always have to do this alone, involve colleagues, friends, business associates etc. Example:Further my education, get a new job, start my own business, become a rock-star. Don't worry about if you think it is a good idea or not. Write it down no matter how silly or far-flung. Bottom line is you want as many chances for success as possible right?
4. Develop your action plan. How are you going to get it done? Evaluate your list thoughtfully and select the solutions that apply to the current situation. Don't always pick the ones that worked before or are the "safest". Sometimes it's good to choose a new path. Theres a quote, I have no idea who wrote it but it is one of my favorites: "If you want the things you've never had. You must do the things you've never done."
5. Troubleshoot your action plan. This is a sense check. Ask yourself: "Is this really the desired outcome? Is it achievable? What are the consequences? What is the worst-case scenario? At this point you will either move forward or go back to the drawing board. Either way, you are planning to achieve your objective. This is another critical decision point so don't waffle on your thoughts. Be willing to make a decision. If you are terrified of being wrong, you may not make any decision at all which means you will not achieve anything but potential disaster. Be confident in your decisions and have no regrets. It is a waste of time to thing about what might have been. Circumstances change and you must be willing to react.
6. Communicate. If you have employees or other team of people it is critical that they are on board with your objectives. After all, they may be the ones implementing your plan. If it is just you, write down your plan and review it often to make sure you are on track.
7. Implement the plan. Involve those that you know can get it done. Provide coaching and encouragement. Reward them and yourself for successes.

Mistakes are going to happen, this is a learning process. What's important is that you take responsibility! Be the Leader! Move forward and correct it. People that are afraid of making mistakes will never learn from them.