A person's entire life consists of a constant need to make all sorts of decisions, ranging from the choice of products in the store, and ending with a global existential choice of one's own life path and purpose. In the first case, the decision made does not have a special effect on a person's life.
But significant situations of choice often frighten and confuse a person, namely in such circumstances it is necessary to be able to adequately assess the current situation and take the necessary actions that will help to make a competent choice. Making a decision is a process that has a certain structure and characteristics, and if you want to know how to make correct solution, you should carefully analyze the information and use the advice that you will receive in this article.
Making a decision means choosing the most effective course of action from among possible others., in the process of which thinking, emotions and will, character and temperament, human motivation are involved. All these factors can both facilitate and hinder the correct decision-making. Scientific studies of the features of information processing have shown that there are certain tendencies of thinking that affect the decision-making process. Try to pay attention and remember what factors are inherent in you personally, so that during the decision-making process you can recognize them and abstract away.
- Search for supporting data. A person collects only those facts that influence the confirmation of his own conclusions, while completely ignoring conflicting information.
- Inconsistency. Inability to act in a unified direction, finding yourself in a similar situation.
- Conservatism. Inability to quickly change your opinion and perception of a person or situation, even with new facts about them.
- Novelty. Failure to consistently solve problems, since recent events occupy a more important place in the mind than past ones.
- Availability. The tendency to regard readily available facts as relevant and valuable when truly valuable information is ignored.
- Selectivity. The tendency to assess the situation, relying solely on their own experience and personal factors, proceeding only from their position in life.
- False interpretation. The tendency to regard success as the result of one's own skills and knowledge, and to blame other people or circumstances for failure. Such a vision prevents a person from learning from his own mistakes and quickly gaining life experience.
- Underestimating the situation. The tendency to build unjustified illusions and show excessive optimism contributes to the construction of unrealistic forecasts of the future, which act as factors influencing a decrease in personal effectiveness.
Learning to Make Informed Decisions - 3 Strategies
The modern classic of management, Canadian professor Henry Mintzberg believes that there are specific ways of making decisions, the choice of which is influenced by both a specific situation and the indicated individual factors.
- “Doing” means the process of making a decision without lengthy reasoning in an emergency situation, if the decision needs to be made quickly and there is no time for the thinking process. In such situations, a person is inclined to make a decision using ready-made attitudes and options for action from past experience. To do this, you need to be able to draw this useful experience from experienced situations, working on negative tendencies of thinking.
- “Thinking” is the traditional way of making a decision in Western culture. Here this process is carried out using a certain logical algorithm of actions, which includes:
- the statement of the problem or goal;
- collection of information;
- clarification of the goal;
- selection of parameters for evaluating effectiveness;
- development of alternatives;
- analysis and comparison of different options;
- assessing the consequences of different opportunities;
- decision-making.
- “Seeing” is an intuitive way to make decisions that is manifested by some kind of insight or insight. This method is the most correct if you need to make a very important life decision, because the answers to everything are stored in the subconscious of a person. important questions, you just need to be able to use your capabilities correctly. In Gestalt psychology, there are 4 stages of the decision-making process using intuition:
- Preparation begins with collecting information, both at the level of thinking and including the emotional aspect;
- Incubation means a kind of meditative state, special focus on a problem with the aim of deeply comprehending and feeling it;
- Illumination is the result of incubation, when the same insight occurs, and a person, with the help of deep meditative introspection, quickly realizes how to make the right decision;
- Checking the correctness of the decision.
Video on how our brain determines the choice:
Of course, the process of making a successful decision includes many factors, but the most important of them is the availability of time for a competent and deep understanding of the choice at all levels. If you want to learn how to learn how to make decisions in any situation, you should use the following tips:
- Take time to think. In the old days, sages retired for a long time in a secluded place if an important decision had to be made. Time is needed in order to realize how important this choice is for you and what consequences it can carry, so as not to act impulsively and thoughtlessly, because, unfortunately, often a person realizes the fatefulness of a choice only after making it.
- Get a feel for the situation. Often, difficult choices act as a stress factor on a person, in which there is a feeling of impasse and hopelessness. In this case, you should let go of heavy thoughts and try to trust your own feelings. We are not talking about fleeting changeable emotions that should never be trusted, here you need to listen to your inner voice. For most people, reviving these feelings is not easy, so you need to create special conditions that affect the effectiveness of decision-making: light candles and sit in silence, sit comfortably and focus on something. The ways to create such an atmosphere are very individual, you can experiment and find your own way to achieve insight.
- Check the truth of your intentions. If you are facing a major decision-making process, be sure of its true importance. Confidence in the right path is felt as a feeling of inner agreement, when there is no inner discomfort and the desire to "run away" from the problem. If the decision is deliberate and mature, then the feeling of doubt does not arise. If you feel heaviness, depression and some kind of confusion, then you should postpone the decision for a while, so as not to regret what you did in the event of a probable failure.
- Realize the cost of your decision. Any decision is a definite choice that brings with it new opportunities along with the need to give up something. Before making a final decision, you should evaluate how important new experience is in comparison with the past, whether it is worth losing something important on the way to new discoveries and achievements. Try to continue this phrase: "Now I never ...". Such an exercise will help you, on the one hand, to realize all the important factors of past experience, and on the other hand, it will give you courage and strength to take responsibility for your future. Understand that everything in life has its own price, you just need to learn how to correctly set your own priorities.
- Breathe life into your solution. To make a decision meaningful and significant, you need to charge it with a certain type of energy. There are two options here. In the first case, you choose one of the solution alternatives that does not suit you and promises a negative ending, and represent the most sad scenario. Tell yourself: "If I do this, then all my life I will blame myself and worry, because ..." and list all the negative consequences. In the second case, you should try to present all the most positive aspects of your possible choice in the future perspective. In this way, you will quickly help yourself become more confident in the correctness and firmness of your intentions.
German psychoanalyst Erich Fromm in his brilliant work "Escape from Freedom" argued that every decision is dictated not by inner convictions, but by a person's fear of isolation, which pushes each of us to follow public opinion muffling the voice of true impulses. That is why, every decision you make must be made on the basis of a deep conviction emanating from the depths of the inner space.
How to make the right decision
What you need to know for yourself before making a decision, what questions to ask and what to be guided by in making decisions
Most people are afraid, do not know or do not know how (do not understand) how to approach and make a decision.
And if we divide the decision-making into stages (steps). What steps are important to make the most correct, final decision?
I will talk about these steps below, and first, what to look for when making decisions.
It often happens that before making a decision, a person does not really know what he wants or which option he should choose.
And here it is important that you do not just analyze, but put aside logic for a while and plunge into yourself with attention, whether you really feel it is pleasant for you, whether it will be a pleasure for you to do this business for a long time. And we do not focus only on the result, money and benefits. Just listen to your inner voice, sometimes the hint may not come right away, and here it is better not to put pressure on yourself, but to nurture the answer, trust your intuition.
You can also ask yourself a couple of questions: "What does my mind tell me?" and quickly answer aloud, without hesitation, and then ask: "What does my intuition (my soul) tell me?" Observe what feelings they cause in you, whether there is something in them that inspires you.
I think this is the main advice and in most cases, this is all that is needed to make the right decision.
Do you know what a famous and successful person said about this:
Feel free to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know who you really want to become.Steve Jobs
And it often happens that the situations themselves do not tolerate reasoning from us, you just need to do something and that's it. For example, if you are single, the opportunity presented itself and you feel that you sincerely want to get to know each other, then you should not go into all these - "What will happen if ...", listened to your heart and just follow it - take some action with the answer to all doubts - "come what may".
5 questions in decision making
Very often we doubt whether I really need it, why. And especially if the decision is reflected in the global and long-term perspective. Here, I still recommend listening more to your inner voice, but you can ask yourself 5 leading questions.
First question- "Do I want this, NS Do I really want to do this, do I want to have this, do I want to become someone?"We honestly answer ourselves" YES" or " NO".
When you have identified and answered yourself: "YES", I want to do just that, move on to the next question - " If I do this, if I become someone, I achieve this, will I be in harmony with myself, with the Universe, or for those who are believers, in harmony with God?"
If you answered YES to yourself, then ask yourself next question "If I do this, if I become someone, then will bring is it me to my goal, my dream ?"
If your answer is "YES", then we ask ourselves another question, - " If I do this, I have it, if I become someone, will it violate human rights? "
If your answer is "NO", then move on to the last question - " If I achieve my goal, will I do better for myself and for someone else? " This question is perhaps the easiest to answer.
And having answered your questions, having decided, you need to start action. Right now, this second, take action to change something in your life. To become successful, independent and finally achieve what you so desire. Don't procrastinate by telling yourself- "That's it, here, yes, I decided, tomorrow I will start to act", or "I'll think again and then I will finally decide whether I need it or not."- believe me friends, you are unlikely to decide and start something.
And if you try later, as a rule, this is just another attempt and nothing more. Make straightaway even the smallest step is important your first step, important is the BEGINNING.
For example, such a first step is the need to collect useful information, find out what and how. The more you know, the easier it is to make decisions and you will move faster and more confidently.
Just worry and don't move
Do not delay making final decisions if you have already felt that this is yours, you yearn for change and you need it, and do not worry too much now about how you will be and when, what will come - these are not the right questions now, gradually everything will come itself. Your main goal now is to make a decision.
If you are delaying making a decision, then you have already made a decision - to leave everything as before.
Remember that Doubts will still remain and you should not get rid of them in every possible way. It is normal to experience, because no one can predict success and know exactly how everything will go, you can only, to a greater or lesser extent, believe depending on experience and conditions.
And as soon as you make the final decision and start taking the first steps 
, all these "HOW" - they will come to you. You will find or you will meet necessary people, and the right situations will themselves begin to arise around you. You will begin to attract them to you, this is some kind of amazing phenomenon, but I made sure myself that it works like a relationship with the universe.
By the way, think carefully yourself and remember when you started to think about something and do something, no matter what, when suddenly, right away or after a while, something like this started to happen - you met the right people or you found yourself in that place and at that time, or the necessary information came across.
So, main - decide.
Do not rely on decision making from what you have today, think what you want, strive for it and on this make your decision. The fear of failure is always stronger than the possibility of change, it is much more terrible for us to lose something than the desire to try to gain something, but if you are guided only, you will not go far.
And all other questions, such as - "Can I do it?", "Am I doing it right?" "And if it doesn't work out?" "- All these questions are not questions of a person who wants more from life. Attention should be paid to them only for a quick assessment of the reality of what is being carried out, in order to correct the course and nothing more.
Almost every one of you was in a situation when, having made some decision and starting something, after a while, maybe quickly, maybe later, you know, it was necessary to do it differently.
If you do not accept for yourself what is not and will not be absolutely surely the right decision, if you are afraid and based on the fear of mistakes, you will never achieve what you dream of. The trick is that You either do it or you don’t and there’s no other... Except as an even worse option, it is all the time in a wait-and-see state, only to think and dream about something, to wait 100% the opportunity presented itself in the hope that this will come, do nothing, and all the time be in a state of dissatisfaction with oneself and one's life.
"There are costs and risks to any action plan. But they are significantly less than the cost and risk of comfortably doing nothing."John F. Kennedy
What prevents you from making a better decision
We are in different time we are in different states depending on some external or internal factors and as a result, no matter how smart you are, our consciousness perceives the situation differently. And when making some decision, you could not make the right choice because that at that time there were not in that state may have been depressed, anxious, and overworked, and simply lacked the potential.
In another case, when you almost immediately understand what led to the wrong decision, at the same time, not because you made a conscious wrong decision, it’s not that " not enough consciousness", but because he could not restrain himself, to control himself by discarding emotions (most often this happens, and this is the saddest thing).
Very often we are blinded by emotions that make us miss important nuances in making this or that choice, and which later may turn out to be decisive. Therefore, always before making an important decision, calm down, for this it is best to observe the breathing of 5-8 slow, calm breaths and exhalations, and if you are too excited then postpone the decision for a while, let your brain calm down and clear up.
What to guide in decisions (choice of actions)
Be guided by the principles in your decision
When making decisions, always remember and be guided by your main principles and sincere desires. For example, if you want to go into business, then you need to consider that it will not be an easy walk, but hard work. Are you willing to sacrifice your comfort, personal time and family time? And what is it all for?
Maybe you will understand that just the same family, comfort and peace, this is what you are striving for, and making big money can take away a lot of this from you. Some people, starting to chase money, forget about their main values, for the sake of which they even began to do it.
If you still feel that this business or something else is necessary for you, then go ahead and be bolder.
Concentrate on the essentials
When you have already decided everything, started to act and determine the direction every day, decide what to do now, always be guided by priority the main action, ask yourself - "What is the best right now, on this moment what can I do to get closer to my goal? "
And having decided on specific actions - do not put it on the back burner trying to do it.... Just don't tighten it too much.
How to make a decision. Motivation
And for my support, motivation, I highly recommend keeping a diary, this is really important.
How do we make a diary? In a new notebook we write, first questions, then we answer - " Why do I need it? "," What will it give me? "," How confident will I become?", "How will I feel about it??", "How will I live with this?", "What opportunities will this give me". Describe everything vividly, in colorful images, imagining that you have already achieved success and are now experiencing these sensations.
And every day you should start by reading the diary, with this strongest motivation. You perform actions in a different mood, and with each subsequent day, this mood will become better and better.
In what you will write, in 95% of cases you will not believe. Why is that? Because it's all about (attitudes) that are embedded within us, in our subconscious. And if we do not change these attitudes, we are doomed to fail. In order to reprogram, change these programs, you will write this diary. When you put your thoughts on paper, the brain perceives everything differently than when it happens in the head.
But the best thing is if you, at the same time, find a like-minded person who will share your vision, your goals. And by sharing your thoughts with him, or even reading them out loud. Everything will begin to boil inside you, you will, as it were, divide in two. One part will say- " You can not ", another" You will succeed ". And most importantly, with such repetition and discipline you program your subconscious mind, change your unsuccessful attitudes.
There are other ways of programming, but these are in other articles. Why others? Everything is simple - some of us perceive everything visually, then it is audio information, or you need both together. All this can be easily felt if you just listen to yourself. In the meantime, I recommend learning a little more about with it, it can drastically change your life as a whole.
And one moment, every person on the way has days when everything falls out of hand, there is no mood, health, to put it mildly, is not working and you have to continue doing something, but things are not going at all. Write on the card you will always carry with you your most cherished goal. And when you need to act, but you are not in the mood, take out your card and ask yourself, "Why and why do you need all this?" And honestly answer yourself this question. Your response will motivate you to action, and only actions will lead you to your goal.
Finally, how to make a decision:
And always remember, each of us is a unique person, with his own weaknesses, but also his strengths... And each of us has the right to be who we want!
Good luck making the right decisions and energy for action! !
Best regards, Andrey Russkikh
Take a look! How to make a dream come true
Fighting doubt is the most difficult thing that a successful entrepreneur has to cope with every day: accept or not an offer, take an order or refuse, invest in a project or not. Sometimes, this kind of doubt helps to make the right choice and not lose money, but what if it interferes with doing business? Understand yourself and find the answer to the question "What to do when you can't make a decision?" the recommendations of psychologists will help.
Tip 1. Give yourself time to make a decision.
Faced with the inability to choose between alternatives, you need to understand the root cause that prevents you from making a decision. Observe the situation from the outside, think about other solutions or just take a break: very often what at first seemed a difficult and difficult task is easily solved with a fresh mind. For example, if you are concerned about the issue of taking money, then after thinking well, you will find a solution to this problem, including taking money in loans - zajmy.kz.
Tip 2. Trust your feelings and intuition.
Many mistakes are made because people are used to making decisions based on the voice of reason, forgetting about the presence of a "sixth" sense. When a person acts at the behest of his heart, he does not have black streaks, and all his decisions are correct, and he will never regret them.
Tip 3. Don't go against your principles.
Are you ready to make the final choice, but you need to compromise with your conscience? Refuse this decision and try to find another way out of the situation, because You still will not get moral satisfaction from the implementation of your plan. And remember, the human mind is used to looking for the easiest solution. But if you have to solve a difficult, confusing situation, the answer does not lie on the surface, and in order to find the right solution, you need to scroll through hundreds of combinations and variations in your head.
Tip 4: Deal with doubts
It is doubt that becomes a stumbling block for the implementation of projects that could bring a consistently high income. Just imagine what would happen if Steve Jobs doubted the advisability of developing computer technology or if Bill Gates for some reason refused to create operating system Windows?
Tip 5. Accept the need for choice
The ability to understand the inevitability of choice distinguishes a successful businessman from hired workers, because starting a business involves an independent solution to any situation: from minor conflicts between subordinates to choosing the strategic development of the company. That is why many decisions have to be made under the heading "it is necessary".
When the choice is made, there is not so much left: to implement the plan. But even at this stage, doubt may "lie in wait" for you. What can you do to avoid this? If you ask psychologists this question, they will offer 2 alternatives:
1. Imagine that instead of the chosen course of action, you chose the worst-case scenario. What could have happened in this case? This practice will help you once again make sure that the decision is correct.
2. Twist in your imagination, like a slide, the positive moments that the implementation of the chosen solution will give you. This will help you clearly understand the ultimate goal for which your entire company is working.
The right choice for you!
Our life is a constant series of decisions. They can be both minor and quite serious, which have big influence on us, and lead to major changes. A person constantly decides what to buy for lunch, where to go in the evening, which book to read, which university to go to study, what profession to choose, how to make a million etc. And if the price of the issue is small, then the decision is given to us easily and is taken quickly, because the loss in case of an error will be small. But, the more serious the choice is, the more difficult it is to make it. V in this case the right decision can lead to great success or, on the contrary, can cause losses and setbacks. Therefore, it is very important to know how to make the right decision.
Be sure to set a time frame for yourself to make the right choice. The presence of a limitation forces you to choose the most effective solution in a given situation. This process describes the so-called law of forced efficiency.
To make the right choice, you need to collect as much information as possible. How more facts in your hands, the easier it will be for you to do effective choice... So you can more or less objectively assess the situation.
Remember that emotions are your enemy in decision making, because during an outburst of feelings, you cannot reason objectively and detached. Try to wait for the moment when everything in your soul boils over, and only then get down to business, because you may not make the best decision on a hot head.
Remember, if finding the right course of action is work-related, then you can shift the matter to someone else. This will save yourself a lot of time. In addition, having completed a task once, you can count on the fact that you will have to do it all the time. Additional workload without corresponding dividends is absolutely useless. Therefore, think as rationally as possible, because delegation of authority- a very convenient tool for "unloading" your work schedule.
When making a decision, be sure to prioritize your thinking. Structuring thoughts according to the principle of importance is a great skill that will allow you to quickly find an effective way out of any situation. If you do not develop this skill, you will be constantly confused in your own reasoning when parsing complex problems. In addition, there is a risk that you will take the wrong criterion as the basis for making a decision, which will lead to incomprehensible consequences. With a high degree of probability, your choice will be ineffective, and often also dead-end. By making mistakes, you will, of course, develop your decision-making skills over time. But by breaking the so-called "overview" of the choice, you will not be able to identify the causal relationships that explain why the decision was correct or vice versa. Therefore, before difficult choice it is advisable to structure all your thoughts and make a "priority rating" of various factors in your head.
Fear of potential failure also makes it difficult to find the right solution. Many fail because of this ineffective feeling. In order for fear not to bother you, you need to analyze in detail the consequences to which this or that choice can lead, and then act.
It is best to remain calm when making a decision. If you are a rather suspicious person, then you can relax by listening to your favorite music, having rest or, on extreme case drinking a sedative.
Objectivity is another factor that will ensure making the right decision... You need to be honest with yourself and not artificially sugarcoat the facts that contribute to the wrong choice.
Prioritization is one of the most important elements in assessing different options for action. Think about what is most important to you: money, career, family, etc.
In addition, you need to estimate costs, since this factor can have a serious impact on the effectiveness of a solution.
Most of us very often regret what we did, believing that we made the wrong choice. In fact, if you think soberly, you can come to the conclusion that there are no right and wrong decisions. If you are determined to achieve goals, and this goal is a priority and important, all actions towards it will be absolutely correct. Choosing the right solution is a rather subjective concept, so be guided by your desires.
Situations often arise that the choice can be postponed until certain details are clarified in the event that the delay will not cause any damage. However, you can fall into the trap when new facts complicate the decision-making process more and more, unexpected information arises that requires clarification. Such a paradoxical effect is manifested in the fact that the more effort and perseverance you put into achieving a result, the worse everything turns out for you. Or in other words, the longer you solve a problem, the more obscure facts emerge in this case.
Time limits the ability to analyze anyway different options... Refusing a choice is also a definite decision, although it can often be the most ineffective. For example, if you cannot choose between two professions that suit you, then you risk ending up unemployed or becoming an unskilled laborer. In such a situation, any option will be more profitable for you than refusing to choose. And if you still cannot decide, then it would be better to make a decision at random than to refuse it.
There are times when a hasty decision leads to collapse. In such situations, it is best to wait a while to assess the problem. However, it must be remembered that it is also impossible to delay the moment of making a decision for a long time (especially with regard to work), since you may either be outstripped, or the situation may worsen. And then you will regret not making your choice earlier. Only people in high positions can allow themselves to think in detail about various options, since they know that no one else can make a decision.
Solving a serious problem does not have to be done solely on your own. You can always consult with your friends or family. The task voiced several times clarifies the situation as a whole, and it will be much easier for you to find a simple and ingenious way out of this situation. Plus, the people you're talking to can provide some really good advice. The only point is that you should not tell everyone and everyone about your problems, because this way you will not come to anything, but only spend a lot of time on useless complaints. Plus, everyone is willing to give advice, and too much advice will easily overwhelm you.
If you are used to relying on the opinions of loved ones, then in situations that require prompt action, you can imagine in your head what your friend would advise you. This kind of internal dialogue can be incredibly helpful in many cases.
When making decisions, ignore emotions that are aimed at achieving quick results. This false zeal can play a trick on you. In order to avoid possible negative consequences, you should use the Suzie Welch "10-10-10" method, which is to assume where your decision will lead in 10 minutes, 10 months and 10 years.
Always look for alternative options. You should not completely give preference to one idea alone, blindly believing in its correctness. Come up with at least a few more options in order to compare with your first. Imagine that the original idea simply does not exist, and think about what you will do in such a situation. You will definitely find a few more alternatives.
If you still can't decide 100%, go to bed, and overnight you can get a great solution. This is due to the fact that our subconscious mind knows all possible ways out of this situation. During sleep, a continuous process of analysis will take place, and in the morning your subconscious mind can give you the best option. Before you go to bed, ask yourself a question again, and then put a pen and a leaf next to you. This is necessary in order to quickly fix some thought, if necessary.
Do not ignore intuition ( methods of developing intuition), because our inner voice makes mistakes much less often than our minds. Therefore, before making a decision, try to listen to your feelings. If you are experiencing any discomfort, then it is worth reconsidering other options.
Now you know what helps you make the right decision. Let's take a look at how to stick with the chosen option.
How to follow the decision
Once you have made a decision, act immediately without delay, as any kind of delay will only reduce your chances of achieving success... Plus, you are sowing the seeds of a bad habit of constantly putting things off for later, which is fraught with the fact that you will never achieve the intended result.
Remember that changing your mind after you're halfway to your goal is at least ineffective. Be true to your original views. This will build confidence that you are doing everything right, and success will not be long in coming. However, be on the lookout. If you realize that your path is clearly leading to failure, it is best to abandon it as early as possible. Remember that even successful entrepreneurs change course very often. Find a balance between flexibility and tenacity. In this case, you will move towards the goal persistently, while you will be able to quickly change the plan of action without much loss for yourself.
Finally, it should be noted that in order to learn to make the right decisions personal experience should be used. In doing so, be guided by the above tips, because your decisions may not be correct in 100% of cases. The constant change of the surrounding reality makes you change too. So be flexible in the process of choosing the right solution. Remember that your methods can fail, no matter how ideal they seem to you. Experiment more and take tactical steps that are unusual for you, because the comfort zone in which you are used to being leads to degradation. Personal experience- one of the most loyal advisers.
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The whole life of a person consists of a series of decisions made - big and small. The whole future life depends on some of them. Many people find it difficult to make choices. Let's figure out how to make the decision-making process most effective, and what methods can be used in this case.
Every day life presents us with a choice, throwing up a variety of tasks. What to cook for breakfast? What suit to wear to work? Which phone should I buy? Where to go to rest during your vacation? Should I agree to a marriage proposal or wait? Quit your job or stay? There are decisions that don't really affect anything, but there are those that radically change your life.
All people behave differently when making decisions. There is a category of people who are called "do not care". They never suffer from choice, because they prefer the first one they come across or the most simple option... They put on the clothes that are the first to get out of the closet, go on a date with the one who is the first to invite, get a job that is easiest to get a job, etc. These people believe that life itself will put everything in its place, so they do not worth the strain.
Another category of people is guided by intuition when making important decisions. These personalities always listen to their inner voice and do not doubt the correctness of the decisions made. However, there are not very many such people.
The majority of people are individuals who have difficulty making choices. They suffer, doubt, weigh each option, but still cannot make a final decision. And when the decision is made, they continue to doubt its correctness. If you belong to the category of such people and do not know how to make a decision, if in doubt, then it will be useful for you to study several methods to facilitate the selection process.
Method 1. "Descartes Square"
The essence of the method is to look at the problem before you from four different angles. To do this, you need to ask yourself 4 questions. Take a piece of paper and divide it into four pieces to make a square. In each part, write one of the questions:
- What good will I get if I fulfill my plans?
- What good will I get if I refuse to fulfill my plans?
- What bad will I get if I fulfill my plans?
- What bad will I get if I refuse to fulfill my plans?
Think and write the answer to the question in each square. Having listed all the pros and cons of the implementation of the conceived and of the refusal to implement, you will be able to understand which decision you better make.
If you do not know how to act in a particular situation and stop doubting, tell the two closest people about the problem and ask them for advice. Popular wisdom says that each person has his own guardian angel, who protects and guides him on the right path. The Guardian Angel gives hints through intuition. If a person has poorly developed intuition, then the angel can convey a hint through a loved one. Hence the recommendation to ask for advice from the two closest people.
Method 3. "Expanding the scope"
The problem for most people is that they push themselves into narrow boundaries and see no alternatives. They tend to dwell on Yes and No options, not realizing that there are other choices. Let's say you want to borrow a car. You see only two options for choosing - take a car on credit or continue using public transport.
As you expand the selection, you will see alternatives. For example: you can find a cheaper car and buy it no longer on credit; you can refuse a loan and start saving money to buy a car; you can rent a house closer to work and not use public transport; you can change jobs altogether by getting a job in another company located close to your home; you can arrange with one of your colleagues to take you to work in his car for a certain fee. As you can see, there can be many options, the main thing is to see them.
Method 4. "Disappearance of options"
Imagine that the option you like the most is not available. For example, the company you want to work for has ceased to exist. Think about what to do in this case. Thinking in this vein, you will discover other, no less interesting options regarding new job that you haven't seen before because you are stuck on one.
Method 5. "A glass of water"
The author of this technique is the American parapsychologist Jose Silva - the founder of the "Silva Method", the author of books on non-traditional psychology. He suggests the following: in the evening before going to bed, pour clean, unboiled water into a glass. Take the glass with both hands, close your eyes, focus on the problem that is of concern to you, and clearly formulate the question requiring a decision. Then, slowly, sip half a glass, mentally repeating something like this: "This is all I need to make the right decision."
Place the glass with the remaining water next to your bed and go to bed. In the morning after waking up, first of all, finish the water and thank your subconscious mind for the right decision. The solution may come immediately upon waking up or during the day. People who have tried this technique claim it works.
Method 6. "Delay"
If you can't make a choice and make a decision, give yourself a respite. When you are agitated and your brain is overwhelmed with information, making the right choices can be difficult. Remember how often in a hurry you made a wrong decision, and then regretted it? To prevent this from happening, take a break, calm down, once again carefully analyze the strong and weak sides of your choice. There are not many situations in life that require an instant decision, so don't be afraid to put it off for a while.
Method 7. "Have the information"
Before making a choice, try to find out as much information as possible about the option you are going to give preference to. If we are talking about buying a product, read reviews about it on the Internet. When deciding to change jobs, learn all about the position you are about to take and the people who worked there before you. If possible, seek out these people for first-hand information. You understand that the employer may not tell you about all the difficulties that await you, and a person who has already worked in this company is unlikely to conceal such information.
How the decision is more important you accept, the more responsible should be your approach to finding the information you need. This will save yourself from being deceived and prepare yourself for possible difficulties.
Method 8. "Throw Emotions"
Emotions greatly interfere with making the right decision, because they distort the vision of the situation. An emotionally agitated person is incapable of rational thinking. Therefore, make it a rule for yourself: never make decisions when you are at the peak of your emotions. Anger, fear, anger, as well as stormy joy, euphoria are bad advisers in decision-making.
If you are overcome with emotion, make no choice. Give yourself time to cool down, and then take a sober look at the situation. So you will save yourself from rash actions and their consequences.
How to get rid of emotions?
Even when you realize that emotions get in the way of making the right choices, you can't always get rid of them. To facilitate this process, use simple methods.
10/10/10
This way allows you to set aside momentary impulses and look at the situation in the long term. The essence of the method is to ask yourself three questions before making a decision:
- How do I feel about my choice in 10 minutes?
- How will I feel about my choice in 10 months?
- How will I feel about my choice in 10 years?
Let's say you want to borrow an expensive car. You apply for a loan and get behind the wheel of a brand new car. What do you think 10 minutes after purchase? You will surely be in euphoria, rejoicing at your purchase. But after 10 months, the joy will subside, and you will feel the full weight of the credit burden, you will face the need to limit yourself in many things. And in 10 years, when you finally pay off your debts, you will see that your car has aged and needs repair, or maybe you are already so tired of it that you want to sell it.
The 10/10/10 method can be used in any situation. It is great for helping to pacify emotions and look at the long-term consequences of your choice, so as not to regret what you did later.
Stay in the dark
A good way to calm your emotions is to just be in the dark. Psychologists have proven that twilight or complete darkness calms a person, helps to put his thoughts in order. Note that there is always bright lighting in jewelry stores. Do you think this is done so that gold and precious stones play better and shimmer in the rays of light? Not only for this. Marketers know that bright lights are more likely to cause a person to make impulsive purchases.
If you need to calm your emotions in order to make the right decision, sit for a while in a semi-dark or dark room, think again the consequences of your choice.
Breathe deeply
Deep breathing is another simple yet powerful technique for dealing with emotions. Take 10 deep and slow breaths and then ask yourself again, "Am I doing the right thing?"
Think about what you would recommend to a friend
To reduce emotions and cool the ardor, it is useful to look at the situation from the outside. Imagine that it is not you, but your friend, who is faced with the need to make a decision. What would you advise him to do in this situation?
Many people notice this feature: they give their acquaintances sensible and rational advice, but they themselves, getting into similar situations, behave extremely stupidly. This happens because looking at the problem from the outside, we see only the most essential. And when we ourselves find ourselves inside the problem, then a lot of all sorts of little things emerge, to which we attach too much importance.
The ability to abstract and look at the situation with an open mind gives a significant advantage when it is necessary to make the right choice.
Method 9. "Following life priorities"
Each person has his own life values, rules and priorities that influence his choice. Always stick to these values and you won't go wrong. For example, you are offered a choice of two positions: one of them is prestigious and highly paid, but requires a lot of feedback from you; the second is less prestigious and not with such a high salary, but you do not need to work overtime and you have a lot of free time. Which one to choose?
To make decisions without doubt and stress, be guided by your life priorities. If your family comes first, then choose a position that is not so prestigious and paid, but it will not steal your personal time that you can devote to loved ones. If your dream is to build a career, give preference to a prestigious and highly paid position that will help you move up the career ladder.
Method 10. "Intuition"
Intuition is a great tool that not everyone knows how to use. She can tell you a way out when rational methods have not brought the desired result. And it often happens like this: you make a choice based on logic and rationality, and this choice seems to you the most correct, and the inner voice stubbornly protests against it. Maybe you should listen to him?
Develop intuition, and it will become an excellent assistant in different situations, but do not overestimate its role and do not forget about reason and logic.
Once in a situation of choice, use any of the listed methods, or better apply several at once. Over time, you will understand which method works best for you, and you can use it in a wide variety of life situations... By learning to make decisions, you will significantly improve the quality of your life.