With so many decisions to make in an average working day, learning to prioritise them is essential to success and happiness. Image: File.
Travis Bradberry has advice for those who, during the course of a hectic workday, sometimes feel they are overwhelmed by the number of decisions they must make.
Your days are filled with a constant stream of decisions. A study from Columbia University found that we’re bogged down by a good 70 decisions a day.
Some are minor, like what to eat, which route to drive to work, or in what order to tackle tasks.
Others are more difficult, like deciding between two job offers, whether to move to a new city for someone you love, or whether to cut a toxic person out of your life.
With so many decisions, learning to prioritise them and make them effectively is essential to your success and happiness.
While I’m familiar with many strategies successful people use for effective decision-making, what follows are the cream of the crop.
They turn small decisions into routines: Decision-making works like a muscle: as you use it over the course of the day, it gets too exhausted to function effectively.
One of the best strategies to get around decision fatigue is to eliminate smaller decisions by turning them into routines. Doing so frees up mental resources for more complex decisions.
Former US president Barack Obama once said: ”You’ll see I wear only grey or blue suits. I’m trying to pare down decisions.
“I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing, because I have too many other decisions to make.”
They make big decisions in the morning: When facing a stream of important decisions, a great trick is to wake up early and work on your most complicated tasks when your mind is fresh.
A similar strategy is to do some of the smaller things the night before to get a head start on the next day. For instance, lay out your outfit at night so you don’t even have to think about it when you wake up.
They pay attention to their emotions: There’s a saying: ‘‘Don’t make permanent decisions based on temporary emotions.”
Successful people recognise and understand their emotions (including their intensity and impact on behaviour) so they are able to look at decisions as objectively and rationally as possible.
Strong decision-makers know that a bad mood can make them lash out or stray from their moral compass just as easily as a good mood can make them overconfident and impulsive.
They evaluate their options objectively: When really wrapped up in a decision, successful people weigh their options against a pre-determined set of criteria because they know this makes decision-making easier and more effective.
How does this decision benefit me? How does it hurt me? How does this benefit ___? How does it hurt ___? Does the decision reflect my values? Would I regret making/not making this decision?
They sleep on it: Sleeping on your decision ensures that you have clarity of thought when you approach it the next day. It also allows time for your emotions to run their course.
When you act too quickly, you tend to react, but when you give more focus and time to your decision, you expose important facets you didn’t see before.
They use exercise to recharge: The stress of a major decision naturally produces cortisol, the chemical that triggers the fight-or-flight response. Cortisol clouds your ability to think clearly and rationally.
When you find yourself stressing about a decision, try exercising. As little as 30 minutes is all it takes to get a good endorphin-fuelled buzz and return to mental clarity.
Exercise also helps you get past that fight-or-flight state by putting the cortisol to practical use.
They always go back to their moral compass: Successful people know the importance of sticking to their morals when making an important decision.
Morals serve as trusted guides when your emotions are pulling you in a different direction.
They seek outside advice: When approaching a decision, we have a natural tendency to pick an alternative and then to gather information to support that decision (this is called confirmation bias).
A great way to beat this is to seek outside opinions and advice from people who bring different perspectives to your situation.
Their perspectives help you weigh your options more objectively and to spot your subjective or irrational tendencies.
With repercussions that can last days, weeks, and even years, making great decisions is an effort that’s worth every bit of your time and energy.
Travis Bradberry is the award-winning co-author of the bestselling book Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and the co-founder of TalentSmart. His books have been translated into 25 languages and are available in more than 150 countries. He can be contacted at TalentSmart.com. This article first appeared on the TalentSmart website.
