How to be decisive?

We all have to take decisions, but doing so isn't easy. Why? As we face multiple challenges. Most importantly, a) lack of sufficient information, b) multiple options, c) impending risks etc. But how do we take decisions when faced of these overwhelming challenges? Let's discuss.

Prioritize

When faced with too many item which needs our attention, the best strategy is to identify those which we need to deal with immediately. This helps in decluttering our minds, thereby enabling us to focus for better execution.

Organize

We then need to organize all facts (data) about the issue in hand to make an informed decision. Absence of relevant facts can distort our vision, thereby enhancing the chances of us making mistakes.

Analyse

Analyzing the data in hand is very important. It helps us in identifying all the pros and cons of our decision. Weighing the pros against the cons empowers us to make the right decision.

Synthesize

Sometimes analyzing the data in hand become very difficult. It may be due to insufficiency of facts, or pros balancing out the cons- making it hard for us to take decision. When faced with such situation, relying on some basic "self defined rules" come very handy. These rules are like light house - helping us navigate the uncertainties.

Maximize

The rules of decision making should be such that it maximizes the overall value of all the stakeholders involved (not just us alone). Doing so will enable us to minimize mistakes.Why? The decisions which enhances the value of all stakeholders are more likely to be correct.

Summarize

To ensure nothing falls between the cracks we much summaries the rationale of our decisions in simple words before we execute. This will help us avoiding inadvertent mistakes. This rationale should be simple, easy, and clear. More importantly it should be consistent to the rules that we end up defining for ourselves.

Being decisive tantamount to being effective. More importantly we have to ensure that the risk of decisions going wrong are minimized. Even if some of our decisions do not turn out to be correct, at least we will not loose our peace of mind, as we will have the satisfaction that we earnestly tried to maximize the gains for all the stakeholders.