The Ultimate Guide to Decision Making
Have you got a decision to make?
There are six things to know about decision making.
1. You don’t have to do anything.
You don't have to go to work.
You don't have to change your clothes everyday.
You don't have to pursue your goals.
You don't have to wash your hair.
You don't have to be in a relationship.
You don't have to make food for your kids.
You don’t have to follow the law.
You don’t have to pay your taxes.
Everything is a choice – with consequences.
What you think you have to do, you are actually choosing to do.
There are no rules.
2. There is no right decision.
There’s no right business.
No right partner.
No right diet.
No right city.
No right idea.
There is only the option you make right.
Whatever option you choose is the right one because YOU are choosing it.
You are the common denominator.
YOU are the magic pill that will make it all work.
Everything you do and wherever you go is the right decision because YOU are there.
You can’t get it wrong.
Because regret, just like every other emotion, comes from the thoughts you choose to think.
You get to choose how you feel about your decisions.
And you don’t have to experience regret unless you want to.
3. Making a “bad” decision isn’t nearly as bad as worrying about making a bad decision.
The worry is agonising.
Flip-flopping back and forth.
Asking everyone else for their opinion.
Writing endless pros/cons lists. Losing sleep.
Worrying is already the worst decision you can make.
You think by waiting and worrying, you’re giving yourself more time to make the right decision. But really, you’re just giving yourself more time to procrastinate your goal.
I once bought some clothes online that had a 100-day return policy. I agonised for literally 99 days over the decision, an ended up sending them back on the last day. UGH. So draining. I wish I had ripped the tags off the day they arrived, or even just sent them back immediately.
Either option could have been perfect from day 1, if I had decided it was.
I didn’t need to wait 99 days to make that choice.
So simply decide, and then get to work to sell yourself on why that’s the best decision for you.
4. Deciding is the key to feeling confident with your decision.
You keep waiting to decide because you’re waiting to feel sure about your decision.
Deciding IS what will make you feel sure.
Backing yourself, no matter what you choose, is how you assure yourself. And you can always change your mind later. But right now, just pick something.
You’re capable. You don’t need to outsource the decision to your mum or check with your husband first.
You have all the information you need.
Don’t wait – you’ve been waiting all your life.
And despite common practice, it’s not more virtuous to weigh up every tiny option and lose sleep before you decide.
Quite the opposite: high performers make quick decisions, and then back themselves no matter the outcome.
Don’t wait to feel sure about it first. You might never feel sure.
Decide first. Then feel sure.
5. Decide based on the biggest gains, not the biggest losses.
If either decision could work out perfectly, which decision do you prefer?
Which option do you WANT to see work out? That’s the easiest one to choose.
You’re far more likely to take action on a goal you want to see work out, and therefore far more likely to see it work out.
You can always get your head on board with what your heart wants, but it’s much harder to get your heart on board with what your head wants.
6. Make a Default Decision.
After coaching hundreds of people on making decisions, I’ve come up with an effective decision making formula called Default Decision Making.
How most people make decisions:
Research all the options
Compare them in a pro/con list
Agonise about what to do
Make a decision because of a deadline.
This is ineffective and exhausting.
How to use Default Decision Making:
Make a decision immediately (the default decision)
Compare alternative options against the default decision to see if I like it enough to change my decision.
This technique means you always have a decision.
It’s never “up in the air”.
E.g. If I don’t know what to have for dinner, I make a decision immediately (pizza) and then compare – is there something I want more than pizza? If yes – I go with that. If no – then it’s pizza. At no point am I unsure what I’m having for dinner.
It doesn’t matter what decision you choose as your default.
The world’s highest performers ALWAYS have a decision.
What’s your default decision?
Remember: you can’t get it wrong.
How to Make a Vision Board With a Strategy
I’ve created the JUICIEST vision board training with a Notion Template for you to download.
It's my step-by-step walkthrough of how I make vision boards (spoiler: it's not just a bunch of pretty pictures, it's with a strategy to achieve the vision.)