The Challenge of Decision Making
Decision-making is one of the most challenging tasks people face daily. While choosing what to eat for breakfast can be daunting for some, I’m referring to the decisions that shape our lives or, in some cases, drive us. Most decisions are guided by two primary forces: pleasure and pain.
These forces can be summarized simply. We often choose to do something or avoid something based on whether the decision will bring pleasure or pain. For example, filling out college applications is a tedious task without the guarantee of a desired outcome. By procrastinating, a person avoids the pain of the application process. Conversely, submitting the application early allows a person to avoid the anxiety of waiting, which brings relief and pleasure.
It’s crucial to identify which force drives you—pleasure or pain. Personally, I do everything I can to avoid pain. I mitigate negative outcomes by tackling tasks head-on, even if they aren’t my favorite. I would feel worse for not having done them. Thus, my decisions are driven 90% by pain avoidance. As the saying goes, “Sometimes you have to eat the frog.”
Becoming a Decision Maker
Decision-making is a skill that improves with practice. In truth, there’s often a 50/50 chance of making a correct or incorrect choice. Most decisions don’t require extensive deliberation, though some big ones—like where to live, whom to be with, or what career to pursue—deserve careful thought. But don’t shy away from deciding.
I believe that fear of making the wrong choice causes most people to procrastinate. However, consider this: only 30% of first-round NFL draft picks sign a second contract with the team that drafted them. You have less than an 8.1% chance of winning more than five dollars on a lottery ticket. Political prognosticators had a 26% success rate in choosing the correct candidate. So, a 50% success rate in decision-making puts you at the top of the class. The more decisions you make, the better you become at making them. As Tom Petty said in his song “Crawling Back to You,” “Most things I worry about never happen anyway.”
Take Action This Week
This week, clear out unfinished business. Keep an active to-do list. My iPhone has a weekly reminder list with each day of the week on it. All tasks that need to be accomplished are listed under Monday. As I complete each task, it gets crossed off, and any tasks left undone move to the top of the list for the next day. New tasks are added to the bottom. The tasks I least want to do get done first—eat the frog!
At my office, we have a saying: it’s either done or not done. Results are all that matter. We’ve also adopted the online task management system Monday.com, which has proven incredibly useful for managing group tasks and having a centralized board for each person’s duties and responsibilities. If it can be measured, it can be managed.
Strive for Purpose
Success in life and business runs parallel. Strive for a purpose-driven life in both your personal and professional realms. The union of both leads to a fulfilling, uncompromised existence. My wish is for everyone to find purpose in what they do and to be content with who they are becoming.
