Learning the ways to become more decisive is a necessary skill that can determine if we fail or succeed in life. As humans, the quality of our lives is mainly dependent on the quality of our decisions.
This implies that our success and failures, positive and negative experiences, are influenced by our decisions in a way.
What Is Decisive Thinking?
Decisive thinking is simply the process of analyzing and comprehending information to a point where intelligent and logical decisions can be made and executed to solve pending problems and challenges.
Acquiring the mindsets, thought patterns, and mentality of an effective decisive thinker is a skill that is highly needed in confronting challenges. Moreover, the skill of making quick, rational, and intelligent decisions can be used in diverse spheres.
In leadership, in building and managing relationships, in planning and execution, amongst many other fields. As a person who is intentional about their growth and self-improvement, using available information to structurally birth solutions is highly critical to success.
Proof of the importance of having this skill is based on the results of studies that have shown that most employers are interested in ensuring that prospective employees possess this skill as it is part of the many strengths needed to build a successful business.
Part of the many factors that shows a decisive thinker is the ability to approach a problem based on intuition and a unique perspective/insight of the internal and external environment regarding that challenge.
How Do I Stop Being Indecisive?
You stop being indecisive by first deciding to remain determined and unmoved in your fight. It’s not a one-time thing! It’s a decision that you will need to make every day! If you will learn how to be decisive, then you must be intentional about it!
Make a firm decision that you will not quit until you make faster and smarter decisions under the most demanding situations and circumstances. Anyone can learn how to be decisive. For some, the skill is inherent, almost like second nature. For others, the skill is learned.
However, anyone can learn to be decisive with the proper guidance and needed support. A great way to learn how to be decisive is by exposing your mind to the knowledge necessary to build that skill.
In this article, I will show you simple steps, techniques, and methods that, when applied effectively, can help you master how to be decisive and help you make smarter decisions. Are you ready? Let’s go!
1. Be Intentional About Being Decisive
Becoming more decisive requires that you first decide to be intentional about dealing with indecisiveness! Your being intentional is proof of how serious-minded and determined you are.
Most people do things without any iota of intentionality on their part. A sign of being intentional is an intense desire or hunger for results.
Remember that this isn’t just about you. It’s about becoming a stronger, better, and more powerful version of yourself. If being a more potent decision maker will help you become that person, you will need to gain that skill.
Being intentional means that you are ready to make any and every form of sacrifice needed to get what you want. Decide that you will do anything in your power to be more decisive. If it means cutting out certain activities or putting certain things on hold, then go ahead.
If you need to make daily affirmations to remind yourself, then please go ahead. If you need to do long hours of research or practicalize what you have learned, then, by all means, do it!
2. Don’t Be Afraid Of Making The Wrong Decisions
In a world like ours with all its technological and innovative advancements, you might still wonder, “why are people not decisive?” Most times, the reason why people remain indecisive is as a result of fear.
They fear making mistakes or making the wrong decisions. As a potent decision-maker, fear is an adversary that you will encounter every time. However, choosing not to decide because of a fear of making the wrong decision is already a bad decision.
Sometimes, the fear of making wrong decisions is caused by a previous occurrence of the adverse effects of poor judgments. It can become a huge limitation, especially when it exists on a subconscious plan.
The phobia for mistakes immobilizes you. It makes you do nothing and leaves you in a stagnant spot that makes progress extremely difficult in a forward direction.
If you allow yourself to be crippled by the fear of making poor decisions, you will not only deprive yourself of life-changing opportunities, but you might also never become an expert in making the right ones.
So many people today are in regrets because they allowed their fear to stop them from making certain decisions that would have altered the course of their lives for the best if they had made those decisions. Refuse to be one of them!
One of the very first things you need to get rid of once you decide to learn how to be decisive is to get rid of fear. Like I said earlier, nothing cripples growth and progress like fear. So if you are going to master how to be decisive, you will have to kiss fear goodbye.
3. Own Your Mistakes And Learn From Them
“To make no mistakes is not in the power of man, but from their errors and mistakes, the wise and good learn wisdom for the future”- Plutarch. Mistakes are a part of growth, and anyone who will become successful in any field will make tons of mistakes.
However, making mistakes isn’t as bad as we make it look or seem. A sign that you might be on the right track is that you will make mistakes. However, making mistakes is not enough. You must also take responsibility for them and make efforts to build improvements.
So how do people practice being decisive? Simple! By learning from their mistakes and ensuring that they do not make that same mistake again.
A famous quote by Steve Denn says that “You can never make the same mistake twice because the second time you make it, it’s not a mistake, it’s a choice.”
This shows that the best thing you can do about your mistakes is to own them. Take responsibility for your errors and learn from them. The most brilliant people who make quick and intelligent decisions were not always so smart. Most of them failed at some point.
Meaning they made more dumb mistakes than you can imagine. Nevertheless, they always learned from their mistakes and came back stronger and wiser.
Steven Paul Jobs, who was an American business magnate, industrial designer, investor and media proprietor, chief executive officer (CEO), and co-founder of Apple Inc, was known for being a strong and highly skilled decision-maker.
For a man of his caliber, being able to make fast and intelligent decisions was a needed skill for his career and success. But that wasn’t always the case.
When he was younger, he was a chronicle of mistakes, but that did not change the narrative at the end of the day. He went on to become one of the most iconic and revolutionary persons in the technology industry.
The problem isn’t about making mistakes because everyone makes mistakes. The problem is if you are willing to learn as much as you can from your mistakes. Ponder on this quickly. How willing am I to learn from my mistakes?
Your answer will show how much you desire growth. If you want to know how to be decisive, then you must accept, take responsibility, and learn from your mistakes. That’s how all successful people grow. They learn from their mistakes, and if they did, you can too!
4. Avoid Folks Who Make Foolish Decisions
Ever heard the saying, “He who walks with the wise becomes wise?” The same goes for walking with the foolish. You become a fool too! Our circle and the people we spend our time with have a massive influence on the quality of our decisions.
Stupid people will always make foolish decisions, and if you hang around them, you are bound to suffer the same fate. The kind of people you hang out with matters a lot!
Haven’t you noticed that successful people have a clique of successful friends? It isn’t a coincidence that you find influential and wealthy people in similar environments.
As an individual who is intentional about success and growth, you need to pay strict attention to the people you spend more time with! It matters! The quality of your relationships with people can determine how fast and how far your life can go!
Make efforts to study and watch your friends closely once you begin to notice a streak of intentionally foolish decisions and an attitude that does not sponsor learning and improvement. Separate yourself from such an individual.
Such an approach to life portrays toxicity and irresponsibility. It shows that such an individual has no plans of becoming a better person, and soon enough, if you continue to spend time with such individuals, you might also become as they are.
Birds of a feather flock together after all, and you shouldn’t expect any difference in your relationship with people.
Listen, only wise people care about the kind of people they move with! This means that reading this article is a sign that you are wise enough to avoid foolish and unproductive relationships!
Evidence that you have mastered how to be decisive is that you will be very interested in the quality of relationships you have with your family members, friends, and even acquaintances.
Make efforts to scrutinize and cross-check the thought patterns of the people you spend your time with consistently. Do not hesitate to cut off relationships that do not yield positive results for your growth and personal development! Choose to be wise every day!
5. Practice Making Decisions On A More Consistent Basis
The easiest way to get better at anything and become a master of any skill, art, or activity is consistent and intentional practice. The same applies to learning how to be decisive. If an activity, skill, or art is good enough to be involved in, then it is also good to be an expert at it.
A great way to improve is by practicing the art of making good decisions. Sometimes, try to imagine yourself in difficult situations and circumstances and try making the best decisions. Then, monitor your results and responses and grade yourself.
An excellent way to do this is by using simple situations like choosing an outfit for an event. You can also yourself questions like, ” would this kind of outfit be great for an event like this?” “How do I want to appear in the eyes of people? ” Will this outfit give off a good impression of my personality?”
As simple as the above questions are, they can be the reason why you make intelligent decisions. You can also practice this by using simple scenarios like a decision for what to eat for dinner or a time for an appointment! Grab and take advantage to make a decision.
The best way to become a better decision-maker is by making more decisions! When attempting to make a decision, weigh and consider the possible factors involved that can make your decision better. Ask yourself as many thought-provoking questions as possible.
Once you begin to practice making decisions on a more frequent note, you will become smarter in your decision-making approach.
6. Think And Research Before Making Decisions
When it comes to making intelligent decisions, “knowledge is power” holds true. One of the ways of learning how to be decisive is to be well informed before making a decision. You have to equip yourself with enough information and indulge in critical thinking.
However, since most people do not have sufficient information, they usually fall victim to their ignorance, making it very easy for them to make unnecessary mistakes.
To prevent such a mistake, you might want to yield to the advice of knowing as much as you can about a problem before taking any decision, especially in life-changing situations. The great thing is that existing in an age like this gives you a huge advantage.
With the touch of a finger, you can get easy access to as much information as you need! The existence of the internet has made things way easier.
The next time you are faced with a difficult situation that requires a clever decision, go into long hours of research. Gather as much information as possible.
When you do this, ideas and techniques that you can use to make a better decision will come! You can research by reading books, listening to audiobooks, watching YouTube or Ted talks, and even buying courses!
So as long as it will expose you to more information before making a decision, do it!!! Do not hesitate to use the library if you need to. Do not be afraid to invest your time and money if you need more information before deciding.
After your research, ensure to read long and hard before you make a decision. there are so many reasons why you need to think before you make any decisions. It will not only save you from mistakes and errors, but it will also prevent you from wasting your time and your available resources!
7. Learn To Simulate
Imagine and predict possible outcomes of your decisions. When combined with sufficient research, this tip can be a game-changer! This tip could be the reason why you fail or win!
Every strong decision-maker that I have ever studied was a master in the game of imaginative simulations and predictions.
Your ability to weigh present factors and predict possible outcomes of your decisions can be a skill that helps you learn how to be decisive, especially when you are brilliant.
You must learn to sit down and cross-check every possible tendency of the success and failure of your decision. Make efforts to consistently imagine what the consequence of a decision would look like. The principle of possibilities and probability governs our world. Your next decision hangs in the balance of the two.
However, life doesn’t leave you without an option. Instead, it leaves you with the option or advantage of cross-checking every possible result of a decision.
This is where the intelligence of making research comes in. If you research properly, you might be shocked to discover that you are not the first person to make a similar decision.
Your research can show you what the last person who made a similar decision experienced. It will help you know if they succeeded or failed. If the individual succeeded, it also means that you have a higher chance of success too!
If the individual failed, it means you can learn from the mistakes the person made and use that information to your advantage. For example, you can simulate by using models.
Each model can be used to represent key factors like possible or existing challenges, advantages, or key characteristics that can aid the success or failure of your decision in that circumstance.
Therefore, studying each model can help you make more accurate predictions, making it easier to make smarter and more intelligent decisions.
The game of making clever decisions in critical circumstances is one that you can play and win every day. If you put in the effort to master how to be decisive, you can live above failure and mistakes for the rest of your life.
8. Seek Professional Help And Counsel
This is another tip that you will find helpful. Now, you must keep in mind that making some decisions in certain fields can be quite tricky, especially in areas with limited knowledge. Even with your research, you might still not have sufficient information that will enable you to make smart decisions.
The best option at that point is to involve someone who knows better than you. Yes. It is wise to seek the help or counsel of a professional or an expert in a field you intend to decide about.
This is why wealthy and successful people have financial advisors to guide them on certain financial decisions and lawyers to guide them in legal matters. If you can afford it, hire experts in specific fields to work for you and seek their opinions before making certain decisions.
To prevent unnecessary loss, you should ensure that you practice and use this tip to your advantage. Make efforts to seek counsel from people you trust or those who are experts and professionals in the field of your decision.
It will help you develop different and diverse solutions when considering your options for a final decision. Ensure that you gather as many informative resources from them as possible so that you can make the best decision possible.
9. Make Efforts To Prevent Being Indecisive
The first part of this article talked about being intentional about your decision-making skills. To deal with indecision, you will need to be deliberate and determined about making the right decisions. I am sure that you think that indecision is the inability to make a decision, but no!
That isn’t true; indecision is a decision too! It is a choice not to decide on a matter! One of the struggles you will experience in your attempts to be decisive is that you might find yourself wanting to play safe and then choosing not to go left or right.
Decide today always to make a decision when you are confronted with a situation that demands one. Yes! Refuse to sit on the fence. Pick a side, learn from the consequences and move on! This attitude of wanting to play safe and sit on the fence with not help you or benefit you!
It is better to make a decision and fail than waste time not making one at all. I don’t believe that you suffer loss when you make the wrong decision. You might suffer the consequences, but the probability of you making the same mistakes has been reduced!
Make a conscious decision to refuse to sit on the fence! If you need to research and seek counsel before making a decision, please do so but refuse and avoid every form of indecision and skepticism.
Conclusion
Never forget that your life lies in your hands. This includes the quality of your decisions too. The direction and quality of your life are largely dependent on the decisions you make!
Most people live in regret simply because they failed to take responsibility for their lives by being more mindful and intentional about the quality of their decisions.
Do not repeat that mistake. Refuse to end up like them! Choose to be exceptional in every aspect of your life, including your decisions. Remember that you will not be the only personality that will bear the consequences of your choices.
Your friends, family, and loved ones might also suffer or enjoy the fruits of your decisions with you, and I doubt if you would love to see the people you cherish and care about in pain because of your irresponsibility or carelessness.
Keep in mind that you will bear the consequences of every decision you make. Hence it is your responsibility to ensure that you avoid making foolish decisions as much as possible.
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