All of us have made decisions that have not produced good results. Many people live with deep regrets over things they have done or said in the past and how those things may have changed the course of their lives. How many times have you heard;

1. If I could only go back and change ……
2. If I only had a time machine and could go back to …….
3. If I only had or hadn’t done or said ………

Most of the time, the regrettable action was a result of a bad decision. But we all make decisions that turn out to be the wrong choice. Do they bring lifelong regrets? No! So, what is the difference? Look at the definitions below.

Bad Decision: A decision that was made without first putting it through a thorough decision-making process.

Ernie was at a work party and had quite a lot to drink. As he was getting ready to leave, he wondered if he should attempt the drive home. He decided that it would be ok as long as he was careful. He veered over into the other lane and caused a terrible accident. There was one fatality and a crippling injury. Something that Ernie had to live with and caused regret for the rest of his life.

Now we know it was a wrong choice, but what made it a bad decision? It was a bad decision because he didn’t put it through a solid decision-making process. I am sure had he done that, he would have chosen differently.

Wrong Choice: A decision that was made using a solid decision-making process that didn’t pan out to be the right choice.

            Barry had two job offers. He took his time and put it through a very thoughtful decision-making process. He took the job that he felt would be best for him and his family. Just two months after he started the new job, his supervisor left and someone else took the position. He and Barry did not mesh well and Barry was pretty unhappy with his job. Now, he felt bad he chose that job, but life happens. He did his part in making a good decision (remember the definition above), it just happened not to be the right choice.

            Do you see the difference? And by the way, using a solid decision-making process will, by far produce more good results and there is no shame in any decision if you take the time and effort to make it, a GOOD DECISION!.

So, what is included in a thorough decision-making process? Here are a few steps to take. I am sure you can think of even more and of course, there are always situation-related issues to consider as well. We will use Barry’s decision as our example.

1. Make sure you have clarity on the decision that has to be made. Barry actually has three choices here unless he has already decided to leave his current job. He could stay where he is or take job offer A or B. For simplicity, let’s say he has already decided to leave his present job. So, the decision is, A or B.
2. Write down the pros and cons of both options. Notice I said to write them down. When decision time comes, you won’t want to rely on memory and visualization helps make things very clear. Now we are not just counting the pros and cons as some may have a lot more weight than others. Underlining or putting a * beside the weightier ones helps with determining the importance.
3. Seek advice from those you trust. This should not be sought in the form of “What would you do?” or “What should I do?” but rather just seeing if their additional thoughts may add some other facts that you hadn’t considered.
4. Consider others that may be affected by the decision. In Barry’s case, the most obvious people would be his family. Would they have to move meaning his wife getting a new job also and the kids changing schools? These things should be carefully examined and discussed.
5. Keep the timeline for the decision in mind. If there is a given timeline, do your research and have your conversations well ahead of the deadline. If there is no given deadline, create one. Unless you are waiting for more details or other information, look at the facts and set a time to have your decision made. Dragging decisions out can often create uncertainty and doubts. Don’t rush if you don’t have to, but don’t procrastinate either.

I would love to hear your comments on this blog. I certainly hope it helped.