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4 Steps to Making Better Decisions
Have you ever experienced the regret that comes with a decision that was made in haste or was not well thought-out? Or, have you been a part of a group that doesn't come to any conclusions on issues that are critical to their success?.
Several years ago I had the good fortune of participating in a workshop lead by the Institute for Cultural Affairs on the subject of focused conversations. In this workshop I learned four powerful steps to take in the form of four questions that will lead individuals or groups to better decisions.
Each question asked flows from the way our brains work naturally. When we are driving down the road and a deer stands at the side of the road we quickly size of the situation with objective data, how far is the deer from my car, do I see other deer nearby? After we "size" up the situation we think quickly of how this makes us feel in this situation often with statements like "Oh no or %$#@!" This is the reflective stage when our feelings try to make sense of this situation or "danger" in this case. After we get in touch with our feelings we determine the significance of the situation or we try and interpret our data and feelings and finally we make a decision to step on the accelerator or slam on the brakes.
While this process may happen quickly for individuals making a decision, it is fascinating how often groups are unable to follow this process, and therefore, reach no decisions or make a poor decision. I believe the fast pace of our work lives is not allowing us to take the time to ask these four simple questions of a group when they need to process information and make a sound decision. Let's look at the process again as it relates to closing a division of a company:
1) What is the objective data that tells us a change is needed? What is our external reality? /What happened? (Make sure as a leader of these questions that you ask open ended questions versus closed questions that only get "yes" or "no"responses.)
2) Reflect on how this information or data makes you feel? What do you remember from past experiences? Where were you surprised? (It is easy to skip this step because if appears "touchy feely" but it is critical to tie the data to feelings so that the group can move on to the next step successfully.)
3) What does all of this mean to us? What are we learning from this or how do we interpret this?
4) What decision is called for? What are the next steps? (Make sure you do not force the group to make a decision here or push them too soon. If they are not ready, it is often because they did not spend enough time in question #2 reflecting on feelings.)
So, when should you use this process? The applications are limitless at home or work...
reviewing a year, evaluating a marketing plan, preparing the agenda for a meeting, putting together a budget, coaching a colleague, calming an upset customer....just to name a few!
Question For You: Do you often experience groups that do not have a great process of reflecting on information as they often quickly jump to a decision or make no decision at all?
Call to Action: While all decisions may not allow the time for this type of reflection, most critical personal and professional decisions will see better results when using these four powerful questions as part of the decision making process. As the Nike saying goes..."Just Do It" and you will be amazed at the quality of decisions you are making which in the end leads to better results.
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