there are lots of ways to make a
decision you could flip a coin you could
follow your heart or you could just make
a choice at random and hope for the best
that's probably okay for small decisions
but what about more important ones it's
better to think carefully about your
options and consider the many paths you
could take with the right tools you can
learn to do this objectively so you can
make decisions that you feel good about
here are some strategies that can help
the first step to making any decision is
simple identify the problem as an
example say you're trying to choose
between two different apartments one is
cheaper but farther away from work the
other is closer a hand nicer but much
more expensive which one would you
choose depending on what you value you
probably have some idea this initial
response the one tied to your instincts
and emotions is perfectly valid however
you should also try to look at your
options rationally start by comparing
them there are several ways to do this
for example you could list all the
factors that you're considering things
like price location and other amenities
then choose the one thing that's most
important to you with that in mind which
option comes out on top
you could go one step further and create
a point system take that same list and
turn it into a scorecard for each option
in this example that means apartment one
would score high on affordable rent
let's say a ten but much lower on
location apartment two would score about
the opposite keep going down the list
until you've scored every item being as
objective as you can then add up the
totals and maybe you have a winner
looking at it another way you could
evaluate one option at a time with a
list of pros and cons it sounds simple
but sometimes it helps to write these
things down this time it's okay to be
subjective certain factors can and
should carry more weight than others
it's how you feel about them that counts
so be honest about what these things
mean to you imagining possible outcomes
might give you some perspective on the
decision say you're thinking about
adopting a dog what do you think the
consequences might be in a month in a
year how about several years from now
making decisions can be a rollercoaster
ride especially when there are long-term
consequences to think about we can't see
into the future but we can try to be
prepared at this point it's normal to
feel overwhelmed even stuck with so much
to consider how do you know you're
making the right choice there are two
more techniques that can help you fire
up your brain and trick it into thinking
differently try this one the two-minute
diversion distract yourself with a
two-minute activity that you find
moderately difficult maybe you like
playing mobile games or solving math
problems for fun whatever works for you
believe it or not you'll continue to
process the decision unconsciously
according to brain imaging research by
Carnegie Mellon University this brief
window of time helps you internalize
important details so you can make better
more insightful decisions
sometimes it helps to step outside
yourself and pretend you're helping
someone else
studies show were able to think more
objectively in third-person that's why
it's easier to give advice than it is to
receive it if a friend or family member
was struggling with the same decision
what questions would you ask them what
compromises would you suggest really
think about it
adopting a different point of view might
help you see the situation in a whole
new way making decisions isn't like
taking a test there are no right or
wrong answers per se it just depends on
the situation
focus on taking the time to think about
your options and what you hope to
achieve so you can feel confident about
the choices you make it's not as easy as
flipping a coin but it's worth the extra
effort GCF global creating opportunities
for a better life