How to Become a Confident Decision Maker

Decision making can be difficult, lead to procrastination, decision fatigue and sometimes post-decision remorse. How can we become a confident decision maker to benefit our life and well-being?

For some people making changes to their eating habits (even though they know it makes sense), comes right up against their perception of what makes us happy, how they have always eaten and drunk, how it affects our social life and the person we believe we are.

For example: “No, I cannot remove my nightly wines because that’s how I relax at the end of the day”, even though the habit is creating insomnia and an irritated digestion. Or, “if we don’t eat bread, I”m to busy to work out what am I going to give the kids to eat”.  Sometimes a little understanding around the topic is enough. For others it is a much harder choice and that creates stress and decision fatigue and remorse.

Do you have a hard time making choices? If you are still reading I suspect you are at least interested in learning more. Decision making dominates our every moment so the following may be of help.

Ruth Chang says on the Ted Radio Hour that “: I cannot make a decision to save my life,  I’m a terrible decision maker”. Then she goes on to say ” So what I should say is I used to be a terrible decision maker”.  Ruth Chang is a professor of philosophy at Rutgers University. She studies hard choices and here are her steps to confronting a difficult decision.

The first thing you have to do when you’re confronting a hard choice is to figure out what matters in the choice between the alternatives.

1. Write them down the choices you have.
2. Review them, their pros and cons – gather information on the subject to decide what matters the most and why.
3. Sometimes you still find you’re in a hard choice. Maybe there is no best answer or choice.
4. The next step is important. Commit to one of the options by creating a specific reason for your to pursue that option instead of the other.
5. Step 5 is a consequence. When you commit to something, you create your own identity. You make yourself into who you are.

Ruth reasons that committing to a decision not only helps you make the right choice but helps define who you are.

This is really useful in our health and lifestyle choices. Once you have made a decision create the habit to reduce decision fatigue.

Sometimes you may find decision making really hard because you are depressed and anxious . Specific herbs and supplements boost your mood and energy and help get you on a path to learn how to make great decisions.

I think most of us will agree that while we all have differing perspectives and knowledge on life, the most important tool is knowing your own self. This includes our health and living to our full potential, for ourselves and those around us.

Happy Decision Making