Applying your greater conscience to choices yields better results

I LISTENED intently this weekend as an acquaintance talked about the suffering in the world and his observation that most of it was caused by the bad choices of humankind.

Consciously or unconsciously we make choices from the time we wake each morning and these decisions can have a profound impact on ourselves and on those around us.

With that potential in mind, it occurred to me that I needed to apply a greater consciousness to the many, many, many decisions that I take every day and to the pitfalls that I might succumb to in the process.

Here are some mistakes we sometimes make when faced with making choices or taking decisions:

Mistake 1: Procrastinating

Sometimes we delay taking a decision because we are waiting for consensus or because we do not want to appear to be demanding or pushy.

We may also delay taking a decision because we know it will take us out of our comfort zones.

Procrastinating can leave others uncertain about our intentions and that can cause problems for them.

Mistake 2: Not Being Systematic

Making a decision can be exciting and stressful, so to help us deal with these emotions objectively, we need to use a structured approach, rather than relying on fate or instinct.

A logical and ordered process can help us address all of the critical elements needed for a successful outcome, and reduce the likelihood of overlooking important factors.

Being systematic means working through a decision logically. Psychologist Dr Carl Rogers suggested a five-stage decision-making process.

Consciously going through each of these stages when solving any complex problem can be very useful:

Stage 1: Exploration of the problem

Stage 2: Exploring alternative solutions

Stage 3: Choosing the best alternative

Stage 4: Planning and action ý Stage 5: Experimenting and gathering feedback

Mistake 3: Not involving stakeholders

When making an important decision that affects other people, we need to involve them or their representatives.

We sometime avoid this because we do not want to enter into a debate or because, deep down, we know that our decision may not be the best one and we do not want to face up to that.

The problem is that without stakeholder involvement, we inevitably make poorer decisions.

Mistake 4: Not Communicating Effectively

It may sound obvious but, once we have made a decision that affects others, we need to tell them about it quickly and clearly. Not communicating our decisions in a timely or appropriate way, can cause people to second-guess them or to misunderstand them.

We need to look at the people that our decision impacts. What information do they need, and what is the most engaging and interesting way we can communicate it?

Mistake 5: Carrying on Regardless

No one likes admitting to making the wrong decisions, particularly when we have invested heavily in a decision; time, money or other resources.

When, in our minds, “cutting our losses” means admitting that we have failed, we may choose to pursue a decisionpath even when all indications are that we need rethink it.

As I come to the end of this article, it has occurred to me that an effective litmus test of our decision-making is a simple question: “Will this decision make the world a better place?” Chances are good that if the answer is “no”, I may have made one of the mistakes listed above.