Do Successful People Make Better Decision Makers?

Many people often believe that success revolves around the ability of achieving goals. Our days and nights are literally filled with countless choices to made every single day. In fact, from a survey conducted by Columbia University, an individual will be placed and forced to make approximately 70 decisions each day (Tasler, 2012).

Of course, it’s obvious there will be constant smaller decisions to make regarding foods to eat and clothing to wear. But, there are also the bigger decisions. Going through the daily decision-making process can easily occupy a lot of time and effort. Successful people make use of abilities to prioritize and make those difficult decisions which eventually leads to happiness and success.

What about successful people and the decisions they make

You should think of the decision-making process as another muscle in your body. The more you use it the stronger it becomes. However, if you push it too hard it will experience fatigue. So, how do successful people get around that?

The strategy is that the smaller choices (like eating, getting dressed, and the route to work, etc) are no longer decisions at all, instead they become a routine. This allows you to use your mental resources more appropriately, for the complicated decisions.

A perfect example was Steve Jobs, who was known for his black turtleneck and jeans. He didn’t need to worry about his outfit because he wore the same thing every day. It was a simple routine that allowed him to reduce fatigue from the decision-making process.

On the other hand, former President Obama basically only wore a blue suit or a gray one. He simply reduced the number of decisions that he needed to make because he had greater decisions to worry about. This is a common path that the world’s most successful people choose.

The underline processes

So, how do they do it? How do successful people constantly make better decisions?

Decision fatigue is at its peak after work. So, the most effective time to make the most difficult decisions is in the morning. Your mind is at its freshest point and the complicated tasks should always be completed first. Ideally, you’ll get up early to deal with these decisions before distractions kick in.

Before the phone starts ringing and emails pour in, get it all done. You can also prepare for the following day by dealing with your clothing and breakfast, etc. This will remove the annoying decisions from your morning routine.

Successful people are also very aware of their emotions. They know where they are and understand how that can sway a decision. They can set them aside to look at a situation rationally and objectively. Unfortunately, most of us aren’t good at separating their emotions from the decision-making process. A bad mood can easily sway you into making a bad decision.

Additionally, successful people can evaluate an opinion (even their own) objectively. They can hold up a list of criteria and make an effective decision by weighing their options against the list.

That criteria set may include how will this decision benefit me and/or hurt me. Likewise, how will the decision benefit others/business and/or hurt? Is the decision in line with your values? Will you regret making it or not making it?

Successful people are also more likely to sleep on a decision before putting it into action. It gives them time to process emotions and factor in anything you may have missed. They don’t sleep on it for long, though. Letting too much time pass will only result in analysis paralysis.

Additionally, they’re not afraid to seek counsel from outside sources. Sometimes a different perspective is necessary. They bring all of that together and make the right decision every time. This is why they’re successful.

References

Tasler, N. (2012). What is your momentum factor? Psychology Today. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/strategic-thinking/201208/what-is-your-momentum-factor