How To Make Decisions: Just Do It

How to make decisions is a critical question on the minds of many leaders.  Some find it extremely difficult.  They take too long gathering facts. They are risk-averse and want 100% of the information before pulling the trigger. Many are simply afraid to fail.  

As leaders, we make decisions every day. They range from simple choices, like deciding where we go for lunch, to difficult ones, like making personnel changes.

My position: doing something is better than doing nothing at all.

There are times when a leader is faced with making a decision that can be so overwhelming that they become paralyzed. There are also times when small issues need to be resolved, but we ignore them because they seem insignificant. These are just a few examples of when you need to DO SOMETHING.

Too often people in leadership positions fail to follow the old Nike slogan of "Just Do It." They suffer from decision paralysis. They want to make the perfect decision and over-analyze the situation. But there can be a point of diminishing returns with decision making. If you know 80% of what you need to know to pull the trigger, is waiting to get the other 20% really worth it?  

Naturally, we need to base our decisions on a set of facts to avoid irrational decisions. But when all the information is not available, sometimes doing something is better than doing nothing. When you do nothing, you'll get a 100% predictable result – nothing. When making a decision with most, but perhaps not all, of the facts, base your decision on doing the right thing. Typically, this should be very clear in your mind. It may not be popular or the one "they" want to hear, but doing the right thing it will rarely get you into trouble.

When you struggle with how to make decisions…when you're stuck in your own thoughts on what direction to take… remember…trust yourself and take action. It's better than doing nothing at all.