Decision making is a process we all have to go through every single day. Whether the decisions are as simple as what to eat, it is a part of life that is unavoidable. Some people find it hard to make decisions while others go through coaching to acquire the proper skills required to make good decisions. There are both internal as well as external factors that influence the choices people make.
Factors that affect Effective Decision Making
- Past experiences. As the well-known saying goes, the experience is the best teacher. Past decisions influence the current decisions we make. Some decisions are recurrent, and from prior experience, we can analyze situations better.
- Inadequate information. Lack of adequate information may lead to decision making without any bias, but it can also lead to wrong decisions due to lack of knowledge.
- Too much information makes the decision making process harder. Information from various sources can be conflicting making it hard for one to conclude.
- The number of people involved in the decision making Making decisions as a committee or group is much harder than making decisions as an individual. Each person has their ideologies and values, and it can be difficult to agree with a group.
- Vested interests. These interests may not be expressed but may be a hindrance to effective decision making.
- Emotional attachments towards the subject matter when making decisions can lead to bias judgment.
- Lack of emotional attachments. When you do not care about the outcome of the required decision, you might end up making the wrong
- The timeframe for making a decision. Decisions made on impulse more often than not go the wrong way compared to decisions that are made with prior reasoning and research.
Conclusion
It is essential to have the right skills to make proper decisions. Intuition and reasoning are critical when making any decision, whether small or big. The choices we make affect our day to day lives, therefore, we should take the decision making process very seriously.
By Winnie
EdgeArticles 