Decision Strategies: 4 Steps to Success

Choose a path and move forward.

Source: Courtesy of RE Watson

Whether at home or in the workplace, the choices we make range from snap decisions to thoughtful, strategic ones. Styles include trusting your instincts, weighing the pros and cons, and asking the advice of friends. Or choose to not decide hoping that a particular situation will resolve itself. What is the most successful strategy? According to a research report in the European Management Journal:

“Rationality and intuition are important dimensions of the strategic decision process...the interplay between rationality and intuition [was] based on a sample of 103 strategic decisions made by service firms in Greece.” (Thanos 2023)

Why Relying on Intuition or Trusting Instincts Is a Valid Decision-Making Strategy

In researching a book on decision-making for women, the power of intuition was evident. Sometimes referred to as a sixth sense or women’s intuition, researchers have documented the value of this strategy with men as well.

In Frontiers in Psychology, "If it feels right, do it," a preliminary investigation regarding high-level coaches and intuition determined:

“Initially intuitive than deliberate decision-making was a particular feature, offering participants an immediate check on the accuracy and validity of the decision....Irrespective of how they may best be developed, intuition and analysis are both important components of expertise...." (Collins 2016)

While it may seem that relying on intuition is risky, experience often gives substance to intuition.

When children want something, they ask. As adults, we often become tangled in the confusion of what we want for ourselves and what we think others would like for us. We tend to forget the simplicity of stating what we wish.

4 Steps to Making Stress-Free Decisions

When faced with a major decision, these steps might be helpful:

Define what you want to achieve. Assess the pros and cons or what you perceive as risks and benefits. Consider alternatives if you are concerned about the opinions of others. Make a choice and follow through without second-guessing yourself.

1. Be honest with yourself.

Think of what you want. If you know the answer, then why not just say so? You might consider the feelings or opinions of others, whether family, friends, or colleagues. Despite your consideration, you might be sabotaging yourself.

2. Define the pros and cons

Assess the situation by making a pros and cons checklist. Write all the reasons that a decision will benefit you alone. Then, write the reasons that your decision might make others uncomfortable or unsupportive.

3. Consider alternatives

Ask yourself if there is a way to please yourself and others. If not, is there a compromise? In decision-making groups, women who hid their feelings later admitted that they were afraid of making the wrong decision. Very often, when asked what they meant by "the wrong decision," they said they were afraid that their decision would not please others.

4. Make a decision and follow through

Once you have made your decision known, follow through instead of second-guessing yourself or asking your friends for approval or their opinions.

The Value of Keeping a Record

Using a journal will help guide you and may give you an idea as to the patterns of decision-making that are stressful and how to handle these stresses. While logical steps to decision-making combined with intuition are valuable, it’s your intuition that may give you the edge.

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What about the times you were wrong when you trusted your instincts? It can happen, and for this reason, intuition combined with a logical process is beneficial.

^{Copyright Rita Watson, MPH, 2024}