An option is an idea. A decision or choice is executable. No decision is a decision.
We all do it. We decide not to decide. And that’s a decision that adds more to the load. We’d rather put it off than make a tough decision because we don’t like to make tough decisions. We inherently don’t like confrontation, and decisions often require an uncomfortable moment.
Let’s get personal here. There are things in my business I’ve been putting off. Something that I need to do, want to do, and things that I believe will help people.
Closer to home, we need a new pool guy. We haven’t been happy with the current company — for months now. But we’ve put it off, extended grace, tried to make it work, and become even more exasperated and frustrated. The truth is that we’re probably the only ones exasperated and frustrated. Hmm.
So get on with it, will ya? Make the decision. Sure, we’ve got options and know what to do, but pulling the trigger is often the task left undone. And it increases fatigue and emotional distress. Psychologists say that we make over 35,000 decisions every day. Counting 7-8 hours of sleep means you make a couple of thousand decisions every hour.
Is it any wonder that we have Decision Fatigue? We get so worn out and overwhelmed that we decide to put off a decision. And that brings on more decisions to avoid the decision we should make.
How many decisions have you made to delay your decision? Wait, what? Yeah, we’ve put off the pool decision for a few weeks. Each time we discuss it, it means a decision to decide later. So, those options stay there, and the frustration continues to simmer.
Let’s do a quick checkup: How many decisions do you have to make today that should have been made yesterday? Maybe it’s a project around the house, something at work, something in your personal life, something about family. If you’re like many people, many of the decisions you face today could have been handled yesterday. So start there and start to check off those stressful decisions.
Why don’t we make decisions? Sure, there’s the weighing of the options, and most of us are good at that. Gather the information, dig deeper, ask someone else, and try one more thing. But then, there are the consequences, uncertainty, and, yes, we fear the failure of our decision-making process. And we make an excuse to push it into tomorrow.
- “It won’t work out.”
- “What if I pick the wrong option?”
- “I’ve got to get this right, so I’ll make one more call or try to find one more confirmation.”
- “We can wait on this until next week.”
- “What will everyone think of me?”
- “I have to get this right.” (Perfectionism).
- “We can do this later. It’s not that important.”
- “I can do this after…”
- “I’m too tired to finish this decision process.”
What are you putting off? What decisions have you made today to decide later? How many times have you decided to decide later? Teddy Roosevelt says, “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
Maybe it’s in your job/career, finances, relationships, spiritual or emotional well-being, or health.
Stop stressing. Here’s how to make that decision you’ve been putting off.
- What do you need to decide today?
- Don’t stress over it.
- Set a deadline to decide (e.g., this afternoon, tomorrow, Saturday).
- Remove the emotion. What are the facts?
- Gather information, and seek counsel. You only need 3-4 options (not a dozen).
- Take time to review the information, counsel, and information.
- Honor your deadline. Make the decision.
Guess what? If you get it wrong, you can get a do-over.
And, by the way, we have a new pool company servicing our pool now. Pull the trigger. Make the call today.