How to Make Decisions

Steps to Make Decisions

We make decisions from the moment we wake up till we go to bed on a daily basis. Some of the decisions we make intuitively and some of the decisions we make by giving it a lot of thinking and consideration. Decisions have a huge impact on our lives. Some of the decisions we take can make the difference between being alive and dead within seconds (such as while driving) and some of the decisions can impact our life immensely after 10-20 years (such as investing in the right type of assets or getting married to the right person). Who we are today is based on the result of the decisions we made in the past. Who we will become tomorrow or in the future will be the result of the decisions we make now and in the future. It is important throughout our lives to make the correct decisions to increase our success rate of living a better life.

Decisions can be roughly categorized in two classes, regardless what sorts of decisions they are: Calculated decisions and non-calculated decisions. Let’s take talk about these two a little bit.

Non-Calculated Decisions – Emotional decisions, intuitive decisions, decisions based on past experience, and so on are all examples of non-calculated decisions. Most of the decisions we take daily are non-calculated decisions and we don’t think or spend much time on these types of decisions. Although non-calculated decisions seem to be not that important and we are in habit to decide on it fast, making the wrong non-calculated decision can ruin our life, just like calculated decisions.

Calculated Decisions – These are the decisions that are systematic, analytical, logical, and calculative. We take a long approach and do a lot of research and follow a step-by-step procedure to come to a conclusion. Most of the life’s big decisions fall into this class. Some examples are: Who should I marry? Should I quit my current job to accept another offer? Where should I retire? Should I be an entrepreneur or a 9-5 employee for life?

Now, is there any way to make a better decision? While there may not be a single, foolproof approach to make better decisions, here are some steps to consider in making good decisions.

1. Identify your decision or the purpose of the decision

2. Identify your objectives or what you are expecting from the outcome of this decision.

3. List all the possible outcomes that can happen due to this decision.

4. See yourself to the extent of each of these outcomes. Look at all the pros and cons that will come due to this decision.  Imagine yourself living with one or several of the outcomes that will happen due to your decision. You can add your past experience, knowledge, intuition, calculation, analysis, etc. to seeing yourself how things will be, how comfortable and happy you will be, and how better it will be for your future because of this decision.

5. Make the decision that you like best in number 4.

Sometimes decision making can be really tough regardless of how much thinking you put into it. Research has shown that it is incorrect to think that calculated decisions are always better than instant, snap decisions. There will be times in your life when you will need to make decisions beyond logic and calculation – based on your instincts or emotion. This is just fine. We humans are emotionally driven quite often and following logic or calculation will not simply make sense during those times. If you need to make a decision, whether it’s a calculated or an emotional one, make a solid decision, regardless of whether it makes sense to others or not. Stick to your concrete decision to the end – and if it happens to be a wrong decision, have no regrets. Just learn from it and move towards the future.

Why Multitasking Does Not Work

What Is Multitasking? 

Multitasking is the process of doing multiple things or tasks at the same time. Multitasking can be made of tasks that require only mental work, physical work, or a combination of the both. An example of multitasking is driving and talking on the cell phone at the same time.

Why Multitasking Does Not Work 

Numerous research shows that we humans are not capable of multitasking. What seems like multitasking is actually our brain switching from one task to another. Those who think they are good at multitasking are actually good at switching from one task to another, as our brain cannot process tasks simultaneously. It is good at switching between tasks quickly, however. So the whole concept of multitasking is a human delusion, as our brain is very good at deluding itself.

Why Multitasking is Bad 

Multitasking can cause stress, as much as 40 percent drop in productivity, and 10 percent drop in IQ, as a Harvard Business Review post points out. Also, multitasking while driving causes 20 to 30 percent crashes annually in America. Tasks involving multitasking can cause 50 percent more errors and take 50 percent longer to finish, research shows.

But How It Is Possible to Perform Some Tasks Simultaneously? 

If multitasking is bad and our brain can’t multitask, how come we do some of these tasks together? For example, talking on the phone and watching TV, cooking several items together, reading and listening music, writing and watching TV, and so on? The answer – these are not actually multitasking; we don’t need our brain to fully concentrate and pay attention to perform these tasks. If you really want to test if you can multitask or not, try writing an article and taking notes from a lecture at the same time, or pay your bill online and instruct your kid how to play a game at the same time.

Last Word 

We do not multitask, but we switch from task to task. Be more productive and efficient by concentrating on one task at a time. Do fewer things, but do it better. Make life simple and less stressful – don’t multitask.

The Continuous Depletion of Time Account

Do Not Waste Your Most Valuable Resource – Time. The One-Shot Supply of This Mostly Precious Asset Should Not Be Taken As Granted 

When we were born, we all started with one-time supply of our time on earth. If you consider your first day on earth as Day 1 and assume you will live up to 100 years of age, here is what you have:

100 years X 365 days = 36500 days X 24 Hours = 876,000 hours.

These numbers are the same for everyone. Whether we are old or young, black or white, religious or atheist, the world’s richest person or the world’s poorest person, all of us have the same amount of time to waste and to utilize. Time is neutral, does not discriminate, and does not treat anyone unfairly.  

The moment you were born, you started depleting your time account. Although some of us may live longer than others, but we can’t stretch time beyond our mortality. Think of time as your bank account where you have 876,000 units (or more or less depending on how long you live) deposited for you only once. There is no way you will be able to deposit more units or manipulate your account to inflate your units.

Yet, most of us take this most valuable and precious resource for granted and keep wasting it till the day when we have nothing left in our time bank account. The difference between a successful person and failed person in every aspect of time is the results of how successfully or poorly each utilized their time.

Let me give you some examples of how poorly we waste our time which can never be deposited back into our time account. These examples are hilarious and sad at the same time, as we failed to value our most precious resource, “Time”, which can never be recovered.

- Driving hours to save $10 
- Standing in long lines and wasting hours to get free stuff 
- Sleeping away the whole afternoon 
- Buying and then returning something many times and spending endless hours doing so 
- Spending hours watching useless TV channels like talk shows and reality shows 
- Spending unproductive hours online on sites like Facebook, YouTube, etc.

These examples can go on and on. But you should have an idea already how people are endlessly wasting time without realising what they are doing.

Stop the leakage of your most valuable asset – your time. Consider every moment of your time is precious and understand that it will never be regained. Utilize each unit of time properly and in productive ways. Lifetime success and happiness will be upon you if you can successfully manage and use each and every unit. Time is what makes the difference between a winner and a loser. Don’t wait for that moment to regret when you will have only the last remaining units in your time account.

What Is Minimalism?

The Roadmap to Becoming Minimalist 

The word minimalism can have a wide range of meanings. The word originally derived from an art and design background – simply meaning a trend in art and design in its most basic and simple form. However, these days the word minimalism is widely associated with personal development, giving it a new perspective in terms of simply living with less. Today, I am going to touch base on minimalism from my own perspective.

Different people can define minimalism from different angles. What is a minimalistic lifestyle for me may be living with too much stuff for someone else, and vice versa. The way I look at a minimalistic lifestyle is – living a simple life with only the things that are absolutely necessary to survive.

To become a minimalist and live a simple life, there are steps to be taken, and these steps may not be as simple and easy as it sounds. We are programmed by our society to believe and act certain ways from our childhood. You need to break out of the cycle. Some people will never be able to find peace and solitude in living with less stuff and living a simple life. For those who can do it, it’s a rewarding life beyond imagination; it’s a worry-free life free from clutter, possessions, and stress.    

I am going to mention some steps you need to take, and some work you need to do on your way to becoming a minimalist:

- Buy less 
- Consume less 
- Get rid of the unnecessary 
- Slow down 
- Live a simple life 
- Create more 
- Unclutter your life 
- Unclutter your mind 
- Unclutter your home 
- Let it go 
- Help others 
- Educate yourself 
- Breath 
- Appreciate your moments on earth

These are some of the elements that you will travel with on your journey towards becoming a minimalist. However, there are endless ideas and possibilities you will come up with once you start going through the minimalism door on your own. And that’s the most rewarding and fun part of it – finding out what more you can do make your life simple and with less stuff. I cordially invite you to build your roadmap and start your journey right now on your way to becoming a minimalist.

Saying No Is Actually A Positive Thing

How To Say No

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Simplepersonaldevelopment.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to Ahmed Dawn Dot Com. This article originally published on the above website on Jan 1, 2012

Although we may associate “No” with a negative assertion, it can be actually a very positive thing you can do – depending on what type of “No” it is. Today, I will discuss some simple ways to say “no” to take charge of your life and time.

 Why Say No 

- There are only so many hours in a day. Saying “no” to unproductive and time wasting things will   
make you a lot more productive. 
- Saying “no” to a new commitment which you won’t be able to handle will give your existing projects 
more time to finish with a quality outcome. 
- When we are stressed, depressed, and burned out from our modern day rigorous time consuming and high-paced activities, saying “no” will free up time to relax and wind down.    
- Saying “no” is respecting your time and respecting yourself. It will eliminate tasks that you don’t   
enjoy and will free up time to pursue your goals and dreams.

Simple Ways to Say No 

Say No With A Smile – Saying “no” is a lot simpler when you add a genuine smile to it and avoid a serious face. Also, the person you are saying “no” to will take it a lot easier way if you say “no” in a smiling face.

Add A Brief Explanation – If you add a short explanation to the reason behind your saying “no,” the other person will understand it and will not get emotional or reactive. However, stop giving out an essay. Explaining too much will make it worse and the other person will think that there is something to it.

Don’t Lie – Avoid making up reasons that aren’t true for excuses. Most likely, the other person will be able to guess that it’s a lie from your body posture and voice tone.

Delay Your Response – If you feel that saying “no” will be difficult and likely to cause an emotional outburst from the other person, instead of saying “no” right away, take some time and reply back at a later time. This works because if you say “no” at a later time, the other person will not be on a full alert to hear “no” (than when she proposed) and it will have less impact than the first time.

Offer An Alternative Solution – There will be times when you just simply can’t avoid it in a full scale. Offer something different and acceptable, yet keeping it within your means, so it does not cause you too much time and stress like the initial request.

Saying “no” at the right time will save you a lot of time later. As you get better with saying “no,” you will be able to manage, simplify, and reduce stress a lot better than before.