INTRODUCTION For performance of every single activity, decision making is unavoidable.

Every small amount of work performed needs analysis of the options concerned. This is more so where the major activities are related to controlling and managing work force. Decision-making is that tool in the hands of a manager that renders him, either effective or ineffective, depending upon his judgmental skills. For a manager, it is necessary to understand that, a decision is a judgment or choice between two or more alternatives, and arises in an infinite number of situations, from the managers are to handle a number of issues at the same time, the need to be aware and careful is more intense. It is one activity that lies at the heart of management. A decision is a choice between a variety of alternatives, and a decision- maker is the one who makes such a choice. Though decisions are made in a spur of moment there is a long thought of future and guiding experience of the past, leading to that particular decision. Hence, Managers of people need to be able decision-makers. Decision is the key to transformation. It is one of the key character traits distinguishing high performers from the vast ranks of the mediocre. Decision is, by definition, behind every truly great achievement anyone ever makes. DEFINITIONS OF DECISION MAKING y Choice made between alternative courses of action in a situation of uncertainty. Although too much uncertainty is undesirable, manageable uncertainty provides the freedom to make creative decisions. y Decision making can be regarded as the mental processes resulting in the selection of a course of action among several alternatives. Every decision making process produces a final choice. The output can be an action or an opinion of choice. y y The cognitive process of reaching a decision; "a good executive must be good at decision making" A future-oriented perspective where foundation decisions are made based on an analysis of external and internal trends and data. y y The process of making choices or reaching conclusions, especially on important political or business matters. Decision making on the part of the property owners is one of the most crucial causes of delay and cost over-runs. Decisions have to made as early as possible, and confirm availability for the specified time. QUOTES ON DECISION MAKING Louis Pasteur: Chance favours only the prepared mind. Pythagoras: Choose always the way that seems the best, however rough it may be. Custom will soon render it easy and agreeable. H. L. Hunt: Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it. Establish your priorities and go to work. George L. Morrisey: Developing the plan is actually laying out the sequence of events that have to occur for you to achieve your goal. Euripides: Do not plan for ventures before finishing what's at hand. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: Each indecision brings its own delays and days are lost lamenting over lost days... What you can do

or think you can do, begin it. For boldness has magic, power, and genius in it. William A. Ward: Four steps to achievement: Plan purposefully. Prepare prayerfully. Proceed positively. Pursue persistently. Peter Marshall: Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for - because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything. PROBLEM ANALYSIS Vs DECISION MAKING

It's important to differentiate between problem analysis and decision making. The concepts are completely separate from one another. Problem analysis must be done first, then the information gathered in that process may be used towards decision making.

PROBLEM ANALYSIS Analyse performance, what should the results be against what they actually are Problems are merely deviations from performance standards. Problem must be precisely identified and described. Problems are caused by some change from a distinctive feature. Something can always be used to distinguish between what has and hasn't been effected Causes to problems can be deducted from relevant changes found in analysing problem. Most likely cause to a problem is the one that exactly explains all the facts. by a cause.

DECISION MAKING Objectives must first be established. Objectives must be classified and placed in order of importance. Alternative actions must be developed. The alternative must be evaluated against all the objectives. The alternative that is able to achieve all the objectives is the tentative decision. The tentative decision is evaluated for more possible consequences. The decisive actions are taken, and additional actions are taken to prevent any adverse consequences from becoming problems and starting both systems (problem analysis and decision making) all over again.

DECISION MAKING SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES We use our decision making skills to solve problems by selecting one course of action from several possible alternatives. Decision making skills are also a key component of time management skills. Decision making can be hard. Almost any decision involves some conflicts or dissatisfaction. The difficult part is to pick one solution where the positive outcome can outweigh possible losses. Avoiding decisions often seems easier. Yet, making your own decisions and accepting the consequences is the only way to stay in control of your time, your success, and your life. If you want to learn more on how to make a decision, here are some decision making tips to get you started. All of us have to make decisions every day. Some decisions are relatively straightforward and simple: Is this report ready

to send to my boss now? Others are quite complex: Which of these candidates should I select for the job?. Simple decisions usually need a simple decision-making process. But difficult decisions typically involve issues like these: y y y y y Uncertainty - Many facts may not be known. Complexity - You have to consider many interrelated factors. High-risk consequences - The impact of the decision may be significant. Alternatives - Each has its own set of uncertainties and consequences. Interpersonal issues - It can be difficult to predict how other people will react. With these difficulties in mind, the best way to make a complex decision is to use an effective process. Clear processes usually lead to consistent, high-quality results, and they can improve the quality of almost everything we do. DECISION MAKING STAGES Developed by B. Aubrey Fisher, there are four stages that should be involved in all group decision making. These stages, or sometimes called phases, is important for the decision-making process to begin. Orientation stage- This phase is where members meet for the first time and start to get to know each other. Conflict stage- Once group members become familiar with each other, disputes, little fights and arguments occur. Group members eventually work it out. Emergence stage- The group begins to clear up ambiguity in opinions is talked about. Reinforcement stage- Members finally make a decision, while justifying themselves that it was the right decision. STEPS IN MAKING DECISION Decision making in management is an important skill - and making the right decisions is essential. Every manager should be looking to improve their decision making skills. The process of corporate decision making is of the utmost importance for effective management. The decision making process in management must be informed by expert knowledge and experience. When in an organization and faced with a difficult decision, there are several steps one can take to ensure the best possible solutions will be decided. These steps are put into seven effective ways to go about this decision making process. y The first step- Outline your goal and outcome. This will able decision makers to see exactly what they are trying to accomplish and keep them on a specific path. y y The second step- Gather data. This will help decision makers have actual evidence to help them come up with a solution. The third step-Brainstorm to develop alternatives. Coming up with more than one solution able you to see which one can actually work. y The fourth step-List pros and cons of each alternative. With the list of pros and cons, you can eliminate the solutions that have more cons then pros, making your decision easier. y The fifth step - Make the decision. Once you analyse each solution, you should pick the one that has many pros, and the one that everyone agrees with.

y y

The sixth step-Immediately take action. Once the decision is picked, you should implement it right away. The seventh step - Learn from, and reflect on the decision making. This step allows you to see what you did right and

wrong when coming up, and putting the decision to use. A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH TO DECISION MAKING A logical and systematic decision-making process helps you address the critical elements that result in a good decision. By taking an organized approach, you're less likely to miss important factors, and you can build on the approach to make your decisions better and better. There are six steps to making an effective decision: Create a constructive environment. Generate good alternatives. Explore these alternatives. Choose the best alternative. Check your decision. Communicate your decision, and take action.

Here are the steps in detail: Step 1: Create a constructive environment To create a constructive environment for successful decision making, make sure you do the following: Establish the objective - Define what you want to achieve.

Agree on the process - Know how the final decision will be made, including whether it will be an individual or a

team-based decision. The Vroom-Yetton-Jago Model (member only) is a great tool for determining the most appropriate way of making the decision.

Involve the right people - Stakeholder Analysis is important in making an effective decision, and you'll want to ensure

that you've consulted stakeholders appropriately even if you're making an individual decision. Where a group process is appropriate, the decision-making group - typically a team of five to seven people - should have a good representation of stakeholders.

Allow opinions to be heard - Encourage participants to contribute to the discussions, debates, and analysis without any

fear of rejection from the group. This is one of the best ways to avoid groupthink (member only). The Stepladder Technique is a useful method for gradually introducing more and more people to the group discussion, and making sure everyone is heard. Also, recognize that the objective is to make the best decision under the circumstances: it's not a game in which people are competing to have their own preferred alternatives adopted.

Make sure you're asking the right question - Ask yourself whether this is really the true issue. The 5 Whys technique is a

classic tool that helps you identify the real underlying problem that you face.

Use creativity tools from the start - The basis of creativity is thinking from a different perspective. Do this when you first

set out the problem, and then continue it while generating alternatives. Our article Generating New Ideas will help you create new connections in your mind, break old thought patterns, and consider new perspectives.

Step 2: Generate Good Alternatives This step is still critical to making an effective decision. The more good options you consider, the more comprehensive your final decision will be.

When you generate alternatives, you force yourself to dig deeper, and look at the problem from different angles. If you use the mind-set there must be other solutions out there,' you're more likely to make the best decision possible. If you don't have reasonable alternatives, then there's really not much of a decision to make!

Here's a summary of some of the key tools and techniques to help you and your team develop good alternatives. Generating Ideas Brainstorming is probably the most popular method of generating ideas.

Another approach, Reverse Brainstorming, works similarly. However, it starts by asking people to brainstorm how to

achieve the opposite outcome from the one wanted, and then reversing these actions.

The Charette Procedure is a systematic process for gathering and developing ideas from very many stakeholders.

Use the Crawford Slip Writing Technique (member only) to generate ideas from a large number of people. This is an

extremely effective way to make sure that everyone's ideas are heard and given equal weight, irrespective of the person's position or power within the organization.

Considering Different Perspectives

The Reframing Matrix uses 4 Ps (product, planning, potential, and people) as the basis for gathering different

perspectives. You can also ask outsiders to join the discussion, or ask existing participants to adopt different functional perspectives (for example, have a marketing person speak from the viewpoint of a financial manager).

If you have very few options, or an unsatisfactory alternative, use a Concept Fan to take a step back from the problem, and

approach it from a wider perspective. This often helps when the people involved in the decision are too close to the problem.

Appreciative Inquiry forces you to look at the problem based on what's going right,' rather than what's going wrong.'

Organizing Ideas This is especially helpful when you have a large number of ideas. Sometimes separate ideas can be combined into one

comprehensive alternative.

Use Affinity Diagrams to organize ideas into common themes and groupings.

Step 3: Explore the Alternatives When you're satisfied that you have a good selection of realistic alternatives, then you'll need to evaluate the feasibility, risks, and implications of each choice. Here, we discuss some of the most popular and effective analytical tools. Risk Analysis helps you look at risks objectively. It uses a structured approach for assessing threats, and for evaluating

the probability of events occurring - and what they might cost to manage. Implications Another way to look at your options is by considering the potential consequences of each. Impact Analysis (member only) is a useful technique for brainstorming the unexpected' consequences that may arise

from a decision. Validation Determine if resources are adequate, if the solution matches your objectives, and if the decision is likely to work in the long term. Star bursting helps you think about the questions you should ask to evaluate an alternative properly. To assess pros and cons of each option, use Force Field Analysis, or use the Plus-Minus-Interesting approach. Cost-Benefit Analysis looks at the financial feasibility of an alternative. Training session on Project Evaluation and Financial Forecasting helps you evaluate each alternative using the most

popular financial evaluation techniques.

Step 4: Choose the Best Alternative After you have evaluated the alternatives, the next step is to choose between them. The choice may be obvious. However, if it isn't, these tools will help: Grid Analysis, also known as a decision matrix, is a key tool for this type of evaluation. It's invaluable because it helps

you bring disparate factors into your decision-making process in a reliable and rigorous way. Use Paired Comparison Analysis to determine the relative importance of various factors. This helps you compare unlike

factors, and decide which ones should carry the most weight in your decision. Decision Trees are also useful in choosing between options. These help you lay out the different options open to you, and

bring the likelihood of project success or failure into the decision making process.

Step 5: Check Your Decision With all of the effort and hard work that goes into evaluating alternatives, and deciding the best way forward, it's easy to forget to sense check' your decisions. This is where you look at the decision you're about to make dispassionately, to make sure that your process has been thorough, and to ensure that common errors haven't crept into the decision-making process. After all, we can all now see the catastrophic consequences that over-confidence, groupthink, and other decision-making errors have wrought on the world economy. The first part of this is an intuitive step, which involves quietly and methodically testing the assumptions and the decisions you've made against your own experience, and thoroughly reviewing and exploring any doubts you might have. A second part involves using a technique like Blind spot Analysis to review whether common decision-making problems like over-confidence, escalating commitment, or groupthink (member only) may have undermined the decision-making process. A third part involves using a technique like the Ladder of Inference (member only) to check through the logical structure of the decision with a view to ensuring that a well-founded and consistent decision emerges at the end of the decision-making process. Step 6: Communicate Your Decision, and Move to Action! Once you've made your decision, it's important to explain it to those affected by it, and involved in implementing it. Talk about why you chose the alternative you did. The more information you provide about risks and projected benefits, the more likely people are to support the decision.

FOUR MAIN FACTORS INFLUENCING MAKING OF DECISIONS 1. IDENTIFICATION : It is the phase of decision recognition. It includes such situations which generate opportunities, problems, crises. Recognition of the need for a decision is triggered by information, but that information forms a part of the ongoing flow of communications, originating both, inside and outside the organization. At times the decision-making originates just by a single stimulus, for example loss of a important customer, where as in other types the decision may be recognized after a long period of time, which has been triggered by a number of stimuli. Individuals receive information that indicates the need to make a decision, but that may not necessarily lead to decisionmaking activity. A decision maker is more likely to act if there appears to be a solution to the problem or the opportunity promises to help with a difficulty. 2. DEVELOPMENT : The greatest amount of activity is concentrated in the developmental phase of the decision process. It leads to the development of one or more possible solutions to meet the problem or crisis, also elaborates the choice of ways that are available for exploring an opportunity. This development phase is divided into two basic routines. A search routine for locating ready-made solutions and a design routine to modify either found solutions or elaborate custom-made solutions. 3. SELECTION : Selection is not the single and final step in the decision process. It is a multistage process involving progressive deepening

of the investigation of alternatives. A screening routine is appropriate to the extent that search has provided more ready-made alternatives than can be intensively evaluated. At the end, the ready-made alternatives are either accepted or rejected.

4. TIME : Decisions do not develop along a path of steady and undisturbed progress. Problems are encountered along the way that have to be explored and, if possible, overcome. The decision takes place in the context of an organization that exists in a changing environment with new priorities emerging. The progress of a particular decision may need to be speeded, slowed or even delayed as new issues are presented to the organization and other decisions start to be developed. TYPES OF DECISION MAKING 1.IRREVERSIBLE This are those type of decisions, which, if made once cannot be unmade. Whatever is decided would than have its repercussions for a long time to come. It commits one irrevocably when there is no other satisfactory option to the chosen course. A manager should never use it as an all-or-nothing instant escape from general indecision. 2.REVERSIBLE This are the decisions that can be changed completely, either before, during or after the agreed action begins. Such types of decisions allows one to acknowledge a mistake early in the process rather than perpetuate it. It can be effectively used for changing circumstances where reversal is necessary. 3.EXPERIMENTAL This types of decisions are not final until the first results appear and prove themselves to be satisfactory. It requires positive feedback before one can decide on a course of action. It is useful and effective when correct move is unclear but there is a clarity regarding general direction of action. 4.TRIAL AND ERROR In this type of decisions, knowledge is derived out of past mistakes. A certain course of action is selected and is tried out, if the results are positive, the action is carried further, if the results appear negative, another course is adopted and so on and so forth a trial is made and an error is occurred. Till the night combination this continues. It allows the manager to adopt and adjust plans continuously before the full and final commitment. It uses both, the positive and negative feedback before selecting one particular course of action. 5.MADE IN STAGES Here the decisions are made in steps until the whole action is completed. It allows close monitoring of risks as one accumulates the evidence of out- comes and obstacles at every stage. It permits feedback and further discussion before the next stage of the decision is made. 6.CAUTIOUS It allows time for contingencies and problems that may crop up later at the time of implementation. The decision-makers hedge their best of efforts to adopt the night course. It helps to limit the risks that are inherent to decision- making. Although this may also limit the final gains. It allows one to scale down those projects which look too risky in the first instance. 7.CONDITIONAL

Such types of decisions can be altered if certain foreseen circumstances arise. It is an either / or kind of decision with all options kept open. It prepares one to react if the competition makes a new move or if the game plan changes radically. It enables one to react quickly to the ever changing circumstances of competitive markets. 8.DELAYED Such decisions are put on hold till the decisionmakers feel that the time is right. A go-ahead is given only when required elements are in place. It prevents one from making a decision at the wrong time or before all the facts are known. It may, at times result into forgoing of opportunities in the market that needs fast action.

SOME TOOLS FOR DECISION MAKING 1.COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS (CBA) CBA is known since 1808. It is based on the assessment and comparison of the costs and the benefits involved in a choice. It implies that the environmental, social and cultural aspects and effects are translated into monetary terms. Very common measures within CBA are: 1.NET PRESENT VALUE (NPV): It is given by the sum of discounted net benefits. It shows to which extent the decision can generate benefits. 2.BENEFIT COST RATIO (BCR): It is given by the ratio between discounted benefits and discounted costs. It shows to which extent the benefits exceed the costs. 3.INTERNAL RATE OF RETURN (IRR): It is given by the discount rate for which the NPV is equal to zero. It shows the maximum acceptable discount rate. As CBA may imply several assumptions, it can be useful to make a sensitivity analysis to take into account the uncertainty related to the analysis.

2.MULTI-CRITERIA ANALYSIS (MCA) MCA takes simultaneously into account several and conflicting objectives and values that may have different units of measurement. A number of Multi-criteria methods with different degrees of sophistication can be applied. Each method is based on philosophical assumptions about individual preference structure modeling, is related to certain algorithms and ways of processing data including making use of software packages. 3.COST EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS (CEA) CEA looks only at the costs involved. It may be used when considering projects/programs that have the same expected benefits or where the benefits cannot be measured. It aims at finding the cheapest alternative.

4.RISK-BENEFIT ANALYSIS (RBA) RBA is applied in projects that involve a great deal of risk which can be translated into monetary terms. It implies the comparison of the risks to the expected benefits. The aim is to find alternatives where benefits outweigh risks.

5.ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) EIA is systematic procedure for collecting information about the environmental impacts directly arising from a project or a policy, and for measuring the impacts. The significance of the impacts is expressed through a score or a weight. In some cases the assessed impacts can be valuable inputs for a CBA. The main objective of the EIA is to identify alternative means of minimizing the environmental impacts without altering the benefits of the project or policy.

6.STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (SEA) SEA is similar to EIA. However it tends to operate at a higher level of decision-making. SEA would consider entire programs of investments or policies instead of single projects or policies. The goal of SEA is to look for the synergies between individual policies and projects and to evaluate alternatives in a more comprehensive manner.

7.LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS (LCA) LCA identifies the environmental impacts of a policy or project and tries to measure them. It looks not only at the impacts directly arising from a project or policy but at the whole life cycle of impacts.

SOME QUALITIES OF A DECISION MAKER BEING DECISIVE The ability to take timely, clear and firm decisions is an essential quality of leadership, but the type of decision needed varies according to the circumstances. Learning to recognize the implications of taking each type of different decisions leads to error minimization.

BEING POSITIVE Taking decisive action does not mean making decisions on the spur of the moment. Although, it may be necessary in emergencies and also occasionally desirable for other reasons. A true leader approaches the decisions confidently, being aware of what must be taken into account and fully in command of the decisionmaking process.

MAKING FAST DECISIONS It is important to be able to assess whether a decision needs to be made quickly or it can wait. Good decision-makers often do make instant decisions but they then assess the long-term implications.

IDENTIFYING ISSUES It is crucial to diagnose problems correctly. Before any decision is made identifying and defining the issue removes the criticality. This also means deciding who else needs to be involved in the issue, and analyzing what their involvement means.

PRIORITIZING FACTORS While making a decision, a manager needs to prioritize on important factors. Some factors in a process are more important than others. The use of Paretos rule of Vital few and trivial many helps in setting up of the priorities. Giving every factor affecting a decision equal weight makes sense only if every factor is equally important, the Pareto rule concentrates on the significant 20 percent and gives the less important 80 percent lower priority.

USING ADVISERS It is advisable to involve as many people as are needed in making a decision. In making collective decisions, specific expertise as well as experience of a person both can be used simultaneously .Decision-maker, having weighed the advice of experts & experienced hands, must then use authority to ensure that the final decision is seen through.

VETTING DECISIONS If one does not have the full autonomy to proceed, it is advisable to consult the relevant authority not just for the final go, but also for the input. It is always in the interest of the subordinate to have the plans vetted by a senior colleague whose judgment is trusted and is experienced. Even if there is no need to get the decision sanctioned, the top people are likely to lend their cooperation well if they have been kept fully informed all the way along the decision path.

IMPLEMENTING A DECISION Decisions are valueless until they are translated into positive action, which in turn involves the decisionmaker in making a series of operational decisions and choices. 1. MAKING AN ACTION PLAN : A plan of action will begin to evolve naturally as options are narrowed and their feasibility is studied during the decision-making process. When developing a plan to implement a decision, everybody needs to fully understand the reason for that specific decision. An analysis of the overall task, determining what actions need to be taken and the manner in which the decision shall be implemented, should be provided in detail. 2. DELEGATING ACTION : Some decisions, which are simple can be handled single handedly. But more complex decisions involve a number of tasks and the work of a team. Breaking each task into manageable chucks and delegating responsibility for planning to individuals within the team, makes the performance easier. The manager may delegate trivial matters to be decided by the subordinates, leaving more time for more important things. 3. COMMUNICATING A DECISION : Once a decision is taken and planned, it needs to be relayed to the colleagues who are directly or indirectly affected by it. The release of information if done properly, ensures that people understand exactly what has been decided and why, encouraging their support. While communicating the decision explanation of the alternative course of action and why a particular course has been adopted, removes doubts and objections from the mind of the concerned parties.

4. DISCUSSING THE PROGRESS OF A DECISION: Many meetings have no purpose but to discuss and inform. Meetings are specifically held to discuss progress in the implementation of a decision. Avoid wasting of time. While choosing a team for action the skills and personalities of the individual should be taken into account. 5. OVERCOMING OBJECTIONS : Decisions are likely to attract varying degrees of opposition, ranging from mild dissent to outright resistance. Rather than feeling aggrieved, opposition should be viewed as valuable part of decision-making. Even if there is a need to push a decision through, simply ignoring objections or brushing them aside results into misunderstandings.

ENHANCING DECISION MAKING SKILLS 1.CLEAR UP THOSE UNCLEAR DECISIONS These articles on decision making skills will enhance your ability to view any unclear decisions in a different light. Some of these tips you may know, some you may not. Some are even contrary to popular opinion. At least when you come to implement a decision, having read these tips for decision making, you can say that you are well informed! 2.COMMIT! When you make a decision, you can do one of two things. You can spend a lot of time, effort and energy considering what it would have been like if you had made a different decision and searching the internet for more tips on decision making processes. Or you can spend that time, effort and energy on making your decision work. 3.DO THE RIGHT THING Many people want to do the thing right. In fact, it is one of the major reasons for delaying decisions. They want to get it right. Peter Drucker, the management guru, insists that it is much more important to do the right thing. Most people really do know what the right thing is. But because it's difficult, disagreeable or uncomfortable, they choose not to make that decision. They choose something different. The consequence is misery. Only the amount and duration varies. 4.CLEAR UP THOSE UNCLEAR DECISIONS Decision making skills will enhance ability to view any unclear decisions in a different light. Some of these tips you may know, some you may not. Some are even contrary to popular opinion. At least when you come to implement a decision, having read these tips for decision making, you can say that you are well informed!

5.THE BEST Here's another great barrier in decision making to help you delay some more: The desire to make the best decision. In truth, there really is no way to know which is the best decision. Every decision will have consequences, so what people end up doing is comparing the consequences. This is all well and good, but it makes for an unclear decision. It doesn't actually get anything done. It's much more useful to consider whether a particular decision will be effective or not, within the frame you choose. People in critical situations quickly learn this decision making skill. Gary Klein has studied firefighters and medical personnel,

people who make decisions in life or death situations. They just don't have time to weigh up the pros and cons. They are asking themselves about the effectiveness of a particular option. If they think it'll work, they go for it. If at any point along the line they realize it is not working, they choose a different route that they think will work. Then they do that. They will cycle one option at a time, until they find one that works. They improve their decision making skills with experience in their area of expertise, so their first option is not random. It is the one most likely to work. So it's much more useful to be effective and get the job done than to spend endless hours trying to determine the best decision. 6.NEED TO BE 100% SURE Again, this is a great one for delaying making that decision. And, of course, it's a myth that you can be 100% sure with people. Humans are complex, dynamic creatures. Life itself is messy and unpredictable. And the future, well, that's an unknown quantity. Period. Enough said. 7.GIVE IT LOTS OF THOUGHT - NOT! Most of the decision making models and processes available are organized around assessing and understanding the issues at hand. The idea is to build your decision making skills so that you are not engaged in decision making without critical thinking, but rather you reason and think your way to making good decisions. Occasionally, it is suggested that you actually use your intuition. But not, however, at the expense of logic and rationality. To develop your decision making skills, this concept is one to pay attention to. There is an idea that we actually make our decisions emotionally, and then justify it with reasons and explanations, even excuses! An example would be making a decision to buy something that you cannot really afford, but somehow you find a reason that it would be useful to you. "The stereo costs more than my budget, but it would look great in my room and the great sound would allow me to work more effectively". 8.SOUND FAMILIAR? Some of the newer sales training programs use this as the basis for their sales models. Why? Because it works! They know they can make more money using this particular sales model. 9.WHAT IF THIS IS ACTUALLY THE WAY IT WORKS? Wouldn't it make sense to know your own emotional signals that let you know how to make good decisions? Not only would you be able to make more effective decisions, but others would not have the power to manipulate you! 10.NOT MAKING A DECISION It is sometimes thought that by not making a decision, you cannot go wrong. The difficulty here, of course, is that not making a decision is often a very poor decision. And not making a decision may actually be a decision to not take action. A classic example is where all the evidence is that there's a career change needed, but nothing happens. Another example might be not making those decisions that are needed to keep yourself organized. Delayed decisions are a primary cause of disorganization. It's usually much more effective and useful to make a decision, act, assess as you go along, and change the decision later if indicated.

DECISION MAKING TIPS & SECRETS HOW TO MAKE FASTER DECISIONS Here are some decision making tips for you to consider before you even make a decision. By considering these ideas,

when it comes time to decide, you will know how to make faster decisions. Some of these ideas may be contrary to popular opinion. But they are used by effective decision makers. Perhaps if more people adopted these decision making tips, there would be a major shift in people's understanding of how to make great decisions and how to make faster decisions. YOU ARE NO.1 When making your decisions, put yourself first. It's important that you're better off as a result of making the decision. And not just in the result that you get, but more especially, as a person. The decision should allow you to maintain who you are, without compromise. This is the first and most important of these decision making tips if you want to be yourself and live your own life. YOUR FAMILY If you consider your family important to you, demonstrate this by creating work-life balance in your decision making. As above, it's important not to compromise your family either. Whatever decision you make, you and your family should benefit in the short-term and in the long-term. Many people, however, use this as an excuse for continuing as they are. The typical example is to say they are working long hours so that the family can have money. The family, of course, want to be spending time with this person. If you prefer working to spending time with your family, then do just this. And don't compromise yourself or them by pretending anything else. MAKE YOUR OWN DECISIONS If you allow others to make decisions for you instead of making your own decisions, then they are running your life. In effect, you're giving them control and you are living the life they think you should have. TAKE RESPONSIBILITY This is a big one. In order to take responsibility for your own decision making, it's useful to have a strong sense of self and be comfortable in your own skin. Of the decision making tips, this is often the one that people are most reluctant to take on, and the one that has the most impact! When you do take responsibility many things become available to you. If things don't go according to plan (as they sometimes don't!) you're never a victim You immediately consider what you can do differently and you act on it You are free to make a different decision at any time You are prepared for the consequences, whatever they are Other people respect you It makes it easier for them to take responsibility for their own decisions Most people want to know how things will pan out before they make a decision. This is a decision mistake and is usually counter-productive. The world is chaotic, unpredictable, and unexpected things happen. It's much more useful to take things one step at a time. To make a decision, you only need to know what the single next step is that will get you closer to your outcome. Then, having taken this step, you make your next decision. APPLY 80/20 PRINCIPLE The 80/20 Principle tells you that you should choose an option that produces 80% of outputs from 20% of inputs, and gather 80% of the data and perform 80% of the relevant analyses in the first 20% of time available... More

RECOGNIZE IMPACT OF YOUR BELIEFS AND VALUES Beliefs are the assumptions we make about ourselves, about others in the world and about how we expect things to be. "These assumptions determine the way we behave and shape our decision-making process. They are often based on emotions rather than facts. We tend to notice 'facts' that reinforce our beliefs."7... More UNDERSTAND & PRACTICE DIFFERENT STYLES OF DECISION-MAKING There are many models for understanding and characterizing the styles of interaction different people prefer to employ. According to the widely used Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), people are divided into thinkers and feelers: A)A Thinker tends to use reason and logic B)A Feeler tends to use values and subjective judgment MAKING DECISIONS IN DISCUSSION WITH OTHER PEOPLE Your ability to communicate is the most important skill you can develop to get on to the fast track in your career. Perhaps the most important thing you do in business is to solve problems and make decisions, both by yourself and with other people. METHODS OF GROUP DECISION MAKING No two groups will ever function in the same way while involved in the process of decision making. Some are proactive groups while there are other groups, which need a driving force or a facilitator to facilitate the process. There are several methods of group decision-making. Here are some of the common methods employed in the process of decision-making: AUTHORITARIAN STYLE The authoritarian style is like a dictatorship, in which the decision ultimately rests in the hands of one person. This style of decision-making is applicable in the presence of a powerful person who dictates the entire process of decision-making and has the final authority on the outcome. This style, although in use at various places, tends to have more disadvantages than advantages because the people whose opinions are disregarded might have negative feelings about the entire process. A variation of this method is the minority control method wherein the group discusses the issues but the power of decision-making rests not in the hands of one but a small group of people within the group.

BRAINSTORMING This group decision-making method is best when the decision-making has to be started from scratch, which means creating the various options and then weighing them. This is an excellent method for group decisions, which is very popular owing to the complete creative freedom it offers to all the participants. There can be a facilitator to facilitate the entire discussion just to ensure that the people dont digress. The facilitator can merely help to start off the conversation, provide subtle hints and nudges when the participants get stuck and thus help to make effective and creative group decisions. The positive aspect of this method is that it values the opinion of every individual member and the final decision is reached by consensus. VOTING BASED METHOD This is a group decision-making process, which is convenient to use when the group has certain set of defined options before it and needs to pick out the optimum solution. A voting system allows every participant to cast his/her vote for the option that he/she thinks is the best. The option that gathers the maximum number of votes is selected. This method however does not value the individual opinion of each and every participant in the group. A variation of this method is the majority method wherein a majority

of people within the group has the power to pass the final decision. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF GROUP DECISIONS Like any other process, the process of taking group decisions has its own sets of advantages and disadvantages. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of group decisions: Group decisions help to combine individual strengths of the group members and hence has a set of varied skill

sets applied in the decision making process. Individual opinions can be biased or affected with pre-conceives notions are restricted perspectives, group

decision help to get a broader perspective owing to differences of perception between individual in the group. decision is taken. A group decision gains greater group commitment since everyone has his/her share in the decision making. Group decisions imbibe a strong sense of team spirit amongst the group members and helps the group to think A group decision always means enhanced collective understanding of the course of action to be taken after the

together in terms of success as well as failure. DISADVANTAGES OF GROUP DECISIONS: One of the major disadvantages of group decision making is that it is more time consuming than the process of

individual decision making. Group decisions take longer to be finalized since there are many opinions to be considered and valued. In case of authoritarian or minority group decision making, the people whose opinions are not considered tend

to be left out from the decision making process and hence the team spirit ceases to grow. The responsibility and accountability of the decisions are not equally shared in some cases which leads to a split

in the group and hence hamper the overall efficiency of the group.