To Do or Not To Do – How Successful Leaders Make Better Decisions

The mental work of ruling on case after case wears the decision maker down and the choices you make later in the day become more difficult. You may have to delve deeper and employ some different modes of thinking or use one of the problem solving tools below to help you make better decisions. Listing the advantages of moving forward with a particular decision and the disadvantages of moving forward. This can be expanded into inverse thinking mode and you can list the advantages of not moving forward and the disadvantages of not moving forward.

This leads onto scenario thinking. Scenario planning is a technique used in strategic planning. When doing so we encourage our brain to think of eventualities we may not have previously thought of leading us to expand the reach of our traditional decision making process. Traditionally convergent thinking was looked upon with some negativity. Uncreative people working with the limited options that they already have and choosing between them.

But we now realise that the best decisions are made using both models of thinking. With most decision making we start with divergent thinking, we brainstorm ideas, look at scenarios and eventualities. The more creative and wider we explore possibilities we give ourselves more options from which to find our solution. Convergent thinking is when we narrow our options we start to hone in the logic. We can sort our ideas into different categories and reduce the ideas that will be most likely to solve our problem. Critical thinking is a skill that we assume most good leaders have, the ability to assess all the facts and see the potential where others see none.

They must question assumptions. Working in a cultural and gender diverse workforce helps us to look at problems and solutions from many different angles. Different people have different perspectives. Critical Thinkers see potential. They know to look at problems and challenges as opportunities rather than problems. Mark Bonchek and Elisa Steele identify eight different types of thinkers. They suggest that when you know your thinking style, you will understand what naturally energizes you and why certain types of problems are more challenging or more boring for you.

If we can understand how we naturally think, for example some people are big picture and relationship orientated we will be more aware of the areas that we are less inclined to focus on to solve particular problems. A decision Tree is a way to explore different options and each option has different options to explore. A decision tree can help clarify the different choices, risks, objectives involved in any decision. In a crisis, we know that being indecisive does not lead to good results. A lack of response is seen negatively, as a sign of weak leadership and can be construed that we are at fault, uncaring or incompetent.

There are important considerations that guide us in making better decisions when under this kind of pressure. Mental readiness consists of habits of the mind…the persistent ability to remain calm, to think clearly and to understand the concerns of others.

How Good Leaders Make Good Decisions - Ciara Conlon

In public relations, the decisions we routinely make influence trust and reputation, and protect and advance that for the organizations we support and the leaders who run them. Indecision cannot be in our vocabulary. We need to routinely analyze potential situations we face through well-conceived issues management programs.

We need to fine-tune our critical thinking skills so when facing decisions, we can more easily see the complexities we face. In this way, we will be better equipped to make decisions based on intellect rater than instinct. Or worse still, let indecisiveness take over. Be the Voice of Reason. Leaders are often reassured when decisions are backed up with thorough analysis.

We can help leaders understand the consequences of their decisions.

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Often times, decisions that are poorly conceived have not had the added benefit of a PR expert providing different ways of looking at a decision and its potential outcome. Leaders may not always want to hear the advice, but they will be well served if they do.

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Reassess and Prioritize Your Values: Values should be reassessed periodically to ensure they are relevant to an organization. They can change over time. Importantly, as Professor Ingram points out, we should understand the relative ranking of our values and which holds the most importance to us. This will be helpful in weighing decisions and helping guide us along a path that supports us and the organizations we represent. Effective leaders understand not only how to identify the type of decision they are facing and its complexity, but also how to change their behavior and their decisions to match the type of decision they are confronted with Minsky, Tang.

Think Like a Stakeholder: When we are challenged by making a decision that has stakeholder ramifications, we need to think about the impact of our decisions on those stakeholders.

Decisions: How to Make Them Better and Faster

This is where understanding your stakeholders, their needs and requirements are especially important. Frequently, the lens we use is our own, with our own biases and preferences. By taking the time and effort to explore the multiple perspectives of your stakeholders will guide you to a better decision outcome Minsky, Tang.

We need to revisit the decisions we make. This can be painful. These steps can help us as leaders avoid the pitfalls of indecision.

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Cicero would be amazed at what we have available to us by a keystroke, and the temptation it presents to keep collecting, studying, assessing. But Cicero knew that there comes a time when you need to decide, and move forward. New or changing information can require a different decision down the road, but ultimately, leaders make choices, often tough choices, and gives them the opportunity to do great things. Guided by your values, it is important to assess when you have enough information and the right information to decide.

This trepidation often develops into risk aversion or the inability to move forward with decisions. Another common setback is that many leaders get caught up in analysis paralysis. This plays out in the form of incessant information gathering -- statistics, surveys, and intense research that ultimately prolong the decision-making process.

These actions can set off frustration for all those involved, and tends to create a lack of trust and respect. Decisions can also be brought to a halt when company leadership bury their heads in the sand and advocate against change, citing that new direction decisions are not necessary. This type of leader would rather uphold the status quo rather than consider new ideas, which can be counter-productive, particularly in today's high-octane business and financial environments.

How Good Leaders Make Good Decisions

If you can be less constrained by traditional approaches to decision-making, utilizing collaboration and consensus building in the process, you may be better able to see obstacles ahead of the curve. Business leaders who have developed a cooperative approach to decision-making understand that people have the need to be valued, respected, listened to and involved.

This approach translates into better performance for their companies.