Are Your Decisions Serving You?

We make decisions almost constantly. Some large, some small. Some with great impact, others less consequential. All of them critical to how we live our lives and whether or not we find ourselves living our dreams, mired in misery, or just surviving (a type of misery all its own). Yet, how many of us are ever taught how to make truly effective decisions that serve you and what you most desire from life?

Have you ever had to make an important decision and found yourself:

Agonizing over the choices?
Trading your long-term best interests for short-term relief or short-lived good feelings?
Choosing not to make a decision because you just aren’t sure and don’t want to make the wrong choice?
Forgoing living in the present for some distant long-term promise of something (retirement, more money, better job, or the ever-popular “someday” when things are “better”)?

I know I certainly have and the results just aren’t pretty. Even if the choices work out ok, the sheet exhaustion and dread you feel can drag you down and sabotage your best efforts.

What if there was a better way? What if you had a reliable tool for decision-making that gave you the clarity and confidence to choose knowing you were making choices based on your deepest values?

Here’s the good news – you can do this consistently. You just need to learn how and be willing to do the steps necessary to have a strong foundation from which to make them.

I have been reading Suzy Welch’s book “10-10-10” and it provides an excellent demonstration and summary of principles I have been practicing personally and with my clients for several years. Here are the guiding principles for making a decision as presented in the book. When faced with a decision or problem, ask yourself the question:

What will the result of this choice bring me in terms of consequences (both positive and negative): in 10 minutes? In 10 months? In 10 years?

Repeat the question for all the possible choices you are considering. Connect these results to your values. Choose the overall best course of action that aligns with your values.

By taking this approach you can ensure what you have not only taken your mind into account but also your heart and what you value most from your life. It is the most powerful way you can make any decision – aligning your actions with your values. That is what makes from a truly well-lived life.

What’s so special about the number 10? Nothing as Suzy says in the book (though I must say it is pure marketing genius). It could easily be a different number, but what it does do is take into account the now, near, and far term effects of any decision you make. Over the course of all the decisions you make you’ll find a balance that works for you. Meaning, you never make all your choices based only on one time frame. For instance if you made all your decisions based only on:

“Now” consequences - the results would be short-sighted and have lots of short-term gratification but no real meaning.
“Near-term” consequences - might bring you a bit more meaning and the chance to achieve some goals, but lacks staying power, deeper meaning, and the chance to live in the moment.
“Far-term” consequences - leaves you empty, always delaying meaning and joy for some future day that is guaranteed to no one.

The beauty in this system is it gives you all the spontaneity you desire and the ability to consciously create an inspiring future that honors your values. What could be better than that!?!

As you ready to take back control of your own decision-making in your life and in your business? Want to make choices daily that are not only effective but also feel good? Need support in making the big decisions so you can rest-easy with a deep-knowing that you made the best choice for your highest good? Great! Contact me today to schedule a complimentary get acquainted call because I can help you take the mystery, agony, and guilt out of making decisions.