DECIDE

DECIDE

*This is a partial continuation of my last write-up regarding opportunities.

Do you know what the word decision really means? What about how it compares to a choice? I know that I was not privy to any of this for quite some time. For most people, these words are interchangeable, but they are not. The difference points to a larger metaphor.

The original Latin derivation of the word decision is: "de" or off and "caedere" or cut. Put it together and the word's original meaning is therefore to cut off all other choices. Interestingly the word choice has its roots in Germany roughly translating to "to taste, or try". The difference between a choice and a decision should immediately, then, become clear. When you make a decision, you commit. You lose the ability to choose. When you choose, you vacillate, unable to commit, spiraling into a pit of procrastination and anxiety.

When faced with an opportunity, if you choose to pursue it you will most probably fail, because the composite -you (heart, mind, spirit) is not fully invested. You must decide and thus commit. If you're like me then you will have the thought, "Well, what if I give it everything I have and I fail? As a result of this thinking, people predictably leave much of their potential work ethic on the table. The answer to that question is this - if you don't put everything into that venture, you will fail.

The importance of decisions aside, you will ultimately be judged on two things: your decisiveness, and the long-term accuracy of those judgments. I can't teach accurate decision-making, but decisiveness, on the other hand, is a skill that can be learned.

Indecisiveness during the Battle of Gallipoli in WWI led to the war being prolonged for 2 years which cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of men. This is a common story in war, business, and life. The inability to make a decision has ruined more lives than perhaps almost anything else.

However, the first step in being able to decide is having adequate information. It is a difficult balance, but I believe was best summarized by the late General Colin Powell in his book It Worked for Me. If you have less than 30% of the information in a situation you need to wait because you didn't have enough to make a good decision. If you have more than 70%, you have waited too long and should have already made a decision. If you are between the 30-70 rule and the decision is not Sophie's Choice (take the time to watch this clip) where people's lives are at stake, you should aim to come to a conclusion in no longer than a minute. Not to say you will always meet that, because you won't, but rather that it should be the target.

There are obviously exceptions to this, for situations where the need for change is clear but no real solutions are apparent, you employ the same 60-second target except utilizing Iterative Decision Making. Simply put, small, frequent steps until a big step is in focus.