Source: Tumblr
I’m sure almost everyone will agree with me when I say, decision making is never easy–even if you’re an engineer. Engineers, especially when they are in the supervisory or management levels in their respective industries, are expected to make important decisions in different projects and tasks in order to lead their team. Big decisions can cause serious stress in your life, but it’s important to understand that making good decisions is a skill that can be learned.
Here are a few ways to make decision making a bit easier.
Pretend You’re Giving Your Friend Advice
Source: Giphy
Why? It’s because, your current short-term emotions can get in the way of making sound decisions. Breaking free from your emotions during decision making can be difficult. So pretend you’re giving some advice to a friend who needs to make a decision, what advice would you most likely give if he/she was in our situation?
Limit the Information You Take In
Source: Giphy
Engineers are used to take in a truckload of information that is thrown on them. It is also a common understanding that the more information you have, the better your decisions will be. But at some point, it’s important to accept that there is a certain limit wherein we can have too much information. When we do, we tend to overthink things that might add weight onto information that doesn’t matter.
Bring Out Your Inner Contrarian
Source: Speaker Magazine
Pretending that you’re giving advice to your friend is one thing, to try and challenge your assumptions is another. This is a healthy exercise, as you are challenging yourself to bring out the best in your decisions. Confront your default behavior, move outside your comfort zone, and try to test some completely new ideas–after all, it’s what engineers do best.
Spreadsheet It Out
Source: Engineer Excel
Create a simple spreadsheet that contains the pros, cons, rankings, qualities, and suggestions that can help make you see the big picture of a decision. Engineers don’t like doing extra grunt work, but when you’re making decisions that will most likely affect the company you work in, it’s good to have everything recorded. This could also be a good tool to show your team and bosses how you came up with your decision. It can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but I’m sure engineers like to keep it simple and concise.
So take note of these tips when making a big decision. I hope this helps. If you have any other tips that could help, share it with us in the comments!
Source: Lifehacker
