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#TL03G: HOW TO MAKE GREAT DECISIONS

Compiled and edited by Frederick Mann

How to Do Things Right
and Succeed

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Introduction
What is the most important human ability or power? I think it's the power of choice, the ability to choose and make decisions. See "Human Choice: The Greatest Power on Earth" in #TL10: How to Achieve and Increase Personal Power.

"Although we are weaker and slower than every other large animal, our advantage lies in being able to find options and choose the best one." -- Charles Foster, Ph.D., M.B.A. ('What Do I Do Now? Dr. Foster's 30 Laws of Great Decision Making')

One of the most important ways to increase your advantages (and decrease your disadvantages) in life is to improve your ability to make great decisions.

Experiment: Hold your finger about 12 inches in front of your face. Decide to lift your finger about 3 inches and make it go up. Repeat to make your finger go 3 inches left, 3 inches right, and 3 inches down. Did your finger move in accordance with your decisions? If it did, think about the implications and what in the universe made this remarkable achievement possible. Repeat the experiment once a day or more often until you have a major realization.

"Whatever you're trying to decide, you have everything you need inside you right now to be one of those people who easily, quickly, and comfortably make great decisions." -- Charles Foster, Ph.D., M.B.A. ('What Do I Do Now? Dr. Foster's 30 Laws of Great Decision Making')

Whatever the current quality of your life -- your health, happiness, career, wealth or poverty, relationships, etc. -- consider the extent to which it's the outcome of your past choices or decisions. Also consider that your future may be an "open book" to be largely written by the choices or decisions you make from now on.

"When faced with a decision, the most important quality winners have is that they care about making good choices. When confronted with a big decision, they think about it and work hard to figure out the best thing to do.

What makes losers losers, more than anything, is that they make decisions the way a cork in the ocean decides which way it's going to go. They are totally controlled by the haphazard forces around them. They make bad decisions because they don't really care about making decisions." -- Charles Foster, Ph.D., M.B.A. ('What Do I Do Now? Dr. Foster's 30 Laws of Great Decision Making')

I have several thousand books. I've gained many advantages from studying some of these books. If I were to rate my most useful books in terms of "advantages per page," Dr. Foster's 'What Do I Do Now?' would rate in the top 10! So I suggest you get your own copy as soon as possible. You may discover it's one of the most useful books ever written!

The purpose of this report is to improve your ability to make great decisions, and -- even more important! -- to follow through and implement your great decisions!

You can also apply Dr. Fosters 30 Laws to select what's most important in your life ... what you may want to devote most attention to. Dr, Foster provides a method you can use to determine which aspects of you life you may want to give the highest priority. You can find it under "Perspectives: Knowing Your Priorities."

The only real failure is failing to learn from failure
(From Tabor College, Australia.)
There is a story of a young reporter who was commissioned to interview an old and successful businessman. 'Sir,' he asked politely, 'what has been the secret of your success?'

The older man leaned back on his leather swivel chair, behind his shining mahogany desk, and replied, 'Two words, son, two words: right decisions.'

The reporter wrote it down. Then he asked another question. 'And how do you learn how to make right decisions, sir?' he asked.

The successful businessman leaned back further and replied, 'One word, son, one word: experience.'

The reporter wrote this down, too, and then asked, 'Well, sir, how do you acquire experience?'

The older man leaned forward over his desk and whispered conspiratorially, 'Two words, son, two words: wrong decisions!'

The only real failure is failing to learn from failure.

William Glasser and Choice Theory
A very important aspect of decision-making is covered by Wlilliam Glasser, M.D. in his books:

Glasser makes a distinction between "external control psychology" and his "choice theory." He illustrates external control psychology with three central beliefs:

"FIRST BELIEF: I answer a ringing phone, open the door to a doorbell, stop at a red light, or do countless other things because I am responding to a simple external signal.

SECOND BELIEF: I can make other people do what I want them to do even if they don't want to do it. And other people can control how I think, act, and feel.

THIRD BELIEF: It is right, it is even my moral obligation, to ridicule, threaten, or punish those who don't do what I tell them to do or even reward them if it will get them to do what I want."

Glasser talks about "driving the plague of external control psychology from the Earth." (Note that your Self 1 typically attempts to act as an "external control psychologist" over your Self 2. In his "Inner Game" books, W. Timothy Gallwey makes a distinction between "Self 1" and "Self 2." Self 1 can be regarded as related to involuntary thoughts -- often negative -- that automatically enter your mind. See #TL04C: The Ultimate Success Secret.)

"Whatever behavior we choose is generated inside our brains. Choice theory explains that we are, as all living creatures are, internally motivated." -- William Glasser, M.D. ('Choice Theory: A New Psychology of Personal Freedom')

Glasser also developed the concept of total behavior consisting of:

  1. Doing;
  2. Thinking;
  3. Feeling;
  4. Physiology.

We choose our actions (decide to take them) and our thoughts (decide to think them). We indirectly choose our feelings and much of the physiology (e.g., clenching our fists) that form part of a "particular total behavior." We answer the phone because we decide to do so. We stop at a red light because we decide to do so.

We depress ourselves when we decide to choose certain "doings" and "thinkings."

External control psychology:
"I am depressed."
"I suffer from anxiety."
"I have a phobia."

Choice theory:
"I am depressing myself or I'm choosing to depress myself."
"I am anxieting or choosing to be anxious."
"I am phobicking or choosing to be phobic."

Recognizing the extent to which your choices (or decisions) extend, opens the door to making other choices (or decisions): "Instead of depressing myself, what other better thoughts and actions can I choose (decide to think and take) that will result in different feelings and physiology?"

Learning and implementing Glasser's Control Theory and/or Choice Theory can give you huge advantages! Check out "Relationships and Our Habits" and "The Ten Axioms of Choice Theory."

Dr. Foster's 30 Laws of Decision Making
#1: Focus on the most important thing (Are you giving full weight to the most important issue?)
#2: Don't decide until you're ready (Why not give yourself more time?)
#3: Look for all the good things that can happen (What's the best outcome you can expect?)
#4: Choose it or lose it (What big decision are you not making now?)
#5: Base your decision on self-acceptance (Does your decision fit the real you?)
#6: Look ahead (How will your decision play out over time?)
#7: Turn big decisions into a series of little decisions (What small step can you take toward a decision?)
#8: You always havebetter options (What are better options beyond those you've checked out?)
#9: Get what you need to feel safe (What are you doing to take care of your safety needs?)
#10: Do what you really want (Are you sure you've let your heart's desire hold sway?)
#11: If it ain't simple, it ain't gonna work (Are you making things more complicated than they need to be?)
#12: Have a hopeful heart and a cautious head (Have you balanced hoping for the best with protecting yourself from the worst?)
#13: Tune in to what you're saying to yourself (Have you remembered to really listen to yuorself?)
#14: Never let a lower priority outweigh a higher priority (Are your priorities all out of whack?)
#15: No matter what, don't get trapped (Are you protecting yourself from getting stuck?) [For more examples of important traps, see #FFP05: Harry Browne's Freedom Principles.]
#16: Know your Achilles' heel (What are the top ten bad habits in making decisions?)

(1) Biting off more than you can chew
(2) Detail mania
(3) Fear
(4) Losing touch with you
(5) The green-eyed monster [envy]
(6) Keeping on keeping on [persistence with what can't work]
(7) Acting without thinking
(8) Dithering
(9) Taking the path of least resistance
(10) Not believing that things can be better than they are.
[Personally, I would add the following to the above list:
(11) Poor diet/unhealthy lifestyle
(12) Allowing your Self 1 to interfere with your decisions
(13) Living your life as a "passive passenger" -- obedience or "following the crowd" -- let others decide for you -- automatic acceptance or rejection of information
(14) Irresponsibility -- blaming others or factors outside yourself
(15) Dishonesty
(16) Coercion -- initiating force, threat of force, or fraud in order to impose your will upon others -- see Why You Must Recognize and Understand Coercion
(17) "Thinking" with your sexual organs rather than your brain -- see #TL05AA: The Breeding Motivation: What You Can Do About It
(18) Unrealistic expectations
(19) Not considering the hidden bad side of people -- see #TL15A: The Good and the Bad
(20) Unwillingness to make drastic changes
(21) Ignoring or neglecting absolute essentials
(22) Denial (of personal disadvantages)
(23) Procrastination and failure to follow through (lack of persistence)
(24) Failure to be a life-long learner and keep abreast of new developments
(25) Failure to distinguish between what you can and can't control
(26) Overconfidence.]
#17: Always take your own best advice (Would you tell your best friend to do this?)
#18: Appreciate the newness of each situation (Are you in danger of applying old learning to s new decision?)
#19: Make yourself proud (Which decision will give you self-respect?)
#20: Pay attention to the big, fat, obvious issues (What are you overlooking?)
#21: Never forget why you made your decision (Are you judging yourself with different criteria from what you first used?)
#22: Know what's real (What realities will affect your decision?)
#23: Get what you need to make your decision a success (Are you equipped to carry out this decision?)
#24: Find and follow an expert (Are you making sure you're relying on smart advisers?)
#25: Keep an open mind (Are you caught in attitudes that keep you from seeing what's best for you?)
#26: Take care of the basics (Will your decision address your basic needs?)
#27: Some things you "know" are wrong (Have you checked your facts?)
#28: You don't have to run from risk (Do you know what the risks are and how to protect yourself?)
#29: Following through makes decisions great (Will you do a great job carrying out your decisions?)
#30: Make decisions to make things wonderful (Will you get something that's wonderful?)

Levels of Creation
In considering how to decide what action to take at any given time, you may want to take into account whether it serves you best to apply one of the formulas in:

Managing Your Time
How you decide to utilize your time is a central aspect influencing many of your decisions -- see #TL03F: How to Manage Your Time.


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