Marcel Legros - Play the Game of Life

What are some decision making techniques of successful people? If decisions define your success, then it’s important to learn how to wade through the seemingly endless choices we encounter in life. Many books and sources talk about the Pareto principle (the 80/20 rule), grids, analytical thinking, and all kinds of mumbo jumbo. Those tools are meaningless if you don’t know how to get past fear first. To do that, you need perspective and practice. The most important aspects of decision making are; a willingness to act, and a willingness to make mistakes.

Don’t Walk in the Middle of the Road

You’re confronted with decisions every day - some are big, most are small. Some people are crippled by indecision and waste a lot of their life stuck in a quagmire. It’s so hard to know if you’re doing the right thing. The first decision you have to make is that, no matter what, you are going to do it now. Keeping your options open is no option at all. If you decide to say no, then say ‘no’ completely. If your answer is yes, then say ‘yes’ with equal determination. ‘Maybe’ puts you smack dab in the middle of the road, and you’ll get squashed every time. Time always moves on, with or without you. A perfect moment of clarity may never come but your best effort is always good enough.

Fumbling Your Way to Life’s Riches

The biggest obstacle for most people is the fear they will make the wrong decision. Remember this - the only time it’s really important that you make the right decision is when being wrong will kill or harm another living being. Practice this attitude and buying a car will become as easy as buying a loaf of bread. You must be willing to be wrong and to fail. You cannot be right all of the time and no one is. The irony is that to win more, you have to fail more - success is a numbers game. When Thomas Edison was asked about his many inventions that didn’t work, he responded, “I didn’t fail ten thousand times. I successfully eliminated, ten thousand times, materials and combinations which wouldn’t work.” Making the wrong decision isn’t failure. The only failure is making no decision at all.

Shut Your Mouth and Listen

Sometimes, the best decision is to not act. This is different than indecision. There are times when patience and gathering information is your best course of action. This is active patience. You watch, listen, and learn from others and get all the information you can before taking physical action. I worked for a fellow years ago that once told me, “Often, the best thing to do is say nothing. Just shut up and listen.” How true.

When All Else Fails

Decision making is a skill - you get better at making decisions the more often you do it. If you have a hard time making even small choices, then start with those. Take a ‘do it now’ approach until you feel stronger approaching the big ones. If all else fails, flip a coin. You might laugh, but I met an artist who chose his next color by throwing a dart at a color chart. It worked for him and his paintings were amazing. The world will always provide what you need if you decide to face it, to be wrong, and to let the small stuff take care of itself.