Guest Blog by Karen Wessels, co-founder and COO of VA Connect
The success of your business is defined by how you make decisions - and naturally, success also lies in how quickly these decisions are made.
One of my favourite ways to manage making decisions is to implement the 1-2-3 step methodology. If someone asks me something where I need to quickly come to a decision, in my mind I start counting backwards from 3 and by the time I get to 1, I must have made my decision.
Of course, the other trick is once you’ve made a decision, stick to it. Thankfully by implementing the above method you save yourself the trouble of continuously changing your mind.
There are many ways to make effective decisions; here are some of my favourite means of decision-making that you can hopefully implement immediately.
1. Challenge the status quo
This is absolutely one of my favourites. Why? We tend to live in our personal comfort zone which leads to decisions being made within our line of comfort. As humans we are afraid of change. I love being challenged and placed outside of my comfort zone. If you are already doing things a certain way and you have the option to start over, would you choose the same tactics that you are currently using? Or would you do things differently?
2. Get a different perspective
Sometimes all you need is an angle change. In our business we use this all the time where we back up and change our view of a certain problem. Getting a different perspective on things tends to shed new light and may highlight solutions you may never have thought of previously. Change the angle, make a better decision.
3. Let go of previous mistakes
We all have a tendency to hang onto the past, especially in those instances where we made a decision and it didn’t work out. It may also be that money has been spent on fixing past problems. Sometimes it’s best to forget about these past mistakes and move on. Acknowledge that you made the best decision at the time under the circumstances. We learn from these experiences and make better improved decisions as we go along.
4. Listen to your instincts
We are all born with a 6th sense, a gut feel about things, people, circumstances. When it comes to making decisions be open to listen to your first instinct - 9 times out of 10 it was the right decision to make. We do tend to overthink things or question ourselves – don’t do that! Make a decision and stick with it. You’ve made the right decision and it will be the best for your business.
5. Be decisive
It is hardly ever a wise decision to make no decision. Yes, there are times that we need to let things “simmer” while our minds have time to wrap around the thought at hand. However, being indecisive is not going to help the cause and it’s not going to benefit your business in the long run. In order to be a successful leader you need to make effective decisions quickly, knowing that it’s a sound decision for the health of your business and your staff.
It’s up to us to be in control of our lives and our decision making. Take action, think quickly and make the right decision!
Karen Wessels is the co-founder and COO of VA Connect, a South African virtual assistant platform that provides outsourced administrative support. Prior to establishing VA Connect, Karen spent over 10 years in different sales, marketing & admin support roles. Having worked with MDs, SMEs and professionals, she is very familiar with managing different workloads within tight deadlines. This has equipped her with the invaluable skills required to run a successful VA business. Follow Karen on her Personal Website | Twitter | Facebook | Google+
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