7 models for making weighted decisions

We have to make many decisions every day. Some of them are not very important, others - noticeably change our life. And each of us at least once faced a difficult choice, when doubts about the correctness of the decision turned into torture. Moving, changing jobs, choosing a place to study - these are all difficult situations.

Nevertheless, the agony of choice can be eased. For this, numerous decision-making models have been developed based on the experience of other people. We'll talk about seven of them. Using these techniques and methods, you can make more deliberate choices, avoid accidental mistakes and always evaluate the consequences of any decision you make, both in the short and long term.

1. The 10/10/10 rule

Of course, making any decision, a person thinks about the consequences of his choice in the future. You can use the 10/10/10 rule to give yourself confidence in times like these. Three tens in this case means three time periods, about which you need to ask yourself the following questions:

How will I feel about this decision after 10 minutes?
How will I feel about this decision after 10 months?
How will I feel about this decision after 10 years?

By answering these questions, you will be able to assess, or at least imagine, the consequences of your choice in the long term. This is especially true for tough decisions that can affect your life in the future.

For example, if you are too lazy to go to the gym, think about the consequences - and it will be much easier to resolve doubts.

2. Loyal fan

The availability of information and the ease of its dissemination allows any artist or entrepreneur to influence their own career by acquiring a loyal fan base. And when it comes to decision-making technique, it is not the number of fans that matters, but the very fact of their presence.

The essence of this rule is that there is no point in trying to please everyone or the conditional majority. It is much easier to achieve success and inner harmony by winning the love of a few. Although this decision-making model is originally designed for artists and entrepreneurs, it can be useful in any endeavor.

If you follow this rule in personal or professional relationships, it will be easier for you to choose your circle of friends. You will understand that it is much more valuable to "fall in love" with the "right" people, rather than trying to win the love of everyone who meets on your life path.

3. Pareto's law

You have probably heard about this law more than once. Its essence is that 20% of all our efforts provide 80% of the result. Accordingly, the opposite is also true: 80% of the effort is rewarded with only 20% of the final result. And this happens in any business.

The rule was formulated by the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who noticed that 80% of all wealth is concentrated in the hands of 20% of people. Today, this ratio is true for business, healthcare and many other areas.

For example, 80% of our spending is in 20% of expense categories, 80% of our profits are generated by only 20% of customers. Another example: 80% of our happiness is provided by only 20% of the people around us.

Pareto's Law will help you be more effective and understand that most of the effort brings less of the result.

4. Minimizing future regrets

The author of the rule of "minimizing future regrets" is Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. It will be indispensable when making the most global and serious decisions in life.

At one point, Jeff Bezos was faced with a choice: quit his successful hedge fund job to found Amazon, or leave it as it is. Obviously, the entrepreneur made a decision that he hardly regrets.

The head of Amazon recommends imagining yourself at 80 and trying to figure out what you're going to think about. This uncomplicated technique makes it possible to break out of the daily routine and not make mistakes when making decisions.

If you can clearly understand what you want to achieve in the long term, it will help you avoid future regrets about anything.

5. Eisenhower Matrix

During his tenure as President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower made many important decisions, the effect of which is still felt. He pioneered the US highway network, space exploration (NASA), and the study of alternative energy sources, which led to the creation of the Atomic Energy Act, the primary US law on civil and military use of nuclear materials.

Unsurprisingly, many of Eisenhower's decision-making methods are still popular today. One of them is the so-called Eisenhower matrix. Its essence is to classify any decision, case or occupation into one of four categories:

urgent and important (needs to be done urgently);
important but not urgent (you can schedule it later);
urgent, but not important (you can instruct someone else);
not urgent and not important (tasks that you can refuse to complete).

Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, believes that most of our cases fall into the latter category. And the really urgent and important things actually do not appear so often. As for cases from the third and fourth categories, it all depends solely on your ability to manage time and the ability to delegate such tasks or refuse them altogether.

6. Parkinson's law

Willpower is not unlimited. Some people are able to exercise more willpower than others, but only for a limited time. This is Parkinson's law.

If we get three hours on a task, which usually takes an hour, then we will certainly find something to do with all the available time. However, in the last half hour, we will experience serious excitement and pressure associated with the completion of the task.

Only you can apply Parkinson's Law to yourself. It is unlikely that your boss will ask you to spend fewer hours at work, so only you can set artificial time limits.

In other words, instead of taking a whole week to complete the project, it’s much more efficient to split it into several parts and set several deadlines during this week so that you can get everything done without unnecessary pressure.

In reality, only a few people cope with this task and successfully apply Parkinson's law in practice. Although following this rule allows you to get more free time, and not less, as it might seem at first glance.

7. Circle of competence

Throughout our lives, we are constantly told that it is necessary first of all to correct our shortcomings, and not to concentrate on our strengths. However, the most successful athletes, businessmen and other influential people urge to focus on their own circle of competencies.

You can try to become a successful tennis player and at the same time a recognized actor. Success is possible in any area and in any combination. It all depends solely on discipline, willingness to sacrifice something and, most importantly, the time spent.

That is, we can make great efforts to expand our range of competencies, but it is much easier and more effective to stay in it. This way you can achieve much more success with less effort. The main thing is never to be afraid to admit that you do not know something, because it is simply impossible to know and be able to do everything.