Chicken or beef? Buckwheat or quinoa? Left or right? Buy now or next month? The reality is that we’re all plagued by decisions almost every minute of the day. There’s no getting around the fact that decision-making is a fundamental aspect of daily life. And, not to put more pressure on you, the choices you make and even those that you don’t make, have the power to massively influence your personal and professional outcomes.
On a normal day, making choices can be taxing. But what about when you’ve got brain fog or decision fatigue? What then? Thankfully, there are ways you can avoid curling up into the fetal position, like understanding a bit of the science behind making better decisions.
Armed with such hefty knowledge, you’ll feel empowered to navigate complex choices with clarity and confidence.
But first… The psychology
Before we dive into the hardcore science, let’s dip our toes into our own minds. You see, it’s helpful to understand how your brain psychologically perceives a decision and sets itself up to make a choice.
For starters, did you know that we often make choices using mental models we’ve created over years of experience? ‘Mental models’ is an academic way of referring to how the mind makes sense of something. Essentially, a mental model is a way of examining a problem and a lot of these models are things we developed from our childhoods. Your mental models could also be called your ‘inner voice,’ because it’s what you’re using to make hard and fast or slow and more considered decisions.
Get to know yourself
Knowing that you’ve already got this whole inner situation going on, playing such a vital role in how your decisions are made, does make it super important for you to know yourself. You’ve got to understand why you think the way you do, what you want, why you want it, and why you like and loathe certain things.
In fact, there’s a pretty famous life coach and author, Paula Quinsee, who says that we especially need to understand our decision-making style if we’re going to be able to sift through all the overwhelming amount of info available at our fingertips. If you don’t know the what, the how, and the why about yourself and how you make decisions, it’s way too easy for you to make the wrong choice.
Ever experienced ‘analysis paralysis’? That’s when there’s too much info and you can’t actually think about the decision, let alone make a choice. But if you know how to filter all the excess out, it becomes that much easier to make the right choice for you without getting overwhelmed or losing focus.
Practical tips for better decision-making
Okay, it’s all good and well to tell you to get to know yourself better and then yay, you’ll be all ready to make better decisions, propelling you into fame, money, and success. The theory is sound, but what will also help are a few practical tips, yes? Yes.
Here’s how to get better at making decisions:
- Define your goals: Clearly define your objectives and priorities. It’s really helpful to understand what you want and check if this aligns with your long-term goals.
- Gather info: Collect the relevant info to inform your decision-making process by getting advice from people (or sources) you trust and doing some research.
- Weigh it up: Look at the pros and cons so you know all the risks and benefits before making a final decision.
- Get feedback: Ask trusted individuals or mentors for insights, because external perspectives can offer new viewpoints and identify blind spots.
- Practise mindfulness: These techniques can really help reduce stress, improve your concentration, and make it easier to focus clearly.
The royal decision that’s a no-brainer
We hope these scientific principles and practical tips will do what every radioactive insect does in comic books… Enhance your abilities. Remember, making better decisions isn’t just about being smart, it’s also about having fun and enjoying the journey. It’s about having the peace and confidence to make the royally-important choice of getting the king’s car insurance that’ll have your back and bakkie AND choosing the far superior double chocolate in a cone over mint chip ice-cream cup.
Don’t have our royal touch? WhatsApp us on 0860 50 50 50 and we’ll give you a commitment-free quote for your car, home, and even your boat.
Psst… This blog provides general info only, and doesn’t count as financial or product advice from King Price or our legal and compliance experts. Remember, all our premiums are risk-profile-dependent, and T’s and C’s apply. Our most up-to-date KPPD (policy wording) can always be found here.
Our website T’s and C’s can be found here.
