Concrete thinkers have it rough these days, particularly when it comes to decision-making. These 10 tips can help you make the jump from black-and-white thinking to clearer decision-making. From Decision Making for Dummies by Dawna Jones. Learn more: http://bit.ly/DecisionMakingForDummies

1. 10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

2. HelpingConcreteThinkersMakeDecisions
inAmbiguousConditions
Concretethinkershaveitroughthesedays,particularly
whenitcomestodecision-making.Inaworldwhere
marketconditions(andlifecircumstances!)changequickly
andyouhavetonavigateambiguoussituations,these10
tipscanhelpyoumakethejumpfromblack-and-white
thinkingtoclearerdecision-making.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

3. 5LinkedInTips.4Dosand1Don’t
Uncheckedassumptions
increaseuncertainty
becausetheyleadto
falseconclusionsand
limityouroptions.Quantitydoesnotalwaysequatewithquality.
Ismorenetworkingactivitywhatyoureallywant?Ordoyouwantmoreresults
withlessactivity?Tossoutmeaninglessmetricslikenumberofconnections,
endorsements,orquestionsanswered.Insteadusemetricsthatyouknowdirectly
tietobusinessresults,suchas:
• LEADSGENERATED
• JOINTVENTURE/STRATEGICPARTNERPROSPECTSGENERATED
• QUALIFIEDJOBCANDIDATESCONTACTED
• POTENTIALEMPLOYERSSUCCESSFULLYCONTACTED
• INTERVIEWSSCHEDULED
• SPEAKINGOPPORTUNITIESGARNERED
•• PUBLICITYOPPORTUNITIESCREATED
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

4. TIP2.StretchOutofYourComfortZonetoEncourage
Growth&Innovation!
How?
1)Ifyou’rea xedthinker,youmakeallyourprojectsconform
totheskillsyoualreadyhave.Thisisasurerewaytostunt
growthandkillinnovation.
2)2)Youtrytokeeprealityunderyourcontrolandinuence,
whicha)isimpossible,andb)createsallsortsofpressurenot
onlyonyoubutalsoonyouremployees!
WARNING:Fixedthinking
messesupdecision-making!
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

5. TIP3.LearnfromthePast
Uncertaintycanbefrighteningtomany
people,butuncertaintyisanopportunity
tolookintothepast.
Pastexperiencesremindyouthatyouhave
thecreativity,condence,andcharacterto
walkintotheunknownandthrive.
Usethepastwhenconsideringtough
decisionsinthepdecisionsinthepresent.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

6. TIP4.AskProfoundQuestions
Illuminateunseendynamicstoinspireanew
wayofworkingbyaskingprofoundquestions,
suchas:
•HOWDOI/YOUFEEL?
Factsbecomecloudedwhenfeelingsbuildup.
•WHATHAPPENED?
Theanswerstothisquestionairouttheinformation
alongwithperceptionsofwhattookplace.
•WHATDIDORCANMYCOMPANYORILEARN?
Pluckvaluefromtheexperiencewiththisquestion,
whichshiftsyourperspectiveintoobservationandreection.
Profoundquestions
cansparkteam
breakthroughsin
thinking,company
reinventions!
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

7. TIP5.ListenDeeply
Listeningdeeplyiswhatfollowstheprofound
questionsyouask.Whenyoufeelconfusedin
thefaceofdecisions,orwhenothersinvolvedin
decision-makinghaveideastooffer,listendeeply.
•SAYANDTHINKNOTHING.Andwemeannothing.Quietyour
mind,keepitopen,andoffernocomment.Justlisten.Don’tevaluate.
•DON’TRUSHIT.Listenintentlyfor10minutes,or30ifyoucan
makeit.Ifyouhitasilentpatch,wait.Don’tllinthesilence.
•USETHEANSWERSYOUHEARinthecontextofyourthought-
fulapproachtodecision-making.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

8. TIP6.ShiftPerspectives
Decisionsarebetterwhendiverse
viewsconvergeintoapproachesor
solutionsthatcanbeheldcoopera-
tivelybymorepeople.Anytimeyou’re
facedwithmakingadifficultdecision,
exploredifferentperspectives.
Youwillmakebetterdecisionsifyou’re
exibleabouthowyousee,think,and
approachthedecision.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

9. TIP7.MovefromInertiatoAction
Movingfrominertiatoactionmeans
takingwhatyou’velearned—theideas
swimmingaroundinyourbrain—and
puttingthemintoaction.Theunfamiliar
looksscaryatrst,butdon’tletthat
keepyoufromtakingaction!
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

10. TIP8.EmbraceYourHeart
Yourheartbringsapowerfulformofintelligencetodecision-making,
souseit!
Youcantry,ifyouinsist,touseyourmentalwilltooverrideyour
feelingsaboutadecision.Youcangetawaywithitforawhile,
butsoonerorlater,you’llexperienceburnoutorfeeldisheartened.
Payingattentiontowhetheryourheartisinadecisionisthe
simplestwaytotestyourcommitmenttoacourseofaction
andandto nalizewhichoptionyouwillultimatelychoose.
Testtheoptionsordecisionsyou’remaking
bylisteningtoyourheart.
Doyoufeelfullyengaged,half-hearted,ornumb?
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

11. TIP9.LookForwardtotheUnpredictable!
CanyouthinkofANYTHINGthat’sactuallycertainandpredictable?
(Otherthantaxes,haha.)Nope?Didn’tthinkso.
Notmuchispredictableorcertain,buttakeheart!
Evendie-hardlinearthinkerscanbecreativeandfastontheirfeet.
Embraceinherentuncertaintyasanopportunitytobecreative!
Rejectfearovertheunknownandfocusyourenergiesand
decision-makingenergiesondiscoveringcreativepossibilities.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations

12. TIP10.ApproachRiskDifferently
Humanstendtodiscounttheprobabilityoffutureevents.Ifariskisn’t
immediate,wetendtoignoreit.Theresult?We’reunprepared!
Sotakeadifferentapproachtorisk.Lookatpossibleriskasthough
youaredealingwithittoday.Makeitreal,thenplanforit.
Movea uffy,may-or-may-nothappenriskoutoftheclouds
andintoyourdecision-makingprocess.
10TipsforMakingDecisionsinUncertainSituations