In business and in life, people must remember to be themselves. It’s easy to look at someone as a role model and try to emulate them in your actions. You can take ideas from other people and build them into who you are, but you have to stay true to yourself when making decisions.
Particularly in small business, your decisions could have a big impact on the people around you. A New York Times article titled When You Don’t Do What You Meant To And Don’t Know Why, by Alina Tugend, offers some decision making advice for entrepreneurs.
Don’t fall victim to your own bias.
Sometimes you make a poor decision because you’ve gathered research that confirms your own bias. Don’t rely on someone else’s opinion if they always agree with you. Seek input from people you trust and ask them what they think about the decision you’re trying to make.
Don’t let your emotions play too big of a role.
Keep your emotions in check so as not to overreact when presented with a great idea. Take your time and make changes incrementally as opposed to all at once. You will have a better chance of taking a big idea and making it into an executable idea when you proceed at a controlled pace.
Don’t be over-optimistic about the future and your own abilities.
Set realistic goals, and don’t allow your expectations to get out of line. In the process of getting better and building your business, start with something you know you can accomplish rather than something you dream of being able to achieve. Don’t be so optimistic that you forget to be realistic.
Further Reading
The book Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work, by Chip Heath, talks about your emotions, developing positive habits and learning to be consistently successful.
Published: August 27, 2013
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