Things often change in life and business. We’ve all been faced with a tough decision, that fork in the road that makes it difficult to choose our next move. And making hard decisions, by its definition, isn’t always easy because they often have a big impact on both our life and business.
So if you’re pondering a decision that will lead to a significant change, here are some tips that will help.
#1: Know what you want in life and business
You can’t make a big change in life and business if you don’t know what you want. So start by getting clear on how you want life to look for you and what’s important in both areas. Because they’re not separate and do often overlap – especially when it comes to getting a work-life balance you want.
#2: Take notice of your inbuilt guidance system when making hard decisions
Your feelings and body are an inbuilt guidance system that is always working for you. So take the time to listen – not just to your head but also to your heart and body. Look after your mental and physical health so you can tune in and learn the difference between your head and your heart – logic isn’t always the deciding factor, especially if something feels intuitively wrong to you.
#3: Respect the opinions of others but don’t give them the deciding vote
Do seek counsel from others if needed, but don’t let them make decisions for you. No matter how well-meaning, other people can only view things through their views and opinions. Only you know what you really want and can make those hard choices to get it.
#4: Be willing to ask yourself the tough questions
When making hard decisions, you have to be willing to ask yourself those tough questions. Is this working? Is this what I want? Why am I doing this? How do I want this to be? Do I have the right balance? What needs to change?
#5: Know your definition of success
It’s easier to make hard decisions when you know where you’re headed. What does success look like for you? It’s different for everyone, and there is no right or wrong answer. Only when you know what success looks like for you can you check whether you’re aiming for what you want or what other people expect of you.
#6: When making hard decisions look ahead
When you’re making hard decisions, it can help to look ahead and visualise how it will look and feel once you’ve made the decision. How will life look? How does it feel to have made that decision – and are you happy with what you’re gaining and giving up as a result?
#7: Sleep on it before deciding
Before making any big decision, give yourself time to think on it. Sleep on it, as things often look better and clearer the next day. Get some fresh air, go for a walk and just sit with it before deciding.
#8: Be brave enough to make the hard decisions
Face the fact that something needs to change, and you need to make a hard decision. What is the decision you need to make? What action do you need to take to implement it – do you need to take it all down and start again, pivot, or change what you’re focusing on? Do you need to realign with what’s important to you? Be brave enough to make the decision and act on it once you have.
#9: Accept and celebrate the wins and the losses
Acceptance is part of the process. You are where you are, and that’s ok. Celebrate the wins you’ve had, see the whole journey, not just the failures and know that you can celebrate again once you’ve made this decision.
#10: Take decisive action once you’ve decided on your course of action
Once you’ve made the decision, act on it. Analysis paralysis is real, and questioning your process isn’t going to help once you decide; it’ll keep you stuck. So once you’ve made that hard decision, take that first step forward and act on it.
Things often change in life and business, which usually means we’re faced with making hard decisions. Use the ten tips above to help make it a little easier to make that big change and move forward once the decision has been made.