The Ability To Make Great Decisions

Sometimes things happen in business that will come as a surprise.  Some surprises are good and others are not so good.  Being able to see the road ahead and know what action to take is a vital skill for both a leader and a manager.

 

Seeing ahead is made up of a few different components -

1. Access to information.  Who you talk to and what you are listening to makes a big difference.  Listening is also a lesser practised skill that can get you ahead if you are able to listen to what is being said and then figure out a way to use that knowledge for your benefit.
2. Sheer Instinct.  Making a decision based on gut feel isn't always a bad thing.  You won't always get it right but you need to make a hard call sometime.  The way to make better gut calls is to make them more often and then reassess what happened and what the effects were after the fact. 
3. Women's intuition.  Ladies have a third instinct.  There's no two ways about it.  If somethings up - a female will know.  Ask their opinion before you proceed.

 Nothing in life is ever really clear cut but the more decisions you make, and the more you reflect on your past choices will help you define and refine your skills.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sweetteainnyc/3227138108/) 

The Power of Saying - Yes

In a weeks time I get a huge opportunity and the chance to fulfill a lifelong dream to be able to travel, and not only to travel, but travel into China.  To be honest I was pretty sure I would get there one day I just hadn'tfigured it would be in 7 days.

The really great aspect of the entire process of my being able to go all comes down to three basic things.

1. I said yes.
2. I was prepared at the right time.
3. I am ready to go and have the ability to.

In what I thought was just another plain day at work my boss asked me a completely random question.  Do you have a passport?  Answer - yes.  I had no idea where he was going with this.  Second question - is it current?  Answer - yes.  Now my interest was beginning to peak.  Then the third question - do you want to go to China?  Answer - Yes.

It really is that simple.  I made an on the spot decision and it has turned out to be all good.  To put this all into context what happened was my boss has previously visited China in the past few months and had an excellent time there.  While he was there he had the chance to meet faculty from the Nanjing Forestry University.

So what does this have to do with me?  The University have extended the invitation for us to visit again.  As my boss has been on a few international trips already recently he felt he did not have the time to commit with the ever increasing pressures of work.

So he decided to pass the opportunity on to someone else.  That someone - is me.  Awesome! 

So I must say a HUGE thanks to my wife is allowing me to go :-) and oh yeah - I even get to pop into Shanghai for the weekend for some sighseeing and shopping!  So I better bring home something nice!

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfgangstaudt/3856140286/

Making The Right Choice

What is the right choice to make in any given situation?  How do you know if the choice you are making is right or wrong?

I have been working through exactly this kind of situation.  It is a 'what should I do' situation.  So where should we start when it comes to making choices?

I go back to my annual resolutions, goals and objectives that I set for myself in December of last year.  Those goals are - 1.  Compliance, 2. Excellence and 3.  Teamwork.

So the situation arose where I had to pick between a good option that was mainly for my benefit or an option whereby I would forfeit personal gain in order to be involved with and develop my team.

Okay - so it doesn't sound that bad - but - giving up a financial reward for little effort isn't as easy as it may sound.  I was pretty keen on ensuring I got the best personal reward.  Until I started reflecting on where I am at and what is important to me in 2010.

So I chose to go with the team option.  Giving up a bit of money in the short term I decided was a poor way to get ahead when compared to the benefits and rewards of working with the team to grow the financial benefits and rewards for everyone.

Guess what - after I made the decision to stay true to my goals I had a pair of breakthrough moments.  One - the conflicting appointment was shifted so I can still make a personal gain, and two - I may have a chance to do something I have always dreamed of and may now be able to do.

Moral of the story - stay true to yourself, act and think with integrity and the rewards will come your way.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/will-lion/3122985108/)