The topic of decision making is a crucial one, and a process none of us can avoid. Whether it be deciding what to cook or what property strategy to commit to, it’s something we all face, everyday. And in many cases, arriving at a decision can be a painful process.
Winston Churchill referred to decision making as ‘the long road of agony’- that agony being the period before deciding should I or shouldn’t I, this path or that path.
This post is completely inspired by a recent Darren Daily message, and it really resonated this week as I was deciding on and mapping my quarterly project plans. It made me think about the many property entrepreneurs out there making decisions about their year ahead, which is why I thought sharing this message would be a helpful guide. I do hope it proves to be.
I’m a firm believer in investing significant time over December and January (or whenever you choose to punctuate a year end) to do the heavy mental work of decision making about what you want for your year ahead, and to create the implementation plan behind it. Doing this in advance prevents you from beginning a week mid quarter wondering what to focus on.
Darren Hardy said ‘more failure has been caused by indecision than by poor decision’, and his mentor before him, Jim Rohn, is quoted as referring to indecision as ‘the great thief of opportunity’.
So, whether it be nailing down your annual planning or addressing more in the moment questions, here are FOUR powerful filters to help you make great decisions quickly and easily (I’m going to paraphrase my notes I took from Darren’s video, so all credit to him for this).
FILTER #1: MINOR OR MAJOR
We need to quickly discern whether a decision is a minor one or major one because way too much time is taken up with minor decisions. For example, what food to eat or what family movie to watch from the thousands on Netflix (or is that just with my kids in our house?). So to cut through the minor stuff quickly, ask yourself this:
-5 years from now, will this decision have significantly altered my life?
If it’s a no then its a minor, so decide and move quickly on as wasting any more time deliberating WILL alter your life 🙂
FILTER #2: COST OR WORTH
I love this one, and it’s particularly relevant for what might be investments in yourself. Darren reminds us that we need to be asking ourselves – ‘How much does this decision cost, not in money today, but in subtraction from your overall wealth?’ To put that into context he gives the example using compound interest that £1 today will be roughly worth £5 to me 20 years from now. If an item costs me £50 it really costs me £250 in future wealth. So that’s the actual cost side.
But we also need to evaluate what something is WORTH ie not what does this book cost, but what could it be worth to me through applying it? Not, what does this course cost, but what could it be worth to my future, my wealth, my health, my ability to positively impact and be of value to others? Getting clear on that completely changes the equation.
So to help with your cost v worth purchase decisions:
-first recalculate the maths of the cost by increasing it by 5 times, then recalibrate the worth because sometimes the worth skyrockets beyond the cost and sometimes not. That’s what you’ll need to figure out.
So for example the cost of renewing an older but functional consumer item is something where the cost will likely outweigh the worth. However with something like a specific course or mentorship, where the cost today feels high, with commitment to implementing said course/mentorship actions, the worth will far exceed the cost. I’ve actively invested in personal development, courses and mentorship for years and the real terms worth (ie equity, income streams, value I can add to others) from having implemented what I’ve learned far far surpasses the cost.
FILTER #3: WISH OR GLAD
I learned this one a few years ago and it’s been incredibly powerful in helping our family make decisions. Ask yourself,
“Years from now, am I more likely to say, I wish I hadn’t or I’m glad I did?”
The answer will hit you clearly and quickly. Jeff Bezos referred to this as regret minimisation- during an interview with Business Insider he said,
“When you think about the things that you will regret when you’re 80, they’re almost always the things that you did not do. They’re acts of omission. Very rarely are you going to regret something that you did that failed and didn’t work or whatever,”
So ask yourself, when I’m 80 years old will I regret not trying to start or scale a property investing business?
This question takes your mind away from the bits of short term daily confusion and turns a seemingly difficult question into a very easy one, because your 80 year self clearly tells you what you wouldn’t want to have regrets about having tried.
FILTER #4: GOOD WOLF OR BAD WOLF
This final filter relates to the Cherokee folklore tale that Darren has shared many times before- we each have 2 wolves living inside of us; one is the best of who we are ie our core values, our best selves when it comes to character, love, kindness etc; the other is the worst of who we are ie our fears, doubts and needy ego desperate for acceptance.
So the question to ask ourselves is this:
-”What choice would my good wolf make?”
Essentially that’s evaluating the decision through the filter of your best self, both now and in terms of who you want to become.
CONCLUSION
Either one of those filters on their own, or maybe even a combination of them will help you make decisions quickly, easily and without guilt or anxiety.
Circling back to that opening quote from Winston Churchill about agony, he concluded by saying,
“Once the decision is made all the agony goes away”.
It’s the indecision that causes the agony, not the decision itself.
So, which of those filters can help you with a decision you’re facing?