Daily Om: Decision Making

May 16, 2005
10 Steps To Better Decision Making
Considering The Possibilities

1. Making a difficult choice can seem harrowing when you feel you're working alone. Involve others in your decision making by asking for criticism and seeking advice from those who can approach the choice from a fresh perspective. Listen to opinions that fall on both sides of the topic at hand. You may also want to consult an expert.

2. Learn from your mistakes as well as your triumphs. Examine decisions you have made in the past as they will teach you more than you will learn from most other sources. Though some decisions will not seem important, all decisions shape our lives and should be regarded as educational. Apply that knowledge to your current dilemma.

3. A good decision acted upon in a timely matter is always better than a great one acted upon too late. It is important to recognize that you will never know enough to make the perfect decision. Don't become paralyzed by your need to foresee all possible outcomes to every possible choice.

4. Involve your head and your heart. Ask both practical questions and personal questions about the problem at hand. Considering the facts as well as your feelings (and the feelings of others) when examining your options will ensure that you make a balanced decision.

5. Before anything else, focus on the most basic, necessary results. Often, a decision maker will get bogged down thinking about the non-essential elements of a decision. Avoid considering extraneous factors and far-fetched perfect outcomes. Ask yourself, "What needs to be done?"

6. Consider the entire range of possibilities, no matter how unlikely. When faced with a complex decision, brainstorm by yourself or with others to find as many of the vital elements as possible. Evaluate those elements as they relate to the choice you must make.

7. It was a wise person who noted that, "you can't please all of the people all of the time." Almost all decisions will involve some dissatisfaction or conflict. Some decisions may even create new problems. Once you have made a decision, stand by it. Keep in mind that you have used your best judgment and it was the best choice at the time.

8. Don't waste time on poor choices. Reject poor choices, even if you've begun to implement them, and stop doing the things that aren't working, so you can focus on the solutions that have strong potential.

9. Consult with the people who will be directly affected by your decision. People appreciate being heard and enjoy when their opinions are seen as valuable. Even making a simple choice can have a profound impact on those around you.

10. It is easy to dismiss your intuition, but in doing so, you may be disregarding valuable insight and even solutions. Ask yourself what choices you would make if you weren't afraid and then see what your subconscious offers as an answer. Try to ignore the fear of error when consulting your "gut."

I have to go to the dentist in about an hour. duh-duh-duh-duh----it's valium time...

I Survived.

Well, I made it through the first dental appointment in many a year. I didn't take Valium beforehand, but I did pop a Benadryl simply because every time I go to the dentist, whether it be for an exam, a cleaning, to have something pulled, etc., I end up w/a sinus problem later that day. It also makes it nice having a dry mouth so I don't drool all over myself. The left side of my face looks like I had a stroke - it's all saggy & puffy.

This particular dentist, Marco Padilla, was amazingly gentle when it came to the anaesthetic shot. He was also fast - the tooth I had worked on was really bad - about to break, probably. I went in at a quarter til 11 & was out by 11:30 or so, paying for the work included. His staff is also very calm & no one seems to be in a great rush, which can be nice. You go into a hectic dental office & get all worked up just watching people fly from place to place. It also wasn't assembly-line dentistry. The dentist was there the whole time. He was waiting for something, probably the amalgam, to be prepared & started picking at other teeth to kill time. I was like, "Uh, that's not the right tooth!"

I'm trying to get this crap done before I lose my insurance. What a nightmare!

Having come to the conclusion that, if we do end up in Seattle, we're just going to end up back in Vegas, and the fact that most Seattle-area apartments require both a recent rental history and employment to get approved, we're just staying here. It's probably for the best, anyway. I've just got to find work again once I get fired. I'm holding out to the bitter end. I really don't want to have to go back to the desk, tho - but by the end of June I'll only have 9 months til I get vested. What's 9 months on my feet? I'll get FMLA & take a shift during a slow time of day when no one will really care if I call in or go home early.

It's so frustrating that we depend so much on my income & insurance that the mere threat of me losing this job throws us into chaos. I hate the dependence. It's really horrible. We used to do just fine bringing in only $100 a month over rent. I don't know how we survived, exactly, but we did. I'm so used to making fat paychecks that I don't know what'll happen if I go back to $8 or $9 an hour. I used to dream about making $9 an hour, and now I complain about $15 not being enough. I was walking around the grocery store yesterday telling myself, "I will not cry! I will not cry!" Of course, I started crying in the dentist office - tears running out of the corners of my eyes as the dentist tells me the o-so-helpful "Get your mind out of your mouth!" But crying in the dentist is a heck of a lot different that crying for absolutely no good reason in the grocery store.

I think I'm gonna take a nap before I go to my shot clinic.