Think, think, think it's all us humans do, it's the basis of how we live our lives. The decisions we make and the actions we take. Most of the time it is automatic, our subconscious is programmed by our experiences and we truly are a product of our environment. However is there a way we can re-think our thought process? Can we change our habits, or our subconscious into making decisions that benefit us beyond the way we normally think? This article will tell you everything you need to know about how we think, and ways we can make better decisions everyday.
Understand your thought process
You may not have even thought about the basis of how we think, and more than likely it's because most decisions we make aren't logical decisions. Sure, you weigh the pros and cons a majority of the time, but most decisions we make are impulsive. For example, when buying food do we always pick the most nutritious ingredients? Are the foods we buy the best for our bodies or is it just our preferences in past experiences telling us the foods we like and dislike? Maybe this is why most diets are so hard to stick to, because we force ourselves to consume things that we may not necessarily enjoy, or that are just simply different than what we are accustomed to.
But let's stick to our brains and not our bellies for a second. If we can accept and understand that the decisions we make every day are extremely influenced based on our past experiences then maybe we can start to think outside our mental box. Thinking differently is what leads to inspiration. Not only that, but actually leads us to making better more informed decisions. So, how can we get out of our own mental bubble? To further understand our minds lets first talk about the different methods we use in order to make a decision.
Types of Decision Making
Automatic Decision Making
These are the primal and quickest decisions we make everyday. These are mostly at the subconscious level and cover our necessities. Decisions like this can include "I'm thirsty, I need to drink some water", or "O, looks like I need to use the bathroom". You get the point. These decisions rarely change over time as we all have our basic needs which need to be met. However changing these decisions can help change your lifestyle even if it doesn't seem like it. For instance, maybe you can make it a point to drink even more water to stay hydrated, or being consistent with having an earlier bedtime. It's always important to regularly evaluate how we make these decisions and see how we can improve.
Informed Decision Making
Informed decision making is where we are able to critically think about the choices we make. Weighing out the options and being well informed about the choices presented. These usually occur when we have a basic understanding of the consequences of each choice and most times even have some experience with the choices. Being well informed can correlate to better decision making which is why we should always experiment with our choices to better inform us on how to better evaluate our decisions in the future.
Impulse Decision Making
We have all been there, do I spoil myself? Do I want another smoke? Should I buy the most expensive option? These types of decisions we should be aware of. This is not to say that not all impulse decisions are negative, however make a habit of this type of thinking and you can get yourself in trouble down the line. Be sure to pause and consciously think about if we realistically need what we want. Once we do that, we begin critically thinking and these impulse decisions become more of informed decisions keeping us in control of our impulses.
Satisfactory Decision Making
There is nothing wrong in doing the minimum, this is how we get by in life. Buying the same products, or being satisfied with your 10 year old car, are examples of these types of decisions. This is how we satisfy more basic needs, as long as we have a bed to sleep in a way to commute, and food in the fridge we are able to get by. Although you should never lose sight of going above and beyond the norm. This allows you to stand out of the crowd and motivate yourself in attempt to reach a new potential.
Maximum Approach
Are you ever looking to make the most of out a decision you make? Is "okay" simply not enough? Seeking maximum results is the name of the game here and may include things like, investing in a risky stock in hopes to cash in a big return or going to the fanciest restaurant in town in hopes to get an unforgettable meal. At times we all seek the biggest outcome of our choices but we have to stay grounded and keep realistic expectations.
How to make "Good" decisions
The reality is that there is no proven way to make the best decision, all the time. However the steps we take prior to making a decision is important. Knowing the different types of decisions can help us narrow down and bring clarity to the choices we make. Being aware of our impulses, our preferences and our past choices can help us dictate the choices we make in the future.
An essential part of good decision making is being open to new experiences. When we are exposed to something new, something we have not encountered before our brains start to re-think past choices. With no prior knowledge of experiences that are new to us we can start to open our minds to a new way of thinking. This leads to greater knowledge and greater fulfillment of our lives.
Simply doing the same things over and over again with our choices does not correlate with the best decisions we can make. Remember how we decide on our options and choices is a combination of all our decision types. We all have a reasoning behind the decisions we make but it's how we evaluate our reasonings and begin to think differently where we start to make better decisions. Sure, trying something new or deciding against our norm, may lead to worse outcomes, but the best way to learn is from mistakes and failures. The more we learn, the more informed decisions we make and the more benefit we seek to receive from our choices everyday.
See how new experiences can start to re-tool our minds? This is the real key to making the best decisions, trying new things to see if we can improve on our prior choices, opens us up to more opportunities and a way to live our lives to the fullest. This is why it is so important to constantly evaluate our current decision making to see if we can improve. I hope you take time to pause and think about if the same choices you continue to make are really adding to your well-being.
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