Tips on Making Decisions Effectively

As a business owner you’re faced with numerous decisions you have to make everyday – hiring or terminating an employee, where to rent office space, price to put on a quote, and so on.

Below we have some tips for business owners on how to make decisions effectively.

1. Take your time.

It goes without saying that rushing into any decision could cause you to have more problems than if you just took your time to make one. Depending on the decision you’re making, moving too quickly could put your company, employees, or clients at risk. Take your time to fully consider the pros and cons of your decision.

2. Ask for advice.

Get some perspective on the decision you are trying to make. If you’re making a change in the office, ask your employees for their opinion. They’d be able to give you great insight, as they are the ones who are working and mingling in the office everyday. If you’re looking at improving the efficiency of your business, you could hire a consultant to help audit the company and make suggestions.

3. Prepare to re-evaluate.

Sometimes even if you think you made the right decision with careful consideration, it still may turn out to be the wrong one. You may think of this as a set back, but a minor drawback can help you re-focus your next decision to make it an even better one.

4. Try using the method: P.Q.Q.A.L.R

P – What’s the problem?

Q – Quantitative analysis. This refers to the numbers behind the problem or how much is it costing you.

Q – Qualitative analysis. This has nothing to do with numbers, but more to do with qualities of the company like the people who work there, values it stands for, etc.

A – What are the alternatives? Brainstorm and look at different ways of solving the problem. Sometimes not making a decision is a decision.

L – What are your limitations? This could refer to something like your budget or resources.

R – What’s your recommendation? This refers to the outcome of your decision after weighing out all possible options and scenarios.

5. Go with your gut feelings.

You know that feeling inside of you that tells you whether something is right or seems off? You know your company and what it stands for, so sometimes even after weighing out all the options, the best decision you can make is to go with that deep-down, gut feeling you have.

Click here to watch President of TorontoEntrepreneurs.ca Marc Belaiche, CPA, CA discuss this topic.

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