I’ve come to the conclusion that I am terrible at making decisions. It’s not that I don’t make good decisions, it’s just that I spend way too much time debating and agonizing over what I should do. From little decisions like whether I should go for a run or go the gym, to bigger decisions like whether I should stay in my current apartment or move to a new space. I can even turn what to eat for dinner into a 20 minute debate. It’s ridiculous.

This past week I was agonizing over a decision for days. I was signed up to participate in an event over the weekend. Mind you this was not originally my idea or desire, but my partner thought it would be good for our business and since he would be there to help me all day I decided to invest in a booth. A week before the event he gets called out of town on a last minute business trip. This left me with a big decision. Do I attempt to do this event on my own, or do I back out of it? Now I will spare you the long list of pro’s and con’s, but needless to say there were some major obstacles that I would have to overcome if I was going to go ahead and do the event.

My first instinct was to back out. Forfeit the money I spent on the booth and be done with it. But then the guilt started in and I decided that I would do the event even though I didn’t want to. The rest of the week I reluctantly tried to prepare for the event by recruiting any help I could find and getting myself organized. But at every juncture I was met with more and more resistance. Help kept falling through, my current workload multiplied, and not to mention I started to feel under the weather. 24 hours before the event I was a wreck. At that point I knew that doing this event would most likely be a disaster. Not only was I ill prepared to market myself, but I also was going to have to neglect a lot of important tasks in order to commit to this 12 hour day, and there was a good chance that it would negatively impact my health as well. So at the eleventh hour I decided to back out of the event.

I immediately felt relieved. All the stress and agony that had built up over the past week dissolved, and I knew in that moment that I had made the right decision for me and my business. However, reflecting upon this past week I realized how much time was wasted and how much stress was created by me not making this decision earlier. Plus not to mention how unprofessional it was for me to pull out at the last minute. It was an overall fail…..big time. However, I walked away with some profound insights on how I make decisions and how to make better ones in the future.

Being decisive is a skill set, one that I am apparently not very good at. This was a good realization, because now I know what I need to work on. Tony Robbins explains how decisions shape our destiny. And they really do when you think about. Every decision you make has an impact on your life. So here a are a few tips on how to make better decisions in a more timely manner.

Go with your gut, but get the facts: Your first instinct is usually right, however this doesn’t mean that you should ignore the facts. I originally did not want to do the event, but then I was talked into it. If I had just stuck to my gut all of this mess would have been avoided and I would have a chunk of money back in my account. However, always get the facts before you decide because sometimes your intuition can be a bit off. There are lots of factors that influence our gut reaction. Previous experience, fear of the unknown, and even being overly tired or stressed can throw it off. I’ve committed to various investments in the past by acting too fast on a gut reaction and not thinking things through. As a result I’ve lost a lot of money and wasted a lot of time. Take time to evaluate the situation fully, get advice from those you respect, get clear on your other options. It’s always good to get the full pictured and then check in with your intuition again before you decide.

Line up with your decision: Once you make a decision you need to line up with it energetically. Be fully on board with what you decided and commit. My problem this past week was that I never fully lined up with the decision to do the event. I didn’t want to commit. So it was no wonder that I had such a hard time finding help and was faced with so many obstacles. If you are iffy about something, don’t do it. You need to be all in when you make a decision. When you fully commit to something the Universe will start to realign to support you in that decision. But if you are wishy washy, you’ll get wishy washy results.

Don’t be afraid of making the wrong decision: If a decision doesn’t pan out don’t despair, you will still have learned and gained a great deal of experience. The more experience the better you will be at making decisions in the future. I learned a multitude of lessons from this past week, and despite the struggle I am grateful for the knowledge and experience that I gained.

Get off the fence: Just decide. This is where I get tripped up the most. While you don’t want to jump in make a decision without thinking things through, you also don’t want to debate it forever. Once you check in with your intuition and get the facts, then make the decision. Whether it ends up being a good or bad decision it will still move you forward. When you stay on the fence you halt any progress, you’re stuck. Decisions promote action and progress, indecision keeps you paralyzed.

Remember you can change your mind: Very few decisions are so binding and permanent that there is no going back. Contracts can be broken, plans can be canceled, etc… You are allowed to change your mind. While it might be a hassle to get out of a decision you committed too, there is usually a way to make that happen.

Practice making decisions: Practice on the little things. What to eat? What to wear? Etc…This is an area where I am putting a lot of focus at the moment. Getting good at making decisions is a skill just like anything else and needs to be practiced. We make decisions all day long, start practicing being more decisive with the little things and you’ll find it easier to handle the bigger choices.

This week take a look at the decisions you have to make in your life. The big ones and the every day ones. How can you apply these principles so that you are making smarter and faster decisions? Feel free to share any decision making tips you have in the comment section.