How Decision Making Affects Performance in Every Area of Your Life

When it comes to living this modern life, one of the things we must deal with is making decisions. Even when you prefer to go with the flow, the truth of the matter is, that, too, my dear, is a decision. And when you want more from this life than simply existing from one moment to the next, then one of the best things you can do for yourself channel the power of decisions. Yet, you may still be wondering how decision making affects performance in your life outside of the big decisions.

That’s because decisions are how you propel yourself forward. And each decision you make has the ability to allow you to survive or thrive. When you care about the trajectory or even if you aren’t that ambitious, getting clear on how you make decisions and where decision making is harder for you is valuable insight into your future. And happiness.

Whether you are comfortable with a little more ambiguity or need a plan, decision making can affect every area of your life.

The average human makes at least three hundred decisions each day. From the moment we wake we are making decisions:  get up or hit the snooze? coffee or shower first? get a run in before work or skip it? And that’s only in the first thirty minutes of the day! Some studies say that we make over 35,000 decisions per day. The human mind is just amazing.

Because we make so many decisions per day, that means we are ripe for decision fatigue. That’s why if you want to feel less overwhelmed and make better decisions, routines and wearing a “uniform” of sorts can help ease the stress.

And yet, I know that because we humans are wired to the negative, combating that bias with knowledge can be powerful indeed.

To help counterbalance your decision fatigue, it’s important to look at the different roles you play in life and determine ways you can eliminate extraneous decisions by setting non-negotiable standards and routines. This allows you to save your energy for the the more important decisions you might need to make during the day.

Basically, by figuring out the things you can do to make some things automatic for you, you will probably see a positive change in how your decision making affects your performance.

When you understand how decision making affects performance in every area of your life, it allows you to be more prepared to lessen decision fatigue. And, be the captain of your own ship. Rather than the person just along for the ride.

As women, we fill a variety of roles. Here’s how decision making affects your performance in different roles you play.

Getting clear on the roles you play can bring you clarity and set priorities. That’s why exploring how decision making affects performance in each one of your roles? That gives you the power to manage all of this from a space personal power. Now, decision making affects everything of course, like your health and the level of happiness. However, today we are just focusing on how decision making affects performance in various roles.

How decision making affects your performance as a woman

• • What are the non-negotiable standards you’ve set for your life? If you haven’t set those standards, do so. Begin with the basics, like how much time you need in the mornings to feel your best. Or the need to turn off your phone at 7 PM so you can get good sleep. Deciding these standards helps ensure you don’t compromise on self-care.
  • Spending time on what you love is important to loving your life. However, we often sacrifice time to work on other roles at the cost of what we need in order to thrive. Set standards for how much time per week (or month) you need to do things you enjoy like read, make art, or other pastimes.
  • Set routines to help you manage all the moving pieces of your life.
  • Decide what kind of planning system works for you. Whether it’s a digital system, a formal planner system, or some sort of hybrid system. This allows you to manage your life and make better decisions. Won’t it feel like your life is smoother with a glance at the weeks ahead, you know whether something is a “yes” or “no”.

Being a woman means you are also a daughter.

• • What kind of relationship do you have with your parents? What kind of relationship do you desire to have? This is where decision making affects your performance as a daughter.
  • If you desire to nurture the relationship with your folks, then you need to decide how you can do that. And set aside time to do so.
  • If your relationship is toxic, one of the best decisions you can make is to set better boundaries. Figure out what you can and cannot give your parents in terms of emotional labor and your physical presence.
  • Come up with a system for deciding where you are spending the different holidays and vacations. This is how decision making affects performance  and the way you approach your relationships with not just your folks, but all of your family.

As an employee, decision making affects your performance

• • We spend at least forty hours a week on our careers, so, of course decision making affects your performance in your professional life. And, because so much of your time is spent at work, it affects your work life, too.
  • Making decisions about how you will respond to requests outside of work hours in regard to work demands will affect your personal life and career. Will you answer emails on the weekends or while you’re on vacation? This is about boundaries.
  • Deciding what you will say “yes” to when it comes to your boss and your colleagues can affect not just your work relationships, but how you feel about work. Especially if you’re feeling burned out when it comes to work.

And if you’re self-employed, decision is pretty much all you do.

• • Being self-employed seems to be a dream of many. Being your own boss is often about the decision for freedom over the schedules of others.
  • However, know that when you are self-employed, you make all the decisions for your company. If you feel you aren’t good at making decisions. Or dislike making decisions, then self-employment may not be for you.
  • Because, more than any kind of career, self-employment demands that decision making affects performance of your livelihood.

As a spouse/partner

• • Creating a vision for your relationship allows you to ensure that both your needs and your partner’s needs are met. A vision channels decision making to help each of you ensure you’re on the same page.
  • This is how decision making affects performance in your relationship for the long haul. You decide up front what kind of partner you desire to be and what you need from your partner. And vice versa.
  • Don’t forget to consider important topics in your vision. Such as how often you want to have sex, how you want to vacation, how you want  to approach parenting, and more.

How decision making affects performance as a mother

• • Beginning with the decision to be a mother – or not – is just the beginning of how decision making affects performance as a mother.
  • What kind of mom do you desire to be? A stay-at-home mom? A working mom? A career mom with a nanny? These decisions will affect your role as a mother in all kinds of ways.
  • Depending on your children’s interest, what kinds of activities will they participate in? And, one of the ways decision making affects performance as a mom is deciding (a) how many activities per season will each child be allowed and (b) how involved you’ll be in the support of those activities. Compromises may be necessary at times.
  • Being a mom means a lot of moving pieces and you can decide that you can have whatever you desire. Just remember that trying to have it all isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.
  • Reminding yourself that compassionate discipline and boundaries are a mom’s best friend? That’s how you can ensure you continue to make good decisions for yourself. And your family.

By eliminating the decisions you have to make that are causing unnecessary stress, you are giving yourself the gift of positively changing how your decision making affects your performance in every area of your life as a woman.

When you can get clear on your roles. And how decision making in those roles affects all the other parts of your life? Knowing who you are and what you want from life in the long term?  You’ll find you can better manage your life.  Remember, too, that the quality of your daily life matters.  All this allows you to curate – and live  – a life that feels loving and nourishing.

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Now that you understand just some of the ways decision making affects performance in all the roles you play?

Know that creating a vision for your life can help make those decisions easier to make!

Learning to better manage the challenges life throws your way? Creating a vision and plan for help you stay on track. Or get back on the path you set.

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Want to learn more about the power of decisions? Click here!