Making decisions is important in our lives. But how to stop making irrational decisions frequently? What are the solutions behind making rational and sound decisions? Let’s find out.
Growing up, one of the most difficult jobs for me was to make decisions and stick to them. I remember the time when I was so confused about many things that it was almost impossible for me to arrive at a certain conclusion.
Moreover, I wasn’t able to cope up with my aging process due to the deeply introspective and overanalytical nature that prevented me from taking things in hand.
Actually, the problem was my ability to overanalyze things beyond reality. I was always too stuck in my ways to take action. Reason? I just found it to be too hasty.
But, over the years, I have realized that making decisions is a part of life. Still, I have often ended up making irrational decisions that sabotaged my relationships with others.
It is here that I realized that just making decisions is not enough. One has to make rational and sound decisions to prevent unfortunate circumstances.
Irrational decisions are a step to subjective experiences of carefully taking into account the details, aspects, and objects important for decision making. Without making them, we cannot deal with sensitive matters in life.
So, “How to make rational decisions?”
“How to stop making irrational decisions frequently?”
Let’s find out.
Also, subconsciousness affects decision-making ability. If you want to know more about it, you can refer to it here.
You can also watch the video to know more about the ways you can deal with irrational decisions:
What are the misconceptions behind decision-making?
Before getting into steps to make rational decisions, let us take a look at what are the myths behind decision-making.
There are certain misconceptions behind decision-making that do not make any sense, yet people believe in them, and I do not mean it in a demeaning way.
Most people believe that certain rational functions are responsible for irrational judgments and conclusions. While there are some things responsible for it, yet blaming or criticizing the functions is not going to solve anything.
Moreover, the misconceptions are also based on supposed ideologies of society that people blindly follow without much analysis and depth.
So, “What are the misconceptions about decision-making?”
Well, here are 3 widely believed misconceptions about decision-making.
1. Only young people make irrational decisions:
Decisions are subjective and do not depend on age, name, birth, etc. One can make sound decisions irrespective of the age factor. Even a 15-year-old kid can make rational and sound decisions.
But, it is where we fail to understand and comprehend, as a society or general conventions of society say otherwise. This is mostly true for eastern countries where they consider young people as immature and inexperienced.
However, decisions are not only the result of experiences but also the level of understanding one puts into it. Therefore, it is a misconception.
2. Irrational decisions are a product of recklessness:
Irrational decisions are influenced by recklessness and spontaneity. But, they are not sources of these decisions. In fact, reckless people make their decisions carefully due to their moody and careless nature to prevent any misjudgments.
Even highly experienced and skillful people can make irrational decisions and regret them later on. Somebody’s recklessness has nothing to do with the decision-making ability.
Everyone has their own way of coming up to conclusions and if it is worth it, they can make sound and rational decisions while being reckless too.
3. Emotions are largely responsible for irrational decisions:
Emotions are held responsible for their supposed part in making irrational decisions. There is nothing more irrational than considering emotions as irrational.
Carl Jung, one of the renowned psychologists, explained that emotions and logic both are rational functions and make judgments based on set-defined principles that are both personal and impersonal in nature.
The idea that emotions are largely responsible for irrational decisions is flawed and has no practical basis at all. You can use emotions to make rational decisions in emotional matters, and the same goes for logic.
So, we have discussed the various misconceptions surrounding the idea behind irrational decisions.
But, “How to stop making irrational decisions frequently?”
Let’s find out about it in the next section.
How to stop making irrational decisions frequently?
Now, it’s obvious.
We do not want to make irrational decisions all the time. These are not going to help us decide on the best parts of life. Nothing goes the way it should when you become the victim of bad judgments.
But, the real reason why most people end up making irrational decisions is either overanalysis or no analysis at all. It doesn’t have to be calculations of life or circumstances, just some simple things we consider while concluding ourselves.
Therefore, it is very important to make good and sound decisions that do not backfire in the long run. These decisions can help improve many things at a time.
So, “How can we do this?”
“How to stop making irrational decisions frequently?”
Here, are 6 simple and wise ways to prevent making irrational decisions.
1. Do not ignore what is important to you:
Most people end up making irrational decisions for multiple reasons. However, the most important one is ignoring what matters to us in life. Our desire to live life on our terms heavily influences the decisions we make.
The worst part is people have this contagious herd-mentality and believe that what works for others will work for them too. Well, they couldn’t be more wrong.
Therefore, it is essential to not lose ourselves by following what everyone follows. It is better to not ignore things that are beneficial and important to you.
2. Try to analyze things with multiple perspectives:
“Are you a brainstormer? Do you have multiple ideas and perspectives going on in your head?”
Well, time to use this incredible ability in decision-making.
You might be teased and ridiculed for being too scatterbrained and confused with your life. But, looking at things with multiple perspectives helps you understand the sensitivity of the matter.
Moreover, the wider the reach, the better decisions you make with your mind. You will be able to note many things that fall under the brainstorming radar and ultimately end up making sound decisions.
3. Do not always rely on gut instincts:
Problems occur many times when we make harsh decisions. Especially when there is a lot at stake and nothing goes as per the plan. It is these times when looking at facts or data doesn’t help us anymore.
Under these circumstances, we desperately try to route for our gut instincts, which may or may not be right. Actually, the truth is relying on gut instincts is not advisable under tough decisions.
It is better to be as rational as possible while making decisions. Relying on irrational things like gut instincts can lead to many unwanted troubles.
4. Try to find common grounds concerning matters:
Maintaining a balance is important even when considering decisions that can ultimately decide your position on a whim. But the truth is that most irrational decisions fail to find a common ground between matters.
Now, this doesn’t mean that adopting a utilitarian approach is outrageous, but if one tries to find a common ground between multiple things, he has the higher chances to make better and sound decisions that can benefit an individual or a community.
Hence, try to find a common ground concerning matters.
5. Seek advice but base your own judgment:
Decisions are vital but also complex. Without giving a thought to them, you cannot be confident about making the right decisions. At every point in life, we need someone to advise us. Kings, throughout history, had counselors to help make decisions.
Likewise, seeking advice in tough times is beneficial as one can miss out on details unintentionally. With good aid and a loyal friend or a family member, it becomes easy to focus on decision-making.
Therefore, seek advice from others but base your own judgment.
6. Lastly, stop overanalyzing everything:
Overanalyzing affected me a lot while making decisions. Until a few years back, I thought overanalyzing helps in making sound decisions. But I was wrong.
In fact, after making multiple irrational decisions, I finally concluded that overanalyzing is not good for making good decisions. All it does is overcomplicate things to a fault when the reality is otherwise.
Hence, stop overanalyzing everything and make decisions.
Final Words:
To sum up, making irrational decisions is a human thing. You can never be always right, and mistakes help you realize it as much as possible. But the misconceptions behind decision-making are, nevertheless, irrational.
By following the above 6 effective ways we can stop ourselves from making irrational decisions.