The Hidden Cost of Indecision

I recently became intrigued with the idea that there is a significant cost to indecision. Most people with a business background are steeped in risk management techniques. We are taught to prepare contingency and mitigation plans to reduce our risk exposure. And so we approach decision making with that same mindset. We think about the risks associated with the decision and often conclude that there will be less risk if we perform more analysis, solicit more opinions, and gather more data. But what we have effectively done is to decide to not make a decision. My belief is that there is a steep price to pay, personally and organizationally , when we fall into this trap. Unfortunately, these costs are often hidden from us, we don’t realize that we are even incurring them. We can become like the athlete that is afraid to miss the last shot with the game on the line. They would rather pass the ball and have someone else take the risk (and possibly the glory), rather than face the possibility of failure. The decision making mindset that we adopt will separate us from others, either positively or negatively. If you are interested in reading more on the personal cost of indecision, go here. And let me know what your experience has been.

There is a great personal cost to indecision. As we defer decisions, we get more comfortable with not making decisions and more uncomfortable with making them. Each decision gets heavier, the risks seem greater, and the fear of what other people will think if we make the wrong decision grows larger. We can start to rationalize to others why we haven’t made the decision while we inwardly curse ourselves because we are so indecisive. Internally, we may question our own competency, and externally we start to challenge the decisions that others are making, looking for the flaws in their approach. Unfortunately, we are paying a great personal price which we may not even realize. I don’t think you (or me) want to pay this price. We need to face our decisions, gather data, solicit advice from trustworthy sources, and decide. Then we should move forward with the actions that we need to take to make the decision successful. The cost to alter a flawed decision is usually considerably less than the personal cost of not making the decision at all. And once we get in the habit of making decisions, it will become second nature and we will get into a efficient and effective cadence.