How to Make Proactive Decisions

Proactive decision-making is an important management skill anyone can master.

Making informed, proactive decisions is a vital skill that can be used in all areas of life. Many of us have regretted a poor decision made in a knee-jerk reaction, and learning how to make decisions proactively can help reduce these types of conflicts in the future. Peter Drucker, a renowned management expert from the Harvard Business School, has perfected the science of successful decision making through decades of academic research and practical evaluation. With preparation, proactive decision making can help you create a plan, mitigate potential risks and accomplish your goals.

Instructions

1. 

   Writing your objectives on paper can help visualize and clarify your thoughts.

   Outline the issues that need to be addressed. Proactive thinking requires an understanding of the desired outcome. Identify and write down the pros and cons of the decision you believe needs to be made. Determine if anyone else is involved in your decision, how others might be affected and what roadblocks stand in the way of your decision. This planning will provide a foundation that can be built upon throughout the decision making process.

2. State your objectives, goals and expectations. Being proactive means preparing for circumstances before they occur, and when you understand what you hope to achieve, you can make more informed decisions about how to accomplish goals. Set specific and attainable goals and outline a time table in which to accomplish them. Harvard Business School's Peter Drucker found that the most successful leaders develop actions plans and remain accountable to them.

3. 

   Developing list of alternatives can reveal creative new options to consider.

   Identify alternatives. The most successful decision-makers understand that to make the strongest decision, many perspectives must be analyzed and tested. Develop a list that extends beyond your initial "gut feeling" and consider alternative viewpoints, even those that contradict your instinctive course of action. These alternatives are not binding and simply provide additional information and context to help you make the most informed decision. Evaluate each alternative for its strengths, weaknesses and viability. Narrow down the list to three of your strongest alternatives.

4. Make your decision. Fully commit to executing your plan of action and have confidence that you have made the correct choice. Proactive decision making requires some speculation about future circumstances so this is often the hardest step to accomplish as people combat feelings of inadequacy and fear of failure. Be confident that you have done your diligence in collecting information, analyzing and evaluating alternatives and creating a plan of action.

5. 

   Review your decision periodically to improve accountability and assess your effectiveness.

   Review your decision at a predetermined date in the future. Drucker asserts that "it's just as important to review decisions periodically as it is to make them carefully in the first place." (See Reference 3) This critical part of the process is often overlooked, but if your decision is monitored and evaluated, you can better gauge your success and whether or not objectives are met. If the results of your decision are not satisfactory, evaluate and determine a course of action to resolve the problem.

Tips & Warnings

• If others are likely to be affected by the outcome of your decision, be sure to communicate the potential impacts to minimize the risk of conflict.

References

• Strategic Marketing Segmentation: 6 Decision Making Steps
• Business Analysis Made Easy: Applying the Decision Making Model in Five Steps
• Harvard Business School: Peter Drucker on Making Decisions