01 May Predecide: Intentional Decision Making

Life, for most of us, is hectic and crazy.  There’s constant pressure at work and at home.  It seems impossible to catch up.  We all wear multiple hats, constantly multitask, and live with little margin.  From time to time, we try to address the problem by resetting, de-cluttering, and re-prioritizing.  While this works for a short time, we often find ourselves back where we were – dominated by busyness, stressed to the max, and suffering from lack of joy and peace. Want to stop being a slave to life?  One helpful solution lies in choosing to predecide.  John Wooden put it best, “When the opportunity comes, it’s too late to prepare.”

You have to predecide how you will respond before you are in the middle of a circumstance.  This principle applies not only to business, but to all aspects of your life.  You can’t wait until you are faced with a tough decision whether or not you’re going to tell that little innocuous white lie.  It’s too easy to compromise when your stress level is high and things aren’t going as planned.  You can’t make the decision whether or not to cut out early to catch your son’s ballgame 30 minutes before the game.  Something will inevitably come up and you’ll miss the game (again).  You have to predecide beforehand when you are thinking clearly with wisdom.  You have to live life intentionally.  You have to set the standards and rules you want to live by before the situation arises.

The lack of predecision is a massive problem in our society.  It’s how smart, good people end up making really bad decisions.  It’s how fathers wake up one day and realize they missed their kids growing up.  It’s why most marriages fail.  It’s why many of us are in debt.  It’s why most businesses suffer.

Predecide how you are going to respond when difficult situations arise.  Predecide the type of person you are going to be.  Predecide the type of business you are going to build.  Predecide that your marriage is worth more than your business.  Predecide that having a meaningful relationship with your kids is more important than your career.  Predecide that your employees are more important than closing that lucrative deal with a business partner you know is not the right fit.  Predecide so you make wise decisions and have no regrets!

Andy Stanley does a great job of outlining this concept in one of his Leadership Podcasts called A New You Resolution.

Predecide what you want your legacy to be.  Take the next step.  Predecide now.