Title: Summarize the decision-making process.
Course: Individual Development (19260-36) > Section: Identifying Consequences of Personal Decisions

Summary should include the following concepts:

- There are many models for making decisions—from listing pros and cons, to simple prioritization, to assessment of opportunity cost.
- Decision-making processes may be conditional, based on settings and goals (e.g., individual/group, workplace/social, logical/emotional).
- Good decisions are usually made after identifying the need for a decision, assessing a number of decisions and their potential outcomes, choosing one decision to implement, implementing that decision, and reviewing or evaluating that decision for future reference.
- It is important to identify the effect(s) or potential outcomes on self and others.

Process/Skill Questions:

Thinking

- Why is reflection on past decisions essential to the decision-making process?
- Why might decisions involving your personal life be easier than ones that affect other people?
- Why is making a list of pros and cons for a decision always a good idea?

Communication

- Why does one need to communicate effectively with those who may be affected by your decisions?
- Why is honesty crucial to making good decisions?

Leadership

- Why is it important that an effective leader have open lines of communication with assistants during the decision-making process?
- How is implementing decisions a key leadership skill?
- Why are poor outcomes from decisions often your best teachers?

Management

- Why should you try to avoid making too many big decisions in a short time?
- How do your priorities and values affect the decisions you make?
- What are the most important considerations when making quick but important decisions? (Keep in mind, sometimes enormously important decisions have to be made almost instantaneously.)