Unit 2: Making Choices
There are many aspects to decision-making and multiple factors to consider when weighing choices. In this unit, you will dive deeper into the decision-making process, and learn techniques to help you make the best choices to reach your goals.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 2 hours.
2.1: The Decision-Making Process
Read this article and think about the questions that you typically ask yourself when making decisions.
When you make a decision, do you believe that there is always just one route to your desired outcome? Using this article as a guide, prepare a productivity table for some of the tasks that are currently on your to-do list. Are the items that come up as priorities the same items that you truly believe to be priorities?
Reflect on the article that you have just read about making decisions. Do you feel confident in your own decision-making skills? Are you able to make a decision and then stay the course and see your actions through to completion? Share your thoughts on these questions in the discussion forum. Read the responses that other students have posted and post your own comments on the forum. Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with your peers and to receive meaningful feedback of your own.
2.2: Decision-Making Techniques
Read this article and consider the types of decisions you have made in the past.
Can you determine, in retrospect, which types of decisions they were? Take a decision that you are currently considering and write a plan about how to resolve it. Does your decision-making plan match the steps outlined in this article? If not, how can your plan be adjusted to accommodate the 10 steps so that you can ensure your decision-making process will be effective?
2.3: The Challenges of Decision-Making
Watch this lecture by Sheena Iyengar, a professor at Columbia University Business School. Iyegar studies how we make choices and how we feel about the choices we make. Speaking at a conference, Iyengar discusses both trivial choices (such as deciding whether to drink Coke or Pepsi) and profound ones. Iyengar's groundbreaking research has uncovered some surprising attitudes about our decisions.
2.4: Decision-Making
Read this article and consider the areas within your organization where the majority of decisions are made. Are the decision-making topics in your organization (or one you are familiar with) the same as those addressed in the McKinsey survey? Do decisions typically meet expectations within your organization? Do you find that decisions made within your organization are more effective when the process includes employees who are carrying out the implementation of decisions?
2.5: Complex Decision-Making
Watch this fascinating video on the world of ants and how each member of an ant colony knows its task. Gordon's research offers insights into all manner of complex systems, including decision-making in organizations.