How to make decisions better, or even how to make better decisions, is often on people’s minds. And the quality of the decisions you make, often depends on the quality of your information. In computer science, they say, Garbage In, Garbage Out. Looking at the analytics on my blog, a lot of people are interested in learning how to analyze information. To make your decisions better, you have to know how to analyze information.
This post, “How to Make Decisions Better,” is the second part of the popular post, “How to Analyze Information
.” Recently, I read the very short book, How to Analyze Information
by Herbert Meyer, and this post is based on my notes.
- All images in the post are clickable!
- And please read my post, How to Analyze Information
How to Make Decisions Better: 7-Step Process
The focus in this article, is to make sure that you have the best information, so that you can make sound decisions. Having over 20 years of research and analysis experience, I can say that I have analyzed a lot of information for clients. But life is about growing, so it’s important to look at other perspectives.
In How to Analyze Information
by Herbert Meyer, the author offers a unique perspective on analyzing information, using his 7-step process. When you are gathering information, it’s usually because you have a question to answer, and a decision to make. Before you start to gather any information, you want to know what information you need to make decisions. When you have information, you want to know your information meaning.
How to Make Decisions Better: Step One – Figure Out Where You Are
Knowing where you are at a moment in time, helps you to decide what your needs are. What information do you need? What questions do you have to answer? What decisions do you have to make?
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Two – Be Sure You’re Seeing Clearly
Make sure you’re not viewing the information with a prism that distorts what you are seeing. Have an accurate idea of what you are seeing, and how you’re viewing the information. This is important if you want to make decisions better. And if you want your information meaning to be more accurate.
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Three – Decide What You Need to Decide
This step sound like more than a mouthful. So read it again slowly, reflecting on what you’re reading. What is the right question that you need answered? This is very tough for many people. They ask a question, then they get upset when the answers are not what they wanted.
First, decide on what you’re trying to accomplish. If you are certain about that, you will know the right questions to ask to get the information you need.
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Four – Determine What You Need to Know
I’m sure that you’ve noticed by now that the steps are a natural progression of each other. In other words, they build on each other. What information do you need to make better decisions? What information do you need to make decisions better? List all the pieces of information you need.
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Five – Collect Information
Where can you find reliable sources for the information you need? Because there is an explosion of information online, people often think that the only information source is online. That’s a big mistake. The information may be in someone’s head, so you have to interview him or her by email, on the phone, or face-to-face.
The information may be in a magazine that’s not online, or online, but you have to pay to access the information. If this is the case, to cut down on cost, you may have to visit the library to get the physical magazine to get the information you want. Or the information you need may be in a book, and this may also require a visit to the library or the bookstore.
In Step Four, you created a list of all the information that you need. Beside each piece of information that you need, write a reliable source for the information. Since more than likely, all the information you need, will not be in one spot, give yourself enough time to collect all the information. Use your judgment as to how much time to spend on collecting any piece of information.
When I studied management information systems years ago, something that was drilled into my head — was to always separate nice-to-have from must-have. This will help you to gauge how much time to spend on any piece of information. What piece of information is nice-to-have and which is must-have?
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Six –Turn Information into Knowledge
It’s often been said that information is power. Even that knowledge is power. But in my opinion, neither is accurate. You have to turn information into knowledge. But you have to apply the knowledge for it to be powerful. You’ve got information from credible sources, how can you turn it into knowledge to make an informed decision? What knowledge does the information contain?
Resolve inconsistent information. That could mean looking for additional sources. Look for patterns in the information. Use experience to predict the future.
How to Make Decisions Better: Step Seven – Add the Final Ingredient
It often comes down to using your judgment when making decisions. You now have knowledge about the information you gathered, but what does it really mean for the information that you have to make? The questions you have to answer.
If you are interested in making better decisions, then you must add your judgment to the mix. Your judgment is based on what you bring to the table – your knowledge, experience, skills and abilities, as well as your instincts.
Final Thoughts on How to Make Decisions Better
How to Analyze Information: A Step-by-Step Guide to Life's Most Vital Skill
If you have to analyze information as a part of your job, this short book, How to Analyze Information
by Herbert Meyer will help you. As I mentioned before, I have over 20 years of research and analysis experience, but I found useful information in the book.
I recommend that you get a copy of How to Analyze Information by Herbert Meyer. But to get the most from it, please read my post of the same name. The two complement each other.
Related Post
Participate in the Read the World Facebook Group! Please take the conversation to my Facebook page.
