It’s easy to make a decision. You can just flip a coin. But making good decisions is a skill. You can become a good decision-maker if you go through the steps of making and evaluating a good decision, below.

Step 1 Need

• What decision has to be made?
• Whose decision is it?
• Who is affected?

Step 2 Information

• What do you know?
• What do you need to find out?
• How do you feel?
• How do others feel?
• What influences are present?

Step 3 Alternatives

• What choices are available?
• Have you considered all possible alternatives?

Step 4 Consequences

• What are the consequences for each alternative?
• What is the probability of each consequence?
• How does each consequence affect what is important to you?

Step 5 Positive Balance

• How do negative and positive consequences compare? Remember to consider consequences both to yourself and to others.

Step 6 Choice

• Which choice gives you the best chance of having positive consequences and the least chance of negative consequences?

Step 7 Evaluation

• What were the results of your decisions: on yourself? On others? In a similar situation, would you make the same choice? Would you make a different choice?