6 Ways to Decide Faster: A Mindset for Making Swift Decisions

In today’s fast-paced world, the ability to make quick and effective decisions is a skill that can set you apart in both your personal and professional life. Indecisiveness can lead to missed opportunities, and spending too much time on a single decision can drain your energy. By adopting a decision-making mindset, you’ll be able to streamline your choices, make decisions with confidence, and keep moving forward. Here are six ways to cultivate that mindset and start deciding faster.

1. Limit Your Options

Having too many options can lead to decision paralysis, where you’re so overwhelmed by choices that you struggle to make any decision at all. Set a limit on how many options you’ll consider, focusing on the most relevant ones. When you limit your options, you narrow your focus and make it easier to evaluate each choice. Think about what matters most to you in this decision and eliminate any options that don’t meet that core requirement. For example: If you’re choosing a restaurant for dinner, don’t scroll through hundreds of options. Pick two or three in your area that fit your desired price range or cuisine and go from there.

2. Draw a Line Between Good and Bad Choices

Clarity about what constitutes a good or bad choice can help you make faster, more confident decisions. Take a few moments to think about your values, goals, and what you want the decision to accomplish. Then, categorize each option as good or bad based on these criteria. By consciously distinguishing between choices that support your goals and those that don’t, you can quickly eliminate options that would lead to undesirable outcomes. For example: If you’re deciding on a job offer, consider factors like work-life balance, growth potential, and alignment with your long-term goals. Anything that doesn’t fit your core criteria is a “bad” choice.

3. Listen to Your Gut Feelings

Intuition is often your subconscious mind processing patterns and experiences faster than you realize. Trusting your gut can be an excellent way to make quicker decisions, especially in situations where you don’t have all the data. Pay attention to that immediate feeling you get about each option. Our gut reactions aren’t always foolproof, but they can be a great compass, especially for decisions that don’t have a huge impact or when time is short. For example: If you feel uneasy about a particular business partnership, even if everything looks good on paper, it might be wise to trust that feeling and dig deeper or look elsewhere.

4. Think of Your Time as Money

Imagine every moment you spend deliberating as money being spent. When you start viewing time as a finite resource, you’re more likely to make decisions faster, just as you would avoid spending excessively. Consider setting time limits for certain decisions based on their importance. Giving yourself a deadline helps prevent the habit of overthinking, keeping you focused and action-oriented. For example: If you’re deciding on a weekend plan, limit yourself to five minutes to decide. Once the timer is up, make a choice and move on.

5. Know That Decisiveness Grows with Each Decision

Every decision you make adds to your experience and builds your decisiveness. Recognize that your ability to make faster decisions is a skill that improves over time, like any other skill. Embrace each decision as a learning opportunity. With practice, you’ll become more comfortable making choices quickly and confidently. Accepting that no decision is perfect and that mistakes can be valuable learning experiences helps free you from the fear of choosing “wrong.” For example: Start with smaller decisions and give yourself time to build confidence in your judgment. As you gain experience, you’ll find that you’re able to make bigger decisions faster and with greater clarity.

6. Remember That Indecision Kills

It’s easy to fall into the trap of indecision, but remember that inaction is also a choice—with consequences. Opportunities often come and go quickly, and by waiting too long, you risk losing them altogether. To avoid this, remind yourself of the cost of indecision, both in terms of lost opportunities and emotional stress. Realizing that staying stuck in indecision can have a more negative impact than making a potentially imperfect choice helps you value action over perfection. For example: If you’re stuck choosing between two job opportunities, consider that waiting indefinitely might result in both offers expiring. Making a choice, even if it’s not perfect, ensures you don’t miss out entirely.

Conclusion

Deciding faster doesn’t mean making impulsive or careless decisions. It’s about creating a mindset that allows you to weigh options efficiently, trust your instincts, and move forward without getting stuck in a loop of indecision. By limiting options, clarifying values, listening to your intuition, viewing time as money, building decisiveness over time, and understanding the cost of inaction, you can make quicker decisions with confidence. Remember: the best way to improve your decision-making speed is to keep making decisions.