No Stakes to High Stakes

Simple tool for effective DEcision Making

It was a waste of an evening. Let me tell ya, Ben, it was an almighty waste of time! 

It was Saturday and we had made a simple, yet superb fajita dinner. We were nestling in to watch a movie but we couldn’t figure out what to watch - ahhhh the goofery! Anyways, time ticked by, waffling happened, food got cold, frustration was felt as we added movie option after movie option into the mix. 

By the time we did manage to decide on a movie, I wasn’t really in a state to enjoy it. A big ol’waste. Next time, I’m capping the movie choice to ten minutes.

Hello Reader,

Have you ever spent way too much time thinking through an inconsequential decision? 

I have a distinct memory of doing this while treeplanting in Northern Canada. There was a huge fallen tree blocking my way and I had two equally unexciting options in front of me; climb over the tree or squeeze under it. I stood there, thinking it through, squandering precious time I could have been using to plant more trees. In the end, I realised it didn’t matter which one was better, climbed over, and continued planting.

The lesson I learned from this experience was to not waste time and energy on decisions that don’t matter. To be an effective decision maker, we should instead cater our energy to the stakes of the decision.

NO STAKES TO HIGH STAKES

The first step in being an effective decision maker is to identify where our decisions lie on the scale from No Stakes to High Stakes. No Stakes decisions are ones that we will forget pretty much right after we make them; for example, what side of the bagel to butter, how much toothpaste to use tonight, which emoji to include, etc. High Stakes, on the other hand, are decisions that will impact our lives for a long time; for example, what university to attend, what city to live in, should we get a dog, etc.? In between these two extremes lies low and medium decisions.

Your Task

Reader, please take a moment to reflect on the decisions you have coming up, where do they fall on this scale from No Stakes to High Stakes?

CATER YOUR EFFORT TO THE DECISION

Excellent, now that you have identified the stakes of the various decisions you are making, you can cater your effort to the decision. If you are approaching a high stakes decision, then put in the research, deliberation, thought and energy to give you the confidence that you have explored all the angles. On the other hand, if you are pondering a low stakes decision, then put in a much less comprehensive effort. Our aim is to be aware of the stakes so that we can manage our personal resources (time, energy, research, emotions, analysis, etc.) and apply them as effectively as possible to the current decision.

TIP - TIME LIMIT

The best trick I have found for catering my energy to the stakes of a decision is to set a time limit. If my fiancé and I are choosing a movie to watch (a low stakes decision in our opinion) then we will give ourselves 10 minutes to choose. This boundary means that we don’t get lost in the options and can focus on the joy of being together - which is really the aim of a movie evening! In contrast, I will give myself a good couple of weeks (or more) for high stakes decisions. This means I have the opportunity to gather the research, mull over the options, listen to my gut and know that I have explored what needs to be explored. If it is a no stakes decision, I just go for it as I know that it isn’t worth spending time considering! Setting a time limit on our decisions provides focus, limits indecisiveness and ensures we spend the correct amount of resources on our decisions.

Excellent, reader, as you go forward making decisions in your life, keep this understanding of stakes at the back of your mind. This approach helps me cater my energy to the decision; reining me in from spending too much time and effort on inconsequential decisions. It facilitates focused and efficient decision making.

Happy doing!

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