Mind Maps for Informed Decision Making
Making decisions is one of those things that we do every single day, but how much thought do you put into your decisions? Is it usually a simple matter of weighing u p the pros and cons and making what you feel is the right choice? Have you really explored all the information you require to make the right decision?
Mind mapping your big decisions is a sure fire way of getting a more informed perspective on your decisions. Not only will you be able to explore the different aspects of your decision, but you will also be able to associate and group the risks and benefits from making a decision. So how do we go about mind mapping a decision?
Options
Explore the options you have. Your decision may have a fixed number of option, like "Yes" and "No" or you may be choosing amongst a list of options e.g. contractors for a project. Brainstorm your options for alternative options that you might not have initially thought of.
Risks & Benefits
Every decision comes with risks and benefits, no matter how big they are. For each of your options, create branches for the risks and benefits associated with each option. If your feeling more adventurous, then why not add weight to each of your benefits and risks. Some of them will be more important than others and some will not. Prioritise your risks and benefits with a weighting score to get a better decision.
Assess
Finally, assess each of your options according the number of risks and benefits they have and how important these are. Remember that an option might have 10 risks and 1 benefit, but that 1 benefit could outweigh all the risks. Mind mapping your decisions is a good practice and one that will develop the more you do it. By continually mind mapping your decisions, you will start to develop your preferred system of assessing the options and in time be able to make smart, informed decisions that take into account all the risks and benefits associated with it.
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