Journal #40 - Important Decisions

I use the d-e-c-i-d-e process every time that I make an important decision. We learned this process in my freshman health class. This is a very important thing to learn because as we get older, we begin to make more important decisions that dictate what kind of life we will live. The D of the decide process stands for determine problem. This is probably the easiest part of the decide process because problems typically present themselves somewhat easily. The E stands for explore alternatives. This part of the decide process will take some time because you must think about different solutions to solve your problem. The C stands for consider the consequences. This is what makes and breaks your decision that you make because it is the outcome of each situation that you will be looking at. The I stands for identify values. This is when you find the personal meaning of what you want decide on. The D stands for decide/act. This is where you actually make your decision. The final E stands for evaluate results. This is where you determine if the decision that you made was the correct decision. Lets take for instance you have to decide on a car that you want to buy. THe first thing I would do is realize that I need to buy a car. The next thing I would do was think that I could buy a big car, small car, based on gas mileage vs. safety. I would then consider that having good gas mileage would save me money or I could pay a little more for some safety. Then I would identify which one is more important to me, which would be gas mileage because I am a safe driver. Then I would decide by buying the smaller car that has better gas mileage. Then I would evaluate my decision as I drive off saving more money than ever. This is a simple concept and can be done in seconds if the decision is very easy. This is why the decide process is a very great tool to have.