Decisive people make up their minds quickly when presented with several choices, and they stick to their decisions. There are a few characteristics that are unique to decisive people. People who wish to become decisive can work on emulating these characteristics and attempt to exhibit them. Practicing will help us to develop this skill and in no time, we’ll find ourselves being more decisive.
The effects of being indecisive go beyond taking hours to decide on a dish from a menu or days to pick a paint color for their room. According to the study, A psychological theory of indecisiveness by the Netherland Journal of Psychology, indecisiveness leads to the loss of time, money, and opportunity. So, what are the 5 characteristics of decisive people?
Self-Confidence
This is the principal characteristic of decisive people and what fuels their ability to make quick decisions. They have complete confidence in themselves and trust their ability to make good decisions quickly.
This entails having a precise idea of who they are and making decisions that help them grow in that direction. Knowing who you are helps make the process of making decisions easier. According to Angelina R. Sutin of the NIH Biomedical Research Center in her study Personality and Career Success: Concurrent and Longitudinal Relations, one way of showing confidence is extroversion. This entails being socially confident and comfortable with discussing with people in a social gathering.
Great Observers
Life is all about relationships and decisive people know who they are up against and who to partner with. The knowledge to make this decision is obtained through observation and being able to ask the right questions. They hear and remember every small detail. This usually means they are armed with the essential information required to make a decision when one is demanded quickly. Great observers are usually great listeners as great listening skills is always the first power of observation.
Live In The Present Moment
Decisions have their consequences, and no one can boast of ALWAYS making the right decisions. Decisive people are not people with a 100% track record of correct decisions; they may have made one or two wrong decisions in the past. What differentiates them from indecisive people is the fact that they live in the present. They are not stuck in the past, worrying about what went wrong the one time they picked a wrong choice. They leave such failure in the past and only pick the lessons it taught. Likewise, decisive people do not spend time stressing about potential problems that may arise due to a decision. They make a choice and deal with the issues as they emerge.
Continuous Learner
Being knowledgeable about a topic makes making a decision infinitely easier. A decisive person never knows enough; they are continuous learners, always investigating new ideas and exploring new topics.
They constantly hone their skills by broadening their knowledge on a wide variety of topics. They learn from experience and consider every time they made a wrong decision as a lesson on how to do better going forward.
Focused Thinking
Decisive people do not get easily distracted once their eyes have been set on a goal. This eliminates all thoughts and keeps their mind focused on the outcome they desire. Due to this fact, it is easier to make decisions that help bring the said outcome without letting external factors interfere.
Several Psychology studies have found that focusing and eliminating distractions helps make decisions easier as a break in concentration leads to a regression in the thought process. When these distractions are eliminated by focused thinking, regressions are eliminated, and decisions are made faster.
Conclusion
Decisiveness is a skill and lacking this skill doesn’t mean we have to be forever hindered by indecisiveness, as it is a skill that can be learned with practice and dedication.
Everyone wants to be more decisive, and a way to become more decisive is learning the characteristics of decisive people and trying to emulate said characteristics. Copying and following these characteristics is a good start in our journey to being more decisive.