How to Make the Best Decision as an Entrepreneur

Throughout your life, you are going to make decisions and some of them you will regret. It could be as simple as sticking your finger in an electrical socket when you are young to dating the wrong guy or gal.

The most important thing to remember when it comes to business decisions is, the more you can minimize the decisions that you regret, the higher the chance you have to make it in business.

Patrick Bet-David breaks down the process of decision-making, how to make the best decision, and then how to go back and gauge your decision-making process. Before all of that, let’s look at the two areas that require constant decision making in business.

There are 2 Areas That Require Constant Decision Making:

1. Offense (Opportunity)

1. Sales
2. Marketing
3. Expansion
4. Growth
5. Recruiting
6. Technology

2. Defense (Problem)

1. Legal
2. Compliance
3. Protection against a competitor or market correction

Now, what are the questions you need to ask yourself when making a decision?

Questions to Ask as You Make Decisions:

1. What issue will the decision solve?

   1. You need to be aware of all the issues and opportunities your decision may affect before making it. 

2. How urgent is the issue (Opportunity or problem)?

   1. Entrepreneurs treat everything as life and death. You have to know the difference between the urgency of each decision. 

3. How much will it cost?

   1. Knowing the cost of the decision is an integral part of choosing the right way for your business. You need to know your numbers and what spending this money will get you.

4. How much time is needed to address this opportunity or issue?

   1. Not every decision is going to solve an issue or create an opportunity immediately. You have to weigh the time it takes to implement your decision and be comfortable with that timetable. 

5. What type of return am I going to make for this money and time?

   1. It is either going to provide a return of money or a protection against a loss. You need to have that outcome in mind going into the decision-making process.

To help you with these questions, you need to keep in mind one simple formula.  

The Decision Measuring Formula: DTR

1. Stretching the DOLLAR

2. Least amount of TIME needed

3. The RETURN

Once you got your questions and your formula down you are ready to pull the trigger, right? Wrong! You have to look out for your blind spots. You never see your own blind spots and that is why successful entrepreneurs have advisors or a board of directors to point out those areas. They are there to help guide and advise. 

Make A List of Blind Spots 

1. It’s easy to get excited about possibilities but you need to also think about what could go wrong. Your blind spot list should include both positive and negative areas that you might be missing. That advisor or board is going to help you with that list. 

Gauging Your Decision-Making Process After a Decision Has Been Made

1. How often do you make the right decision?

   1. How much time did the wrong decisions take you away from your business? What is your percentage of making the right decision? These two questions can provide insight into where you are going wrong and quantify the weeks and hours that you lose making the wrong decisions.
   2. You are not going to be great at making a decision when you first start. That is fine because no one is great at it when they first start. You develop a pattern, a history of good decisions as you build your business. 

2. Was the timing proper?

   1. This goes back the urgency question. You want to not only be making the right decision, but you also want to be making it at the right time. The right decision at the wrong time is costly.

The next time you are going to make a big decision, watch the video again or pull the PDF out and go through it all, step by step.

“The purest measurement of the decisions you’re making for your company comes down to results.” -PBD

 

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Founded in 2012 by Patrick Bet-David, our goal is to impact entrepreneurs around the world through value and entertainment. We are the #1 channel for entrepreneurs because of the best interviews, best how to videos, best case studies and because we defend capitalism and educate entrepreneurs.

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