Motivation influences how we make decisions.    According to the expectancy theory proposed by Victor Vroom, employees in an organization are the most motivated when they think an effort will result in better performance, and that better performance can lead to rewards they value.  Based on the same theory, Professor Richard W. Scholl of the University [...]

The current unfortunate situation in the Gulf of Mexico has made me very aware of the importance of risk awareness.  Risks are everywhere.  We take them all the time. Sometimes we are not even aware of the risks involved or the consequences those risks entail. Databases are at the heart of today’s corporations.  They make [...]

There is a field of forces that plays into our decisions.  Identifying, visualizing, and analyzing these forces can be a useful exercise for important decisions.  I have devised a form to help you do this easily.  Your intention or the decision you want to make goes in the center box.  The driving forces go in [...]

The human brain is lazy.  It does not like to work very hard.  This is a scientific fact!  Our brain is “programmed” to conserve energy.  This is because it needs to be ready to operate under danger (mostly from the olden days).  Thinking too hard takes energy and uses brain resources that can peg our [...]

This post is dedicated to the subject of blunders.  Since this is a post about how we decide, I will delve into a number of reasons why we make mistakes or blunders.  In preparation for this blog series on decision-making, I read a few articles and books.  One of them was a book written by [...]

In this post, I will continue my discussion on how we make decisions.  I will specifically focus on a mechanism the human brain devised to help us deal with decision-making.  According to the Wikipedia definition, cognitive bias is a human tendency to draw incorrect conclusions in certain circumstances based on cognitive factors rather than evidence. [...]

Many factors influence at what point in time we make decisions.  Our circumstances, conditions, needs, wants, emotional state, knowledge, etc. play a role in the timing of our decisions.  The type of decision is another important factor.  Decisions can be categorized as critical (a decision with life or death or other BIG implications), Important, or [...]

In my last post, I wrote about why we make decisions.  We do so because we have no choice.  Decisions are necessary to live, thrive and survive in this world. In this post, I will delve into what we decide and what kinds of things we decide on. The implication of most decisions we make [...]

We have no choice but to make decisions. Decision-making is a critical human endeavor. When you think about it, there is no life without decisions.  We make them from the moment we rise in the morning to the time we get back to sleep at night.  We have needs that we must meet and many [...]

Life is all about decisions.  We wake up and there we go — It’s decisions all the way to the end of the day.   What do I wear? What do I eat/drink?  How much do I eat/drink?  Do I drive or take the bus/train/etc.?  That is just to start!  We are constantly making decisions about [...]