Community, Commentary and Curriculum
for Massage Therapists

Make Better Decisions in
Business, and in Life

Perhaps. like me, you view the dawn of the New Year as a time of reflection - on decisions and outcomes of the past, and planning and hope for the future. Perhaps you face problems in your business life that require a decision. Shall I take a new opportunity or stay where I am? Shall I work alone or grow my business? Shall I provide more care, or find other ways to supplement my income?

In the final analysis, how does a person make a better decision on these important matters? 

As I reflected between Christmas and New Year’s Eve I recognized how, over this last year, I’ve struggled with problems that have, and do, affect my business and personal life immensely.  On a number of these problems, I have failed to make a decision.  I have been so immobilized by fear and the idea of risk of loss that I’ve deferred and deferred again.  Thus, I am forced to live with “what is” because I fear making a decision to experience “what if”.

For example, I made a decision several years ago to operate from a 45 minute format.  I observed the economy and changes in the auto and housing industries and feared extended health plan benefits for massage therapy would be rescinded, or at the very least reduced.  I reasoned that a lower cost treatment would be more palatable, and at the same time the reduced appointment would allow me to see more patients.

However, I was subsequently suffering from symptoms in my arms and was afraid to add more appointments to the schedule.  (Thankfully, my symptoms are much better because I sought out the very care I have been providing all these years!)  As such, this one poor decision - because it was based more on fear than on strategy - cost me thousands of dollars in potential income over two years time!

So now I am faced with a decision.  I need to radically alter my fees and increase them by more than 20%, or I need to impose a different model of care.  The latter choice would require a lot of promotion and education to help my existing patients to see the benefits of this new model.  I sense deep resistance in my belly with either option, and so I have failed to make a decision.  Here is some of the mind-talk that goes through my head:

• Chiropractors and physiotherapists are charging $120 – 150/hour.  I get great results…why shouldn’t I bill as much as they do?

• If I raise my fees that much, I’ll lose a lot of business!

• I can’t continue as I am – it’s not financially sustainable

•  Maybe I’ll just raise my fees a little bit, and I’ll treat more patients

• Maybe I should look for a safe, secure job in the medically-funded health care stream that will pay me enough money to live on.

Perhaps you’ve had a similar conversation with your Self.  Fear seems to be that junction between an action we wish to take (and get desired results) and the apprehension of losing something (and getting negative results).  As a consequence, fear can be immobilizing.

I decided that since something is not working I will seek out a workable model that I can use in the process.  I wanted to find out, is there a theorem to making good decisions?  I have found that there are tremendous resources “out there” to help us look at our decision-making process.

I located on Wikipedia, the following definition of decision making:

Decision making is the cognitive process leading to the selection of a course of action among alternatives. Every decision making process produces a final choice. It can be an action or an opinion. It begins when we need to do something but we do not know what. Therefore, decision making is a reasoning process which can be rational or irrational, and can be based on explicit assumptions or tacit assumptions.[1]

I highly recommend visiting Wikipedia to explore Cognitive and Personal Biases in Decision Making, Decision Making in Groups, Decision Making in Business and Decision Making in One’s Personal Life.

Here is an example, here is a helpful reference for making decisions in health care:

Decision making in healthcare

In the health care field, the steps of making a decision may be remembered with the mnemonic BRAND, which includes

• Benefits of the action
• Risks in the action
• Alternatives to the prospective action
• Nothing: that is, doing nothing at all
• Decision

Another reference I found is a book by Spencer Johnson, MD entitled Yes or No: The Guide to Better Decisions.  Spencer Johnson wrote The One Minute Manager (with Ken Blanchard) and Who Moved My Cheese? - both very popular business titles.

In Yes or No, Dr. Johnson outlines the story of a young hiker who is looking to make better decisions in life.  Along the way, the hiker learns a number of key lessons.  First, the hiker makes a decision based on a problem he is having.  He then asks himself a “head” question and a “heart” question.  The head question, “Does my decision a) meet the real need? b) Examine my options and c) show that I’ve thought it through?”

Then he asks the heart question, “Does my decision show that a) I am being honest with myself b) I’m listening to my intuition and c) I believe I deserve better?”

The hiker learns from the other experienced hikers why it’s important to ask these questions, and how asking these questions can lead to a better decision.  It’s a little book, an easy read, and I highly recommend it.  Find the book at amazon.ca

So back to my discussion.  Are you immobilized in making a decision for fear of rejection, reprisal, or negative reaction?  You may do well to examine how you make your decisions, or perhaps, as in my case, why you are not making decisions!

Spencer Johnson says “Our decisions reflect our beliefs.”  Decide this year to examine the beliefs that keep you from succeeding in your business and personal life.  The decision to do this will lead to making better decisions.

If you do not conquer self, you will be conquered by self. — Napoleon Hill

More than anything else, I believe it's our decisions, not the conditions of our lives, that determine our destiny. - Anthony Robins

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