5 questions to improve your team's decision-making

1. What would happen if we didn't do anything?

When an opportunity arises or dynamics within an industry are changing, failing to act can be costly, but sometimes it can also be a wise decision, Morris writes.

Asking what would happen if your team didn't do anything will require you to evaluate the mid- to long-term costs and benefits of not acting.

Morris recommends asking if you or your team can imagine a future where no changes have been made. Are you still successful in that future? How have key stakeholders been affected? Is the pressure to act based on complete data or short-term thinking and emotions?

2. What could make us regret our decision?

Asking this question forces you and your team to consider the potential adverse outcomes of any decision, Morris writes.

Follow this question with more questions, such as, is this a good long-term choice for your physical, mental, and financial health? How likely are you to regret not being bold? Could a moral compromise lead to long-term dissatisfaction? Are you endangering an important relationship? And if this decision goes wrong, what would you regret the most?

You can also reflect on decisions you've made in the past that have led to regret, identify patterns, and learn from them, Morris writes.

Asking if you overlooked any alternatives disrupts these biases and forces you and your team to remain curious, Morris writes. Take a look at alternate courses of action and ask whether they could yield better results. Revisit previous choices that were rejected and ask if that reasoning is still valid. And ask yourself and your team whether all perspectives have been heard, and everyone's blind spots have been checked.

4. How will we know we made the right decision?

If you and your team don't know what success looks like, it will be impossible to make a good decision, Morris writes.

You need to have a vision of the ideal outcome and clear metrics for your desired performances, whether that's through objectives and key results, a balanced scorecard that tracks financial results, customer response, process efficiency and growth, key performance indicators, or specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals.

Envision what results you expect from this decision, figure out a progress-measurement system that looks both at the short- and long-term, set specific milestones, and make a plan for reviewing how quickly and successfully you're moving towards those goals.

5. Can we reverse this decision?

Considering whether your decision can be reversed or changed can reduce the pressure to make the "perfect" choice, especially since in rapidly changing environments and complex projects, you may not have the ability to iterate, test, and correct multiple decisions toward a final solution, Morris writes.

Ask yourself or your team what the costs — both financial and reputational — of reversing your decision are if you'll need to, how easy or difficult it would be to pivot, whether you can break the move into smaller steps so you can experiment and get feedback, what signals, data, or metrics would tell you it's time to reconsider, and what your gut tells you about this decision.

These five questions "can't guarantee you a good decision, but they can sharpen your decision-making process, whether in personal matters or business strategy," Morris writes. "As you use them on your own and with your team over time, they'll also help you foster the habits you need for long-term growth and success."