How to Make Better Decisions Under Pressure
Last week I got a message saying that my niece had missed her flight from Faro to Berlin and was coming back to London for a few days.
I can imagine how it must have felt in the moment.
I met her at the station and we caught up for the first time in three months.
We don't expect to miss a flight, but it happens.
When something like that happens, it can be difficult to focus on what matters in that moment.
Panic can set in and we can make poor choices or simple mistakes.
Just a few days later, my stepdaughter was unwell while interrailing through Europe.
Again, it was a situation we could anticipate, even though we couldn't know if or when it would happen.
One way to make better decisions under pressure is to make some of the choices beforehand.
Preparing before the situation happens
Instead of deciding while you are caught up in the situation, you can prepare a set of choices in advance and bring them into play when a defined trigger occurs.
The trigger is simply the event that tells you those prepared choices are now relevant.
For example:
Trigger: Missed flight
Timeframe: Until a workable onward plan is in place
Boundary: 5 items
Theme: Regain control
Contact airline
Reassess onward travel
Arrange accommodation if needed
Update family
Follow missed flight checklist
The timeframe does not have to be a day or an hour.
It can simply indicate how long the choices need to remain relevant.
In this example, the timeframe lasts until a workable onward plan is in place.
The boundary limits how much you are trying to deal with at once.
The theme for the boundary gives those choices a common purpose.
Your choices still leave room for judgement and autonomy.
Choices and procedures
A choice can refer to a separate procedure or checklist.
For example, 'Follow missed flight checklist' could point to practical steps kept somewhere else.
The checklist is not part of Eightly. It simply describes how that particular choice is carried out.
Making choices while things are calm
Unexpected problems may still be stressful when they happen.
Making a few choices in advance, while things are calm, can help alleviate some of the pressure when a situation arises.
You still decide what to do.
You have simply given yourself somewhere useful to start.