Quotes About Decision-making

The naïve follow their hearts. The wise lead with their hearts.

I give dignity second place to expedience," said Cugel.

give dignity second place to expedience

The boss would be present at the beginning of each session, laying out the rationale for the Work-Out. He or she would also commit to two things: to give an on-the-spot yes or no to 75 percent of the recommendations that came out of the session, and to resolve the remaining 25 percent within thirty days. The boss would then disappear until the end of the session, so as not to stifle open discussion, returning only at the end to make good on his or her promise.*

The only antidote is simplicity. The simplicity of leading through truth and trust. Ceaselessly seeking the former, relentlessly building the latter. In every decision, in every action. Truth is a determined pursuit, a personal and unquenchable fire, burning to know what is really happening inside the company and out.

Stepping back from almost any situation with an underperformer, it's always easy to see the solution. They need to move on—sooner rather than later. Up close, however, organizations tend to draw out departures, as people fret about the employee's emotional reaction to being let go. Oftentimes, managers feel guilty about putting a friend out of work, or remorseful they didn't give candid enough feedback along the way, or both.

Forget the arduous, intellectualized number crunching and data grinding that gurus say you have to go through to get strategy right. Forget the scenario planning, yearlong studies, and hundred-plus-page reports. They're time-consuming and expensive, and you just don't need them. In real life, strategy is actually very straightforward. You pick a general direction and implement like hell.

Never let fears get in the way of happiness, because fear can lead to such irrational reasoning, and we can make dreadful mistakes, saying things we can't take back.

You've got to just accept what has happened and get on with it… If you go back over every single decision that led to that moment… You'll never get better. You'll always be in that moment.

STEED: But in a presidential crisis I expect him to be presidential.

Never, ever, sacrifice what you want the most, for what you want the most at that moment.

It's OK to have your eggs in one basket as long as you control what happens to that basket.

If someone insists they need to be in prison even though the door is unlocked, then I am not going to argue. They are free to stay in prison.

You can either take the blue pill (become depressed about an artificial reality that is never going to return) or take the red pill (fully enter the Choose Yourself era and take advantage of its opportunities).

Never have your happiness dependent on a yes or no decision from one person.

Choose Yourself! Copyright © 2013 by James Altucher

Should I listen to venture capitalists? Yes, of course. They gave you money. But then don't do anything they ask you to do.

if you don't make courageous choices for yourself, nobody else will. There's

The key is building the foundation underneath. And then taking a positive action: to choose yourself.

Research your secret options thoroughly. Or else don't begin the negotiation because you have not prepared properly.

If you don't live in the world of choosing, you live in the world of excusing. 

The only thing you have control over is your mindset, your habits, and the choices you make internally about how you're going to deal with a situation.

Often people want answers right now! When they tell you to jump, they want you to ask, "How high?" But you have the right to think things over. The right to delay. The right to say, "Okay, give me some time to see how I feel about it." The right to get to know the people who enter your life in either business or relationships and see if they are the right fit.

If too many things have to happen in order to bring about the situation you want, then back out of it and try again later.