I have a plaque above my bed that my mother made in Sunday school when she was a
child. It states Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your
own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths”
(English Standard Version). This has always guided my decisions but I have not always
implemented it well. I question how can I acknowledge Him in this or that situation? How can I
do this well? At that point I am always reminded that God is in peace, He does not bring chaos
(my interpretation of Philippians 4: 6-7). I use peace as my rudder to guide my decision and I try
my best to ensure my heart is in the right place and my intent was always good. This follows tip
four of the suggested tips in Educational World’s “Five Tips for Making Decisions” (2017)
article which states, importance or need for a high-quality decision. I think even the small
decisions are high-quality to someone, so I always try to treat a decision that would impact
someone as high-quality. I do this primarily through bouncing ideas off colleagues and getting
their input. My sample size cannot always be as big as I would like, but there is always one or
two people I can consult with to ensure my viewpoints are not guiding the decision. Collegial
input is second only to Proverbs guidance for me.
One interesting perspective comes from an article from Kenya describing students’ views
on how much they should be involved in their academic progress decisions. This study described
statistical significance in improved performance when students were consulted by parents and
teachers when choosing the school the student would attend (Mati, Gatumu, & Chandi, 2016). I
think this supports consulting others when making decisions, particularly when those decisions
impact them. People need to feel valued, and consulting them goes a long way towards that.
In an ideal world I can consult with others and find peace in my decision. However, this
is not always the case. Particularly what comes to mind for me are decisions revolving around
money and budget. I think it is extremely difficult to work within the confines of a budget and
make everyone happy. Therefore, I think this is a realm which may elicit only negative decisions.
The variety of situations and circumstances shared by employees make it nearly impossible to
decide that everyone loves. I think these types of scenarios, where you are trying to make one
decision to fit a wide variety of people, are indicative of those negative decisions.
References
“Five Tips for Making Decisions.” Decision-Making for School Leaders: Five Tips | Education
World. Education World, 2017. https://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/decision-
making-five-tips.shtml.
Mati, Alexander, Jane Ciumwari Gatumu, and John Rugendo Chandi. “Students Involvement in
Decision Making and Their Academic Performance in Embu West Sub-County of
Kenya.” Universal Journal of Educational Research 4, no. 10 (2016): 2294–98.
https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2016.041008.
