Decision-Making Model

Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Course
Date
Decision Making
Introduction
People normally undergo situations that require them to make serious decisions that affect both their personal lives as well as other people. Some of these decisions are do or die which make them crucial. If by any chance the wrong decision is made, the likely hood of hurting oneself is high. Making decisions may seem easy, but when caught up in a situation, the victim realizes the difficulties present. It is important to plan on how to make decisions in order to identify the various alternatives that come about with the decision. A decision maker must evaluate the pros and cons of arriving or not arriving at a decision.
Classification and Definition of the Problem
A few months ago, I enrolled back to class in order to improve my academic qualifications. Due to the current levels of literacy in the country, it has become a necessity for many people to go back to school and improve their academic qualification. Being a person who intends to achieve great things in the future, I was motivated to go back to school. Fortunately, I was lucky to get employed as a teller at a local bank with minimal qualifications. My good grades in my first undergraduate degree enabled me to secure the job. The salary I receive each month has not been enough to sustain myself although I do not have many expenses. The job requires me to report to work three days in a week. I am free to attend classes on the free days only due to my working schedule.

Currently, my semester has 20 academic units, which has placed me in a dilemma.
Alternating from my workplace and concentrating on 20 units is not a simple task to accomplish. As a result of the pressure associated with this situation, I have been forced to decide on what to concentrate with, in the long-run. I am torn between picking up more shifts in a week to make more money or preserve the status quo in order to put more focus on my grades. This is a decision that requires careful planning due to the stakes involved. I require more money to fund my education and improve my living standards whereas I am required to work hard in my studies to attain good grades.
Set Objectives and Criteria
When making any decision, it is crucial to have clear objectives and criteria to achieve them. This prevents people from engaging in objectives that cannot be met (“Setting Objectives: Better than SMART Is SMARTER.”). In my situation, my main aim when making the decision is working for extra shifts to increase my earning while at the same time have enough time to concentrate on my studies. However, I have to make a good decision to avoid losing on either side.
Generate Creative and Innovative Alternatives
After numerous consultations with my family and friends, I have concluded that I have to choose between two alternatives. This decision will have to be arrived at after carefully considering the most suitable scenario that takes into consideration all my aspirations.
Decision Tree
399796099695Earn more income
Not a good GPA
Live a better life
Reduce the time in my studies.
No increase in income
More time for studying.
Maintain a good grade
Move forward my career goals
00Earn more income
Not a good GPA
Live a better life
Reduce the time in my studies.
No increase in income
More time for studying.
Maintain a good grade
Move forward my career goals

32480258953500324866069215003316605692150032600907175500Pick one or two more working shifts

318135031432400
314324921145500314325121145500314325022097900Continue working for three days a
a week and attend classes normally.
Analysis of the Alternatives and Selecting the Most Feasible
Before selecting the most suitable alternative to solve my problem I prepared a cost/benefit analysis table. This table was intended to assist me to identify the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative. The table enables a planner to identify the worth of a program (“Cost Benefit Analysis”). In this manner, identifying the most feasible alternative would assist me to make the most informed decision. Many things are at stake, and therefore all relevant ways of solving the problem should be evaluated in order to balance all equations.
Cost/Benefit Analysis for Each Alternative
Pick one or two more working shifts
Pros Cons
There will be an increase in my income
Possibility of poor grades at the end of the semester
No guarantee I’ll pass
Less amount of time for my classwork
More pressure due to more working hours
Reduced free time to meet my friends
Increased time to complete my studies
Continue working for three days a week and attend classes normally.
Pros Cons
Possibility of maintaining good grades
More free time to meet with friends and family
More time to concentrate on my studies
Finish my studies on schedule
No assurance of passing my exams
No increase in earnings
No improvement in living standards
A lot of free time when I do not have classes
Plan and Implementation of the Decision
Decisions are made after thorough consultation with different people and organizations. However, making the decision is not the solution to the problem. A good decision maker must plan and implement the decision made to achieve the set of objectives identified. In this case, I consulted my colleagues at work, friends, and family. One of the most resourceful people was my career guidance officer at the university. He guided me on the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative to enable me to arrive at the best conclusion. He advised me on the advantages of making long-term decisions rather than short-term one. According to his counsel, I appreciated that focus on the future was more crucial for a person with my dreams. My dream of being successful in my career in the future depended on the decisions that I made today. Therefore, I decided to continue my normal schedule of three days a week and focus on my studies. This was the only way I could find enough time to cover 20 academics units during the semester.
The commitment that I chose is one that required much focus on my studies at the expense of other vital issues such as preceding an opportunity to increase my income and have more time with my friends and family. Due to the possibility of escalating the commitment, I had to work out a plan to avoid it. In this regard, I chose to make it a habit of creating at least several hours in a week to meet with friends and family. Additionally, I decided to equally focus on my job during the official working days to maintain my working momentum. I had to strike a balance between all the tasks to avoid missing on one task due to overemphasizing on the other.
People who are serious about their education do not engage in other activities at the expense of their studies. This is because concentration and commitment are important for them to succeed in class. Implementation of the plan was crucial for me at this point. The semester had already started which made it essential to implement my plan immediately. I continued attending classes as usual and at times dedicated, more time than I used to. A good planner is required to create mechanisms to identify the success of his plans (Murphy & Fox-Rogers 235). These controls are used as measures of success. If the results recorded fail to meet the standards, it is an indication that the decision made was not the best. In my case, I identified some guiding controls. First, I decided to check on my grades at the end of the semester. In my previous exams, I posted good results for a person who does not attend classes regularly due to other commitments. If I recorded improvement in my grades, that would be an indication that I made the right decision. Secondly, I decided to evaluate my overall progress to complete my studies. A person should have timelines on how long to spend in school. Officially, my course requires three years to complete. If I complete the course in time, it will show that the plan worked accordingly.
Conclusion
Making the right decisions is a good feeling that all people strive to achieve. During the process of making my decision, I learned many things from my engagements with my career guide teacher, my friends, and family. I realized how important it was to evaluate all scenarios before choosing any. I learned how to set my aims in life and work towards attaining them through excellent decision-making, planning, and implementation. I learned the art of making painful decisions sacrifices today to achieve the best results in the future. I decided that concentrating on my grades for my career future had more advantages than earning more money today.
Works Cited
“Cost Benefit Analysis” N.p., 2018. Web. 21 Feb. 2018. http://ispatguru.com/cost-benefit-analysis/
Murphy, E., & Fox-Rogers, L. (2015). Perceptions of the common good in planning. Cities, 42, 231-241.
“Setting Objectives: Better Than SMART Is SMARTER” Leader Syndrome. N.p., 2018. Web. 21 Feb. 2018. https://leadersyndrome.wordpress.com/2012/02/13/setting-objectives-better-than-smart-is-smarter/