Emotions should be considered and acknowledged, when making a decision. Sometimes the decision is made to ignore the emotion but admitting that emotion is there, is important. Gut feelings help us narrow down and prioritize our options.

There are different emotions that impact our decision making. 

1- Relevant emotions that are directly tied to the choice being faced. They should be kept when making the decision. 

2- Irrelevant emotions that are unrelated to the decision at hand. They should be tossed and to prevent these emotions to misguide our decision making, let time pass before making the decision. 

Relevant Emotions

1- Anticipation

When making a decision some choices make us more excited than others and they are the option which is mostly selected. 

To overcome anticipation, keep a decision log, which helps in evaluation if the anticipation was accurate or not.

2- Anxiety

When we have to pick between good choices we become anxious, so in a way it’s a good thing to be anxious in decision making. “Anxiety is the fear of more fear. It is rooted in the need to control the things around us to keep our reality known and safe.” said Justin Milano.

To overcome anxiety, the first step is to identify what you are trying to control, by asking yourself what expectation, idea or outcome I am attached to and acknowledge that attachment. Then soften the grip on that idea, design a new path based on reality creatively.

3- Regret

When making decisions, regret plays a big part. Research shows that people tend to pick the option they think they will regret the least. We most of the time are drown to the status quo because that seems less risky. 

To overcome making the decisions based on status quo due to the emotion of regret, know that most of the time people are happy if they make the change which is not status quo.

4- Envy

The emotion of envy sometimes also guides our decision making. When we are envious of someone, it reveals our values to us – if we are honest with ourselves.

To overcome envy, understand that being envious is the signal that we need to learn something which we covet in another person and spend time learning instead of being envious.

Irrelevant Emotions

1- Excitement

Excitement makes us overly optimistic and impulsive so it’s not a good idea to make any decisions when being in the condition of excitement. 

To counteract excitement before making a decision is to calm yourself down by breathing exercise or go for a walk or run.

2- Sadness

Sadness makes us overly pessimistic and makes us overestimate the chances of something bad happening to us. Sadness makes us select the option that is only for now and not for the future. 

To counteract sadness, list 3 things you are thankful for. Gratitude has the opposite effect of sadness. 

3- Anger

Anger makes us hot headed. It’s silly to make decisions when in the state of anger as when angry we rely more on stereotypes and are less willing to listen. Also we make rash decisions when angry instead of picking the safe bet.

To counteract anger, slow down and take deep breaths. Delay making any decision until out of anger. 

4- Stress

In stress men make riskier choices and women make low- risk choices. 

To counteract stress, don’t make any sudden movements and try to relax. 

Before making any decisions take your emotional temperature. If it is too high or too low, wait before making any decision. If you are in a pleasant mood that’s the best time to engage in any decision making activity. After making a decision, be confident that you made the best decisions with the information you had.