How to make better decisions in life and making better work decisions

Updated January 5, 2024

During COVID lockdown in 2020, I read a book that changed my life and I’d like to share the inspiration I’ve gained from it, with you. I read this book at a time when the world was shutting down and, as a small farm business owner, I felt like I really needed help deciding what to do about everything. We all have the capability to make better, more concise decisions in our lives, whether it’s a personal or professional decision we need to tackle. This is where the concept of Essentialism can guide us to make those better, more concise decisions.

The book that inspired profound change in my life is Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown.

We’ve all been deeply distracted by a lot of things for a long time. Whether it’s information overload; our jobs; social obligations we don’t want anything to do with; financial stress; mental and emotional stress; social media addictions; trashing our bodies with garbage food; or all of the above, the one thing you can do to help yourself is to sort out all the noise in your life and figure out what is Essential to you.

learning how to say ‘no’ by process of elimination profoundly changed my life

Since reading Essentialism and applying its decision-making principles in particular, I have said No to more in my life than I ever have before. In fact, I say No more often than I say Yes, a feat I am truly proud of as a small business owner who must actively seek work opportunities. A lot of people say Yes to almost everything, to their detriment. After reading Essentialism and implementing the thought processes, I immediately was able to slash two entire areas of work that I used to begrudgingly take on. The day I made that decision, I breathed a deep sigh of relief. No more pointless time- and money-wasting for me! I felt powerful in deciding my own destiny, and I now maintain this decision making framework, while generating more profit in every aspect of work that I take on. Most importantly, I am able to spend more time doing the things I love, all because I’ve learned when to say No through informed decision making.

So, how do I know when to say No?

the essentialist worksheet for making better decisions

In Essentialism, McKeown presents many tactics on how to tackle life priorities, how to focus on them, and how to manage your time to do so. Saying No is just one aspect of the Essentialist puzzle, but it’s the area that has had the biggest (and most joyous and liberating!) impact on my business and my life.

I obviously recommend you spend the $10 and buy the book on Amazon, right now. To help you now though, I’ve adapted one of McKeown’s charts in his book into a worksheet that I now use to make every “hard” decision in my personal and professional life.

I hope this worksheet will help you get started creating your own systems for saying no, becoming more decisive, and consequently, creating more room for happiness in your life!

You can download the worksheet below…

I encourage you to explore your deepest wishes, your goals, your dreams, your inner vibrations. Ask yourself what you can change in your life and your decision making that will help you redefine your existence. If you’re feeling overwhelm, unhappiness, or unfulfilled… NOW is the time for you to ask yourself what you really want and need in your life. And weed out all the noise that’s getting in your way.

peace, love + plant magic,

Fran Parrish