Why Am I Indecisive At Work?

Dr. A informed me in our coaching session that she was not going to finish her charts that day because she was covering two other doctors’ in-basket tasks. She went on to share with me that while she was trying to take care of her colleagues’ in-basket tasks, it would take her a long time to make a decision for the next plan of action.

Being curious, I asked her why. Dr. A explained because she wanted to make the right decision for each patient, and there were times she was not sure which option was the right one. She was not sure what her colleagues would think when they return to work.

Dr. A is a physician who is smart and caring. She is knowledgeable and she applies her medical skills appropriately to treat patients.

For a physician like Dr. A, who has the qualification, the up-to-date knowledge and clinical skills, it is fascinating to learn that she has a difficult time making a decision about patient care.

Are there times when you are being indecisive at work? Why do you think that is?

One main reason is fear. You are having the fear of failure. You are afraid to make the “wrong” decision and result in unfavorable consequences. This fear may be from the lack of self-confidence. You are not quite believing yourself to make the best decision. You think that you are potentially going to make things worse. You think that you somehow cannot apply the knowledge you learned to take care of someone else’s patient.

Besides the fear of failure (to make the “right” decision), there is also the desire to be perfect. As we are trained in a culture that admires perfection, it is natural to want to make the “perfect” decision. There is no such thing in real life. Every decision has its pros and cons. When you do not see the absolute “right” or “wrong” option, it is difficult for you to decide between two “somewhat right” decisions.

There is the fear of upsetting others. In other words, you are partially making your decision based on how you think the other person will react. You want that person’s approval. In Dr. A’s situation, she wants to make a decision that she thinks is right, and that she is going to be approved by her coworker.

To overcome indecisiveness, it is important to be kind to yourself. You are capable. You are doing your best given the circumstances. Having self-confidence is the foundation of believing in whatever decision you make is the best one. This is different from being perfect. Allow situations which there is no absolute right or wrong answer. In medical decision making, there are often two or more “right” answers. You do your best to make a decision based on what you know about the patient, and if that is your colleague’s patient, make the decision based on what you know their usual practice is, as long as it is in alignment with your belief.

Take a step back and look at the big picture. Why are you making that particular decision? You are taking care of the patient the best way you can, in a timely manner. If there are two decisions which seem to have similar impact, just go with one. It is better than spending extra minutes to go back and forth before making a decision, or not making a decision at all. Remember the another goal is to take great care of your patients and leave work in a decent hour. If you spend extra minutes on making a decision – do that multiple times a day – that will easily add up to more than an extra hour of your time.

As much as you think you are supposed to know everything about medicine, you do not have to. That is why we have different physicians in different specialties. Make the decision based on what you know, and do not hesitate to ask for help from another colleague in your same specialty, or another colleague from a different specialty.

It is always helpful to be mindful of the time. Once you have adequate information about the situation, about to lay out an analyze the available options, set a time limit, say, five minutes, to make a decision. Whatever decision you make, you make it be the best decision.

Always remember to celebrate. Celebrate that you made a decision. Celebrate that you are helping your colleague, you are helping the patients in a timely fashion. Celebrate that you are a physician who is always making the best decisions for patient care.