A. Developing the Skills, Strategies, and Habits Needed to Succeed · Skills, Strategies and Habits for Success

Decision-Making Strategies

A2 A2.1About 70 minutes

Learning goals

I can use a step-by-step decision-making process.
I can use several decision-making tools: a pros and cons list, a mind map, a weighted criteria list and seeking advice.
I can explain why seeking different perspectives, including from family, advisers and Elders, leads to better decisions.
I can describe the possible effects of postponing a decision.

Words to know

decision-making strategy
A method for thinking through choices in an organized way.

option
One of the possible choices you could make.

criteria
The standards you use to judge options (singular: criterion). Example: cost, interest, time.

weighted criteria list (decision matrix)
A table that scores each option on each criterion and multiplies by how important that criterion is.

mind map
A diagram with a central question and branches showing options, ideas and connections.

perspective
A particular way of seeing something, shaped by a person's experiences, culture and values.

consensus
A decision that everyone in a group can accept, reached through discussion.

Decisions, decisions

You make hundreds of small decisions every day: what to wear, what to eat, whether to answer a text now or later. Most are quick and automatic, which is good: if you thought hard about every one, you would never get out the door.

But some decisions are big and shape your future: which courses to take in Grade 11, whether to get a part-time job, how to spend the summer, which pathway to aim for after high school. For those, a decision-making strategy helps you think clearly instead of choosing by panic, by default, or by doing whatever your friends do.

The Career Studies curriculum asks you to apply decision-making strategies to set goals. This lesson gives you the strategies; the next lesson uses them to set goals.

A six-step process

Define the decision. What exactly am I deciding, and by when? ("How will I spend July and August?" by May 1.)
Gather information. Facts (pay, hours, requirements), your own self-knowledge (interests, strengths, values), and advice and perspectives from others.
List options. Aim for at least three, and include creative mixes. Many people get stuck choosing between only two.
Weigh the options. Use a tool: pros and cons, a weighted criteria list, or a conversation with someone you trust.
Choose and act. Commit and take the first step.
Review. How did it go? What did you learn? This often leads to the next decision.

Decision-making is a cycle: after you review, what you learn feeds into your next decision.

Decision-making tools

Pros and cons list. List the advantages and disadvantages of each option. It is quick and simple. Weakness: every pro and con counts the same, even when one matters much more than another.

Mind map. Put the decision in the centre and branch out to options, ideas and questions. Mind maps are good early on, for finding options you hadn't thought of.

Criteria list. Decide what matters (your criteria: money, interest, time, location, cost, where it leads) before you compare. This stops you from being swayed by one shiny feature.

Weighted criteria list (decision matrix). Give each criterion a weight (how important it is, for example 1 to 3). Score each option on each criterion (for example 1 to 5). Multiply score × weight and add. The highest total is the option that best fits your priorities.

Seeking advice and perspectives. Talk to people who know you or know the options: family members, guidance counsellors, teachers, coaches, employers, people working in a field you're curious about, and Elders, Métis Senators, knowledge keepers or knowledge holders. Different people notice different things.

Discussion and consensus. Some decisions affect a whole family or group. The Inuit societal value Aajiiqatigiinniq (as set out by the Government of Nunavut), for example, describes decision making through discussion and consensus. In many families and cultures, big decisions are made together; in others, individuals are expected to decide for themselves. Think about which approaches fit you and your family.

A mind map helps you find options before you compare them. Notice the fourth branch: a mix of two options is often possible.

Let's see a weighted criteria list in action

Tala is deciding how to spend her summer. She is interested in becoming a physiotherapist someday. Her three options are a job at a garden centre, volunteering as a day camp counsellor-in-training, or taking Grade 11 Biology in summer school.

Her criteria and weights (3 = very important, 1 = a little important): earns money (3), connects to my career interests (2), leaves time for family and rest (2), gets me ahead in school (1).

Criterion (weight)	Garden centre job	Day camp volunteer	Summer school
Earns money (×3)	5 → 15	1 → 3	1 → 3
Career interests (×2)	2 → 4	4 → 8	3 → 6
Time for family and rest (×2)	2 → 4	3 → 6	3 → 6
Gets me ahead in school (×1)	1 → 1	1 → 1	5 → 5
Unweighted total (sum of scores)	10	9	12
Weighted total	24	18	20

Each cell shows the score out of 5, then the score × weight.

Worked example

Let's work out Tala's decision

Use the table above. Which option has the highest weighted total? Why is it different from the unweighted result, and what should Tala do next?

Multiply each score by its weight. Garden centre: 5 × 3 = 15, 2 × 2 = 4, 2 × 2 = 4, 1 × 1 = 1.
Add: garden centre 15 + 4 + 4 + 1 = 24; day camp 3 + 8 + 6 + 1 = 18; summer school 3 + 6 + 6 + 5 = 20.
Compare with the unweighted totals: garden centre 5 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 10; day camp 1 + 4 + 3 + 1 = 9; summer school 1 + 3 + 3 + 5 = 12. Without weights, summer school wins.
Why the difference? Tala said earning money matters most (weight 3). The garden centre scores highest on that criterion, so weighting moves it to first place.
Check with your gut and with people. The matrix is a tool, not a boss. Tala talks to her parents and her guidance counsellor. Her counsellor points out she could take the job and volunteer one morning a week, which raises the career-interest score of the plan.
Choose and act: she applies to the garden centre by April 15 and emails the day camp about one morning a week.

Weighted totals: garden centre 24, summer school 20, day camp 18. The weights reflect Tala's priorities, which is why the result differs from the unweighted totals (where summer school had 12). Talking to her counsellor added a fourth option: a mix.

The unweighted totals (top bar in each pair) and the weighted totals (bottom bar). The weights change which option comes first.

What happens if you put off a decision?

Sometimes postponing is wise: you need more information, or the decision isn't due yet. But postponing has effects:

Doors can close. Course selection, job applications, program applications and scholarships all have deadlines. Wait too long and someone else (or the timetable) decides for you.
Stress grows. An undecided choice keeps taking up space in your mind.
You lose time to prepare. Deciding early on a summer job gives you time to write a résumé and practise for interviews.

A good middle path: set a decision date, and list exactly what information you need before then.

Just for fun

There's a famous old thought experiment called Buridan's donkey: a donkey stands exactly halfway between two identical piles of hay, can't find any reason to pick one over the other, and stays stuck there going hungry. The lesson? Sometimes any reasonable decision beats no decision at all. (No real donkeys were harmed; donkeys are actually pretty good at picking a snack.)

Hands-on activity

Make a decision matrix for a real choice

You need: paper and a ruler (or a spreadsheet), and a family member or trusted adult to talk with.

Pick a real decision you face in the next few months: Grade 11 courses, a summer plan, joining a team or club, getting a part-time job, a volunteer placement.
Make a mind map first: put the decision in the centre and branch out to at least three options (include a mix).
Choose 3 to 5 criteria that matter to you. Give each a weight from 1 to 3.
Draw a decision matrix. Score each option from 1 to 5 on each criterion, multiply by the weight and add.
Seek a perspective: show your matrix to a family member, guidance counsellor, teacher, coach, or an Elder or knowledge keeper if you have one in your life. Ask: What am I missing? Would you weight anything differently?
Write a decision date and your next step.

What to look for: at least three options, criteria chosen before scoring, correct multiplication and addition, and a note about what the other person added.

Your turn

List the six steps of the decision-making process in order.

What is one weakness of a simple pros and cons list?

When is a mind map most useful?

In a decision matrix, an option scores 4 on a criterion with weight 3. What is its weighted score for that criterion?

Option X scores (out of 5) 3, 5 and 2 on criteria with weights 2, 1 and 3. Find the weighted total.

Name three people you could ask for advice about Grade 11 course choices.

Give two possible effects of postponing a decision about a summer job until June.

More practice: warm-up

What are criteria?

How many options should you try to list before choosing?

What does Aajiiqatigiinniq describe?

In a weighted criteria list, what does a weight of 3 mean (on a 1 to 3 scale)?

What is the last step of the decision-making process?

More practice: on your own

Two options: A scores 4 (money), 2 (interest); B scores 2 (money), 5 (interest). Weights: money 1, interest 3. Which wins, and would it change if both weights were 1?

Why should you choose your criteria before you score the options?

Explain why talking to someone with a different perspective can improve a decision. Give an example.

A student keeps putting off choosing Grade 11 courses because they aren't sure about their future. What advice would you give?

Is it ever wise to postpone a decision? Give an example.

Challenge

Build a weighted criteria list for this decision: joining the school band (option 1), getting a 10-hour-a-week job (option 2) or joining the robotics club (option 3). Choose three criteria with weights, score the options and find the totals. Show your work.

"A decision matrix gives you the right answer." Evaluate this statement.

Explain how a student's cultural background might affect which decision-making strategies feel right, and why both individual and group approaches can be valid.

Check your understanding

Quiz

What is the first step in the decision-making process?

Which tool is best for finding new options early in a decision?

Option A scores 3 on a criterion with a weight of 2. What is its weighted score on that criterion?

Option B's weighted scores on three criteria are 8, 6 and 5. What is its weighted total?

Why use weights in a criteria list?

Which is a likely effect of postponing a course-selection decision past the deadline?

Which is the best example of seeking different perspectives?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Expectation A2.1 asks students to apply decision-making strategies to set goals. The curriculum's examples include pros and cons lists, mind maps, criteria lists and seeking advice from advisers, family members, Elders, Métis Senators, knowledge keepers and knowledge holders. It also prompts students to consider the effects of postponing a decision and the value of different perspectives. The instructional tip encourages students to think about which decision-making approaches fit them from a cultural perspective.

How to help: Be one of the perspectives in the activity. Share how decisions are made in your family, and talk honestly about a big decision you made (or put off) and what happened.

Common difficulties:

Only two options considered. Ask, "Is there a third way, or a mix?"
Arithmetic slips in the matrix: multiply each score by its weight before adding.
Treating the matrix total as the final answer. Encourage a gut check and a conversation.