You now have a list of possible options. The next step is to choose between them.

Choosing is not a feeling that you need to wait for. It is a task with a clear method.

Begin by quickly removing any options that are clearly unsuitable. Before evaluating the rest in detail, “eliminate any alternatives that are clearly ineffective, that is, ones that are likely to create serious negative consequences or are very difficult to implement.”

If an option is likely to cause serious problems, or you know you will not realistically carry it out, remove it and continue.

Evaluate each remaining option using four questions.

• “Will this solution solve the problem?”
• “Can I realistically carry it out?”
• “How will it affect me in the short term and the long term?”
• “How will it affect other people in the short term and the long term?”

Mark each answer with a plus if the effect is generally positive, a minus if it is generally negative, or a zero if it is neutral.

There is no final score to calculate. The purpose of the grid is to help you consider every remaining option from all four perspectives. This is difficult to do consistently when you are only thinking through the options in your head.

Stress makes us especially likely to overlook two of these questions.

Can I realistically carry it out? This question tests whether a plan that looks good on paper is possible with the time, energy, and resources you will actually have. A plan has no value if you cannot put it into practice.

What happens in the short term and the long term? This question helps you identify quick fixes. Some options may provide relief today but make the original problem more difficult next month. Many decisions people later regret look positive in the short term and negative in the long term.

The fourth question, which considers the effect on other people, is not asking you to ignore your own needs.

It is included because a solution that creates a serious problem for someone else may eventually return to you as a new problem.

The strongest choice does not have to be a single action. You can combine two options or choose a preferred option and prepare a backup plan. A backup can be especially useful when you are unsure whether your first choice will work.

Once you have chosen, write the plan as a series of clear steps. Put the steps in order and add a time or deadline to each one.

As the authors explain, “it is important to have the steps in your plan written down so you can check off each part of the plan and observe the results as you carry out your solution.”

A plan that exists only in your head is easy to change or postpone when the moment to act arrives.

Before you close the worksheet, complete one final step: write down what you expect to happen.

Describe the result you expect and how satisfied you think you will be with it. One sentence is enough.

Why make a prediction when you will eventually see what happens?

If you do not write it down, your memory may quietly change it afterwards. If the plan goes badly, you may remember that you knew it would fail. If it goes well, you may remember that you expected it to succeed.

In either case, you learn very little about your own judgement. This unit is designed to help you improve how you evaluate which options are likely to work.

In the next lesson, you will carry out your plan and compare what you expected with what actually happened.