When faced with a risky decision, what do you do?

Our reader poll today asks: When faced with a risky decision, what do you do?

• I make the decision quickly, accept the risk, and am willing to adjust just as quickly 18.09%
• I pause, gather more information, build a risk mitigation plan, then decide 64.19%
• I delay the decision, gather a lot of information, and decide later 14.89%
• I stall, get caught in analysis paralysis, and never make a decision 2.83%

Know the cost of waiting. 80% of you report waiting to make a decision until you gather additional information. While more information is always good to have, be sure you understand the cost of waiting. Sometimes that extra time you wait will cost you revenue, an opportunity to make a deal, the chance at hiring that great candidate when they get poached by another offer, or any other event that can occur during that waiting period. Be sure you know what information you want to gather and if it has the potential to change your answer or decision. If it won’t change the answer, make the decision now and avoid the risk of something bad happening while you’re waiting for your additional information.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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These results were originally a SmartPulse poll in SmartBrief on Leadership which tracks feedback from more than 240,000 business leaders. Get smarter on leadership and sign up for the SmartBrief on Leadership e-newsletter.