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Overcoming Indecisiveness: The Eight Stages of Effective Decision Making
Based on his medical training and counseling experience, a leading psychiatrist offers a practical approach to solving human problems by defining the eight stages of effective decision-making
- GenresSelf HelpNonfiction
208 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
7 people are currently reading
163 people want to read
About the author
Theodore Isaac Rubin
61 books34 followersTheodore Isaac Rubin, M.D., has served as president of the American Institute of Psychoanalysis and is the author of thirty books, including The Angry Book, Lisa and David, Jordi, The Winner's Notebook, and Lisa and David Today. His books have been translated all over the world. He lives and practices psychiatry in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 7, 2014
This was the second of three books I read about making choices/decisions. This one focuses on practical tips and uses more of a step-by-step approach than the other two. If it works for you, then great. If it doesn't, there's not a lot of psychological analysis or other info to help you deal with the emotions behind decision-making, and you may need to look for a different book.
The two other books I read were The Art of Choosing, which focused more on the scientific research the author had done, and The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less, which was more about consumer choices.
The two other books I read were The Art of Choosing, which focused more on the scientific research the author had done, and The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less, which was more about consumer choices.
February 22, 2011
read. study. change.
I'd consider this a must-read for almost everyone. Great information presented in a straight-forward and thoughtful manner. Provides you with the tools required to become more aware of the role that decision making has in forming our lives, and how to take over control of the process.
I'd consider this a must-read for almost everyone. Great information presented in a straight-forward and thoughtful manner. Provides you with the tools required to become more aware of the role that decision making has in forming our lives, and how to take over control of the process.
April 16, 2011
Concise. Effective. Intuitive. Plainly written.
January 24, 2021
It's a shame that this book doesn't have more reviews. I'll divide my review into comments on the delivery of the content and the actual helpfulness of it:
Delivery of Content: 5/5, a Paragon of Self-Help Writing
-Incredibly Concise Writing: Most self-help books are abound with fluff. While this book is ~200 pages, the pages are smaller than an average book and there is very little that I felt could be removed without losing value. One of the least-fluff self-help books I've ever read.
-Helpful Handbook Format: The chapters are organized so that you can easily jump to the section of a chapter that pertains to your issue while also making it easy to reference this book in the future during decisions. For example, the chapter on decision blockers has 18 sections at an average of 3 pages each so you can easily jump to the blockers most applicable to you.
Helpfulness of Content: 4.5/5
-Addresses the Root Causes of Indecisiveness: I've read a decent amount about decision making written by people with backgrounds in the business world, and while they offer helpful tactics (decision matrices, incorporating data effectively, etc.), none of them touch upon the emotional issues that Rubin does. This is a shame since the emotional issues discussed (e.g. fear of failure, perfectionist standards, prioritizing something because of what others would think not what is truly right, etc.) are powerful yet often overlooked inhibitors of decision-making.
-Written by a Psychiatrist with Actual Experience: Having a psychiatrist who consistently deals with indecisive people is nice when you consider the numerous self-help books written by "gurus" or journalists who just read up on the topic.
-Helpful 8 Step Framework: His 8-step framework for decision-making helps give you more trust in your decisions; if you know that you followed the right process, then you don't need to worry about the outcome.
-Could be Somewhat More Practical For Solutions to Emotional Problems: While this book does an exceptional job at diving into the causes of indecisiveness and offering some solutions, it could delve deeper into the pragmatic aspects of implementing a solution. For example, he spends ~10 pages discussing how developing confidence in yourself is one solution that can significantly help decision-making, but the actionable advice for how to do that is sparse. Nonetheless, I understand that entire books are devoted to topics like that and the other insights from this book definitely still help overcome indecisiveness.
Overall a great book to help you address your indecisiveness in decision-making if you find it helpful to have accurate conceptual understanding of why you act the way you do during decisions. However, since all the causes discussed are rooted deeply in emotions, there is no quick fix to this issue. But by understanding where your indecisiveness comes from, making a conscious effort to address the root cause of your indecisiveness, and applying his 8-step decision making process, it will become easier to make decisions; I've been doing those three things as I read this book and it has definitely helped!
Delivery of Content: 5/5, a Paragon of Self-Help Writing
-Incredibly Concise Writing: Most self-help books are abound with fluff. While this book is ~200 pages, the pages are smaller than an average book and there is very little that I felt could be removed without losing value. One of the least-fluff self-help books I've ever read.
-Helpful Handbook Format: The chapters are organized so that you can easily jump to the section of a chapter that pertains to your issue while also making it easy to reference this book in the future during decisions. For example, the chapter on decision blockers has 18 sections at an average of 3 pages each so you can easily jump to the blockers most applicable to you.
Helpfulness of Content: 4.5/5
-Addresses the Root Causes of Indecisiveness: I've read a decent amount about decision making written by people with backgrounds in the business world, and while they offer helpful tactics (decision matrices, incorporating data effectively, etc.), none of them touch upon the emotional issues that Rubin does. This is a shame since the emotional issues discussed (e.g. fear of failure, perfectionist standards, prioritizing something because of what others would think not what is truly right, etc.) are powerful yet often overlooked inhibitors of decision-making.
-Written by a Psychiatrist with Actual Experience: Having a psychiatrist who consistently deals with indecisive people is nice when you consider the numerous self-help books written by "gurus" or journalists who just read up on the topic.
-Helpful 8 Step Framework: His 8-step framework for decision-making helps give you more trust in your decisions; if you know that you followed the right process, then you don't need to worry about the outcome.
-Could be Somewhat More Practical For Solutions to Emotional Problems: While this book does an exceptional job at diving into the causes of indecisiveness and offering some solutions, it could delve deeper into the pragmatic aspects of implementing a solution. For example, he spends ~10 pages discussing how developing confidence in yourself is one solution that can significantly help decision-making, but the actionable advice for how to do that is sparse. Nonetheless, I understand that entire books are devoted to topics like that and the other insights from this book definitely still help overcome indecisiveness.
Overall a great book to help you address your indecisiveness in decision-making if you find it helpful to have accurate conceptual understanding of why you act the way you do during decisions. However, since all the causes discussed are rooted deeply in emotions, there is no quick fix to this issue. But by understanding where your indecisiveness comes from, making a conscious effort to address the root cause of your indecisiveness, and applying his 8-step decision making process, it will become easier to make decisions; I've been doing those three things as I read this book and it has definitely helped!
February 21, 2017
It's just a sort of refresher as to what to do in order to be able to decide efficiently. Although it's taken me a while, I think I have an idea on how to properly decide given important choices in my life.
January 26, 2010
Illuminating!
October 30, 2022
I enjoyed this more than I expected. I think I would like psychoanalysts if I knew any. He doesn't try to do too much, or make any claims excessively extravagant. But there is quite a lot of good sense within, this despite the age of the book (1985 publication). A few aspects have dated slightly, but you can see he is writing from a place of minimal prejudice to begin with, so changes in attitudes are less marked.
Borrowed this as a library book.
Negative feedback at work recently suggested my decision making capabilities needed work. I wasn't aware of that, but some of the reflections in Rubin's Overcoming Indecisiveness do highlight areas within myself for which I could definitely improve the quality and commitment in decision making.
Not a magic bullet but helpful, and a fairly easy read.
Borrowed this as a library book.
Negative feedback at work recently suggested my decision making capabilities needed work. I wasn't aware of that, but some of the reflections in Rubin's Overcoming Indecisiveness do highlight areas within myself for which I could definitely improve the quality and commitment in decision making.
Not a magic bullet but helpful, and a fairly easy read.
October 8, 2023
I enjoyed most of the book. I liked how he explained about the blockages and considering your priorities when making a decision. This is something I plan to use in my personal life and teach my students in my professional world. Towards, the end of the book I just thought it was repetitive. I did enjoy the stories he gave in the book though.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews