Career Decision Test

If you're the kind of person who likes to make pro and con lists as a way of making decisions, you'll like using this decisional balance worksheet.

The decisional balance, originally conceptualized by Janis and Mann, is like a pro and con list, only much more thorough. It's helpful in providing career decision guidance, because it causes you to systematically consider all sides of a decision. When you work through a decisional balance, you'll think through the benefits and costs of pursuing a specific choice, and you'll also think through the benefits and costs of not pursuing specific choice.

The decisional balance is an effective career decision test that can help you to see the consequences of choosing an option, and also the consequences of not choosing that option.

It's very easy to use a decisional balance. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Create a grid like the one below.
   
2. Above the grid, write down the choice or decision you are trying to make.
   Example: Accept a new job offer.
   
3. In the box at the top left corner, write down all of the benefits of choosing the option you are considering.
   Example: Write down all of the ways you'd benefit from accepting the new job
   
4. In the top right corner, write down all of the costs, or negatives connected with choosing the option.
   Example: Write down all of the negatives associated with accepting the new job.
   
5. In the box at the bottom left, write down all of the benefits of not choosing the option in question
   Example: Write down all of the benefits of not accepting the new job.
   
6. In the box at the bottom right, write down all of the costs, or negatives connected with not choosing the option
   Example: Write down all of the negative connected with not accepting the new job.

A decisional balance chart can also be very helpful to keep you motivated through the challenges of accomplishing whatever goal or course of action you've chosen. If you're working towards accomplishing a challenging goal, keep your decisional balance chart on hand even after you've made the decision. When you feel tempted to abandon your choice, take a look at your decisional balance. It will remind of all of the benefits of continuing to pursue the option you chose and all of the costs of abandoning your choice.