Reading the back of the various pizza boxes, shaking them, checking the small print and examining the packaging of the general pizza selection. Brings a new meaning to "supermarket wars" if you're a less fussy mortal trying to grab the last Hawaiian thin-crust pizza on special offer.

My natural urge was to mutter references to anal retention and run, but I resisted that and silently studied this hapless gent who couldn't decode the pizza meaning.

The aim of this example is not to highlight male dithering, because females do it too.

The point is to demonstrate how much effort some of us expend on even the simplest decisions . . . and to ask, is it worth it?

No, I answer swiftly, displaying my quick decisionmaking skills. It's not . . . Or is it?

Not if you practice efficiency in thinking, problemsolving and decoding, according to the experts, who agree of late that there's a lot of time wasted deliberating and considering every which way when, at some point, there's a leap of faith required in most decisions and it's just a matter of acting.

It really shouldn't take longer than it takes for that whiff of roast beef to make you decide you're hungry.

Yet, dithering, or lacking decision-making skills, is one of the most prevalent and destructive ailments in modern business. It separates successful leaders from runof-the-mill managers and drives many a snappy doer to the brink of sanity.

Perhaps it becomes an issue because we believe, falsely, that we didn't get where we are today making 'hasty' decisions. Didn't we?

Our over-reliance on the value of slow and weighty consideration may just reflect cultural illusions about the relationship between time and efficient thought.

The diminishing marginal returns of thinking surely means that, after the first little burst, the rest of the time spent weighing up different considerations is just moping about and does more to cloud the clarity of the first few thoughts than to add value to the process?

In today's turbulent world, risk is fluid. If you're a high flier, a big mistake could cost you millions and have a devastating impact on your career . . . but that means you need to think smarter, not longer.

At an upcoming virtual seminar hosted by Ian Bremmer of Harvard Business School, one of the world's foremost political risk experts and author of Intellectual Capital will present, with Tom Stewart, editor of Harvard Business Review, on what you need to know to make savvier decisions: to seize valuable opportunities around the globe while avoiding danger zones.

The seminar will concentrate on two main aspects that are crucial to all decisions: seeking out what economics can't tell you, and identifying what factors matter most in any 'problem domain'.

Surprises are predictable, the logic goes.

For the pizza man, it might mean realising immediately that his only options are ham or cheese, since his ulcer means he can't eat pineapple.

But Mary, the wife, doesn't eat meat, so it's the plain old Margherita for him. Decision made and move on, man!

Although analysis and forethought are required, making good decisions means ranking risk accurately.

If there are crucial aspects to the problem, then don't save them to consider last in the thinking process: they offer a short cut and, remember, instincts are often better educated than we give them credit for.

Malcolm Gladwell, author of Blink, last year's treatise on the power of thinking without thinking, says decisionmaking fundamentals are one thing but making the right decision is quite another.

It's the split second bit that is attractive, he says, and initial toying with the problem often brings forth the ripest ideas and most innovative solutions. Time, sometimes, takes away.

So, all this decision-bycommittee and engaging in long-winded, strategic consultation may well be counterproductive? Don't you just love having your prejudices confirmed by science.

These quick responses . . .

or what Gladwell calls 'thinsliced' decisions . . . are often so speedy we cannot trace or explain their rationale. Yet they are smart, because we bypass consideration of all those extraneous factors, all that useless information that many of us take on board when trying to get the best possible outcome.

All those pizzas, just one tummy. That's why decision by committee can be so bad.

Everyone brings their rubbish to the table, if often unknowingly. Yet good decision-making is as much about what you leave out

10 TIPS ON MAKING A DECISION

1. Just because we recall something easily doesn't mean it happens more frequently or should carry more weight.

2. Just because it gets media attention doesn't mean it happens more, or that is 'bigger' . . . or even more 'real' . . . as an issue.

3.Identify and discard information that's not relevant to the issue. Overloading is a trap we jump into.

4.Keep your goals in mind, not those of other people.

5.Do something physical, it can unblock the mind.

6.Avoid 'group think'. We are all in"uenced by others' views, especially if three or four people say the same thing, but you should question the 'group think' tendency in yourself.

7. If taking too long to reach a decision, start again and pare down the variables. The core issue is usually not that complex.

8.Make ambiguous cues clear; don't think from a position of fuzziness.

9.Have con"dence . . . your judgement needs your support.

10. Have courage - you might just have to innovate.