This idea of the 90 percent rule can be used as a great filter for an important decision you might have.
Simply list out all of your possible options, score them 0-100, and only concentrate on what scores above 90.
- What university should I attend?
- What vocation should I pursue?
- Do I want to go to that party, or what else?
- What should I do with the kids this Saturday?
You get the idea.
The point is to filter out the noise.
“You can think of this as the 90 Percent Rule, and it’s one you can apply to just about every decision or dilemma. As you evaluate an option, think about the single most important criterion for that decision, and then simply give the option a score between 0 and 100. If you rate it any lower than 90 percent, then automatically change the rating to 0 and simply reject it. This way you avoid getting caught up in indecision, or worse, getting stuck with the 60s or 70s. Think about how you’d feel if you scored a 65 on some test. Why would you deliberately choose to feel that way about an important choice in your life?”
–Greg McKeown, Essentialism