We make hundreds, if not millions, of micro-decisions every day— from what to focus our energy on, to how to respond to an email, to what to eat for lunch. The way we process these decisions could be the difference in how productive you are throughout the day. Promotional Consultant Today passes along these tips on the art of decision-making to help you fine-tune these skills.

1. Be a "satisficer." Coined by the economist Herbert Simon in 1956, "satisficing" is an approach to decision-making that prioritizes an adequate solution over an optimal solution. While satisficers can have high standards (they don't necessarily settle for "seconds"), as soon as they discover an item they want that fits all of their criteria, then they quit searching. They don't need to look at every option before making a choice. This saves time and money. Gathering information can come at a cost because too many decisions can be overwhelming.

2. Less can be more. Psychologist Gerd Gigerenzer, whose work was cited in the Malcolm Gladwell bestseller Blink, argues that we're designed to make smart snap decisions based on limited information. In fact, his research shows that we do it all the time. A Newsweek article neatly sums up his findings on the "Take the Best" strategy that most people use to make decisions: "Take the Best" means that you reason and calculate only as much as you absolutely have to; then you stop and do something else. So, for example, if there are 10 pieces of information that you might consider in a thorough decision, but one piece of information is clearly more important than the others, then that one piece of information is often enough to make a choice. It really comes down to "trust your gut."

3. The three kinds of intuition. How do you learn to trust your gut? Columbia Business School professor William Duggan believes there are three different types of intuition:

Ordinary intuition is just a feeling, a gut instinct. Expert intuition is a snap judgment, when you instantly recognize something familiar. The third kind is strategic intuition-a clear thought-that flash of insight you had last night that might solve a problem that's been on your mind for a month.

We should trust our expert intuition (based on experience) when making choices about familiar problems. But when we need a breakthrough solution, we shouldn't be too quick to jump to conclusions—instead open your mind to other solutions.

Some decisions, like how to handle a dicey client situation, are worth mulling over. Others, like deciding what brand of dental floss you buy, are not. Understand the relevance of the decision you must make. Is this decision is really that meaningful? If not, stop obsessing over it, and just make a call.

Source: A writer and the founding editor of 99U, Jocelyn K. Glei is obsessed with understanding how work gives our lives meaning. She has authored three books about work, creativity and business, including the Amazon bestsellers Manage Your Day-to-Day and Make Your Mark.