TOEFL® essay sample: Some people make decisions quickly...

[Preetigm]

TOEFL essay sample

Some people make decisions quickly. Others arrive at decisions only after a long careful thought. Which type of decision do u most often make? Use specific details and examples to support your answer.

Its the natural tendency of many people to take quick decisions rather than taking a decision after a long careful thought. I would however prefer a well thought, calculated decision. The advantages of the latter over the former are illustrated below .
A decision, is when you decide to take a stand, or you decide a path you want to walk on. Hence, you must have complete confidence in your decision and you must ensure yourselves that you will never regret it. For example, I had to once take a very crucial decision regarding my career after completing my 10th examination. There were many choices in front of me. But I had to put in a careful thought on my choice. The choice I make changes my career. It should be aimed towards my goals. Had I made any hasty decisions, I would lead myself to a very unhappy life where my dreams would remain unfulfilled .A well thought, careful decision helps me decide my goals and strategies I need to apply to fulfill my goal.

However, sometimes, in the path of life, there were points where I had to take a quick decision. For example, once a friend was admitted to the hospital. She needed an immediate surgery. I was at a place where I had to sign a document allowing the hospital staff to proceed right away with the surgery. Not having anyone beside me, I had to take a decision immediately . I decided to allow the doctors to go ahead with the surgery. And this quick decision, yet well aware of the risk involved helped me. To decide quickly, one must place high confidence on oneself and be ready to face the pros n the cons of the decision taken. However, except for unavoidable circumstances, a hasty decision must be generally avoided.

In accordance with the above, it may be concluded that I would prefer to make a long, careful thought decision so I can ensure myself the confidence and thereby motivate myself .

TOEFL listening discussions: What position does Cindy play?

[Alan]

Hi preetigm,

I have made some suggestions in CAPITAL letters:

[Misshailu]

Hi Alan, please read my essay and comment on it.Thanks.

"Some people make decisions quickly....."

As the saying goes, "Rome was not built in one day", I believe in making decisions after a careful thought of the matter for various reasons. In this essay, I will be discussing only three of them.

First, taking enough time before making any decision leaves no room for regrets. This is true because, the decision is made after the evaluation of the pros and cons of the possible alternatives put forth to solve a particular problem. For instance, when I completed high school, I had to make a choice between going to a University in South Africa or Kenya. I had to sit down and list all the advantages and disadvantages of both options. Since the benefits of going to Kenya outweighed those of South Africa, I decided to go to Kenya. Today I more than happy that I made that decision because I made many friends from other East African countries who came to study in the same school and I even had the chance to visit some of the neighbouring countries such as Uganda, Rwanda and Southern Sudan.

Secondly, although it is costly interms of time, it is cost effective in monetary terms. For example, unlike people who purchase goods based on impuls, those who take the time to make a list of items they need to buy at a particular time have a greater advantage to save more.

Thirdly, giving an idea some thought before making a decision allows one to be organised. When we think of making a decision, we normally try to envision the consequences and prepare ourselves to face them. For example, when I decided to study in Europe, the first action I took was to visit the websites of many Universties to find out the deadlines for applicaton and admission requirements. This gave me the opportunity to create a time table as to when to distribute the applications forms.

In conclusion, for the reasons above and many other more, I think a careful thought is worth the decision made.