Lessons for Life
4. Forget your gut; use your brain.
“Just a gut feeling” is often a justification for important decisions. The only thing your gut is telling you is that your past experiences are either affirming or rejecting the decision. You are either supportive of the direction or fearful of it based on nothing more than your past experiences. Winning is a habit; unfortunately, so is losing. There are countless bad decisions made by leaders who use the phrase “gut feeling.” Seek out facts and hard data.
Task: Each time you are faced with an issue, either a problem or an opportunity, and you find yourself “just” deciding, ask yourself: “What is the basis for my decision?” If you don’t have a concrete factual answer, ask the same question again. If the answer is, “It just feels right to me,” keep digging because it’s mostly likely similar to something you’ve experienced in the past. It’s not some mystery psychic influence. Decide what is most important for your decision— past outcome or new path. If you need a new path, you need facts. Seek them out.