Intuition in Business

We really need to trust our intuition more.

I was talking to someone a few weeks ago, and explained that I thought our decision-making process should be based on three inner criteria: intellect, intuition and emotion.

Here’s a scenario:

I’m in a grocery store and I see a chocolate bar. My intellectual process goes something like this, “I’m on Weight Watchers. It’s my intention to lose weight. If I eat the chocolate bar, I won’t be true to myself and my intentions, and I won’t lose weight.” It’s all about reason and good judgment.

My emotional talk goes something like this, “Waaa! I want a chocolate bar! I want a chocolate bar! No one can tell me what to do! (Not even me.)” It’s all about how my emotions impact my decision and what will help fulfill my emotional needs.

So now I have one vote “for” and one vote “against.”

I stop and ask my inner self, my soul, my gut instinct:  “Is this the right thing to do at this exact moment in time?”

It replies, “It doesn’t feel right to have this now.” It’s all about what feels right on a deeper, gut-instinct level, and in the grand scheme of my life lessons.

Final vote: two against, one for…so I don’t buy the candy bar (and find some other way to placate my whining Inner Child).

This is, of course, just an example of how the three-part decision making process happens in my world. I apply this same thing to all of my business decisions:

• Should I create this particular class?
• Should I partner with this particular person?
• Should I take on this new client?
• Should I invest in a new printer?
• When is the right time to take a vacation away from the office?

Notice the question I put to my intuition: Is this the right thing to do at this exact moment in time? I’m asking a question that can have only have a yes or no answer, and I’m asking it in the present tense (Is this right for me right now?). It’s the best way I know to frame questions so that you can get an intuitive, gut response to something.

It’s the only balanced internal voting system I know.