The Power of Ridding Yourself of Indecision
At some point in every leader’s life, there is a moment where fear takes over their decision-making capabilities. Before you say, ‘No, that has never happened to me’, just think about it for a moment. What was a moment in your life where you chose not to do something out of fear? Or what was a time when you let someone else or chance decide for you? Have you flipped a coin to decide on which movie to go see? Or did you seek so much counsel before deciding to start your company that you found yourself in analysis paralysis?
There are so many suggestions about how to overcome indecision. You’ve probably tried one or two before. Flipping a coin, asking someone to pick for you, playing Eenie-Meenie-Miney-Mo, but all this does is train your mind that your power to decide is not as good as chance, luck, or other’s opinions. That’s false! Instead, you should be training your mind to trust in yourself.
Most leaders today share their failure stories to talk about what would have happened had they never tried. This is because they already made it to the other side. They have already figured out their own personal ways to compress that negative voice in their head. The interesting thing is that indecisiveness showcases itself in both small and large life decisions, but only the major life choices get all the credit. Yet, the real work starts with the smaller choices.
The hardest part as a leader is finding quiet time each day to listen to your inner voice, but this truly should become a daily practice. ‘Should I quit my job and manage my business full time?’ ‘Should I seek investing?’ These are big decisions with large risks and/or rewards. In making decisions like this, it is easy to identify your indecisiveness because the big decisions are the ones that take time, research, data, etc.
However, you must identify the indecisiveness in the smaller decisions to truly overcome that little negative voice in your head. Think of some of the smaller decisions or sacrifices you’ve had to make. ‘Do I eat another piece of cake or go for a healthier dessert?’ ‘Should I wear the blue or black shoes?’ These are choices we make every day, yet if you are not trusting yourself on these, it is only going to make it that much more difficult to make the bigger decisions.
You know what is best for you because you have done the research, you have invested the time in figuring out what works and what does not. Now, you just need to take control of your decision. So the next time you begin to feel indecisiveness creep up, instead of finding your lucky penny and calling heads or tails, follow these steps:
Pray first, then sit alone quietly afterward to see which choice your mind naturally leans to. Don’t silence it. Just let it show you the way.
Take exactly 60 seconds to identify the pros and cons of your decision, then choose.
Imagine you are investing $1.00 in the outcome. No more, no less. Does this change how you view the problem?
Talk it out with someone you trust and ask them not to share their opinion, only listen. The choice that you spend more time on is likely the one you want to go with, but you keep talking yourself out of it
Try Mel Robbins’ 5 Second Rule. 5-4-3-2-1…Act!