Written by: Sara Hegy, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Dear overworked ambitious leader who is hungry for development, in this enthralling journey through the corridors of your own mind, we continue our exploration of the astounding science behind decision-making. Our aim? To empower you, the driven and ambitious leader, with the knowledge that unveils the immense potential residing within your brain.
The image symbolizes how the right decisions open unparalleled avenues of growth and opportunity.
What makes this series unique is how we examine leadership. As we've been uncovering in this series, leadership isn't just about job titles and managerial roles. It's about how you navigate your life daily, how you mold each thought, action, and emotion into a strategic masterpiece that shapes your world.
You see, leadership isn't as we have been taught, confined to the boardroom or the forefront of a team; it's the continuous process that unfolds in every decision you take, from the moment you rise to greet the day until you lay down to rest, including all the moments that you interact with others around you and with your environment.
Previously, In part 1, we talked about the simplest process of the brain: sensing information > processing > output. In part 2, we examined our brain’s elements that help us sense information, then in parts 3 and 4 we discovered the main players in the decision-making. We gave 2 practical situations in an individual and collective context regarding how the brain incorporates beliefs in the decision-making process, we shed light on the trio of mental frames in our brain and we learned about the brain’s strategy of prioritization. In part 5, we opened our minds to engage with a new hypothesis that bad decisions only come from bad perceptions, not an error in our mental processing. We also delved into the world of drama and how critical it is for us to foster powerful dramas to live in. In part 6, we revealed the critical role of listening and speaking to shape our decisions, actions, and the effectiveness of our leadership. In part 7, we discovered the decision-making process and the role of intention to direct our decisions in flow one decision at a time.
Today, we will set forth the clarity and the impact of the process above in the various aspects of our existence.
Let’s coin again the term leadership as the process through which the person directs their thoughts, words, and actions towards a desired outcome. And let’s just assume that every process is the same process like driving a car and whenever we fail in the process, it’s like we are crashing with the car. So, similarly, if we led ourselves into a relationship and the outcome was undesirable then the car crashed. If we founded a company and we failed to expand it, then the car crashed. That means that if we learn why cars crash, similarly our brains fail to create desired outcomes then, we practice exercising our brain to make better decisions to lead us to better destinations.
1. Vision decision
Possible brain error in setting the vision decision
Lack of immediate or long-term clarity: Without a clear understanding of what you want to achieve, you struggle to set intentions and focus your energy. This lack of clarity often stems from not knowing one's values, goals, or priorities or from knowing with certainty that the vision is too big and it’s without proper supportive systems as we will address later.
Previous failure or fear of failure: Without dealing with the past struggles and attempts of previous failure experiences that the brain got stuck in, the brain will be so fixated on what happened in the past that it will fog your vision to look out into the future.
2. Motivation/activation decision
Motivation is the driving force that prompts us to take action. Intrinsic motivation comes from within us. It's driven by personal interest or enjoyment in the task itself, without needing external rewards or pressures. It’s going after what we experience joyful and fulfilling. Extrinsic motivation involves performing an action or behavior to earn a reward or avoid punishment.
This type of motivation comes from outside the individual such as working a job to earn money or studying hard for an exam to avoid a poor grade.
Possible brain-mind error in taking the activation/motivation decision
Lack of alignment with personal interests and values. When a person feels that an activity is meaningful, they are more likely to be motivated to engage in it and it comes naturally to them.
Lack of rewards and incentives. When the brain doesn’t see immediate tangible or intangible rewards like money or recognition respectively, it lags in making the decision.
Lack of social influences and playing single-player games. When you’re not surrounded by people where you are and share your visions or people where you want to be, the brain misses out on the boosts of motivation that you experience via socially engaging with a team.
Compromised physical and emotional well-being. When we are in a stressed physical or emotional state, our motivation levels drop.
Lack of belief in one’s self. If we know ourselves as people who are unable to complete tasks and achieve big goals, we are less likely to be motivated to take on challenges.
3. Setting a general process intention decision
So, after having the driving force, one needs the space and the focus energy to start the experience and that’s what we do when we mentally determine and commit to act in a certain way.
Possible brain error in setting the intention decision
Not being able to identify the aligned thoughts or actions with the intention. How many times have you thought about a big goal and said YES, I can, then the voice in your head said, who are you kidding? No, you can’t and you know it. If your undesired thoughts are louder than your desired ones, then your outcomes will not be aligned with your desired thoughts. Think of it like flying the dart away from the target. That’s the same experience of being misaligned with your desired intention.
Not being present. When our brain is too busy and our feelings are misaligned, we run out of intentionality. Keeping our minds clear by practicing journaling and other mental wellness exercises contributes to inducing a highly intentional state of mind.
Lack of authenticity in one’s own thoughts, communication, and actions. We touched upon this factor in our chapter on ineffective listening and speaking. Many factors contribute to our lack of authenticity including:
a. Fear of judgment or rejection and societal pressures: Many of us fear being judged or rejected if we show our true selves. we might believe that our genuine thoughts, feelings, or preferences are not acceptable to others, leading us to present a more common or favorable facade to others.
b. Desire to belong: Our need for social acceptance and belonging might drive us to inauthentically act to fit in with a group, conform to social norms, or be liked and accepted by others.
c. Low self-esteem: When we tend to have low self-esteem, we may doubt the value of our own opinions and feelings. We might adopt inauthentic behavior, thinking it will make us more likable or worthy in the eyes of others.
d. Fear of conflict: Being authentic sometimes means standing up for one's beliefs and opinions, which can lead to disagreement or conflict. To avoid such situations, we might choose to hide our true thoughts and agree with others, even when we don't genuinely concur.
e. Lack of self-awareness: Sometimes, we are inauthentic simply because we lack self-awareness. As a result, we may not have a clear understanding of our own values, beliefs, and feelings.
f. Manipulation or control: In some cases, we might be inauthentic as a means of manipulating or controlling situations or relationships to our advantage or masking our true selves as a protective mechanism from past trauma or negative experiences.
g. Professional or role expectations: In certain professional or social roles, there might be explicit or implicit expectations about how to act or communicate. This can lead to us suppressing our true selves in favor of a role-conforming persona.
4. Goal setting decision
Once we align the intentionality of the mind and the feelings, we start breaking the vision into goals.
Possible brain error in setting the goal decision
Vague goals: Avoid goals that are too general. Specificity and clarity are key.
Unrealistic ambitions: Set challenging yet achievable goals; overly ambitious goals can lead to frustration.
No timeline: Goals need deadlines to prevent procrastination and to encourage timely action.
Ignoring resources and constraints: Considering our available resources and limitations ensures practicality.
Overlooking smaller steps: Breaking down large goals into manageable, actionable steps.
Misalignment with personal values: Goals should resonate with our intrinsic motivations and values
Too many goals: Focusing on too many goals at once can dilute our efforts. Prioritizing a few key objectives ensures better outcomes.
Inflexibility: Regularly review and adjust goals as needed. Circumstances change, and so should our goals.
Lack of accountability: Sharing our goals with others or setting up a system of self-accountability allows for better commitment.
Forgetting small wins: Celebrating small achievements to maintain motivation and momentum.
Attachment to the goal: Becoming too attached to a specific outcome can lead to disappointment and stress, especially if circumstances change. It's important to balance commitment to our goals with the flexibility to adapt as needed.
The image represents the decision-making wheel that was coined in Chapter 7.
5. Creating an enabling environment decision
Just like a seed doesn’t grow into a seedling without an environment, a goal doesn’t grow into execution without an environment.
Possible brain error in creating the enabling environment decision
Habitual behavior: We are creatures of habit, and breaking out of established patterns requires significant effort. Unconscious or automatic behaviors can dominate, leaving little room for us to take on new habits and foster new environments.
Fear of change: When we get scared of trying something new because of the lack of certainty of the outcome or the complexity of the proposed system, we hesitate or procrastinate on trying new enabling approaches.
Lack of support and resources: Sometimes, the absence of a supportive environment or necessary resources can impede the ability to create an enabling system or execute it.
6. Call to action or execution decision
With the energy, the thoughts, the goals, and the enabling environment in place, it’s most natural to hit the go button. But why don’t we?
Possible brain error in the call to action decision
Overwhelm and distraction: In today's fast-paced world, constant distractions and a sense of being overwhelmed can disrupt focus. The barrage of information, social media, and daily demands can delay our pushing the go button.
Procrastination and seeking perfection: Especially as high-performers, we tend to delay or avoid making the execution decisions on what we know we aren’t good at or we fear/judge or assume that we will not get results.
Lack of self-discipline: Resisting short-term temptations and staying focused on long-term goals is what prevents us from being sidetracked in the pursuit of our visions.
Poor time management: Without effective time management, it's challenging to execute systems or adapt changes in the environment needed for the proactive pursuit of our goals.
Emotional barriers: Emotional issues such as anxiety, stress, or low self-esteem can cloud judgment and hinder the ability to set and follow through with execution.
7-10. Focus, prioritization, problem-solving, and specific-process intention decisions (collectively called process decisions)
After execution starts, the ability to focus, solve challenges along the way, set intentions for micro-tasks, and prioritize the task at hand is what keeps us in the game. When we fail to build enough momentum, we take off the plug on our commitments too soon.
Possible brain error in the process decisions
Lack of focus.
Lack of Progress or Tangible Results: As we set the system, we often miss the importance of setting tangible measurable performance indicators that help us keep an eye on the progress and follow through.
Lack of key performance indicators: It is important to note that many times we choose the right course of action but we set too ambitious goals that we don’t meet in our ambitious time frame.
Lack of problem-solving: When we approach situations subjectively and with reactive decision-making, we tend to personalize the challenges and doubt our abilities to solve them which hinders our ability to innovate. Leaders fluent in forward-proactive thinking are unparalleled problem solvers. They approach situations objectively, consider various perspectives, and craft innovative solutions
Lack of emotional regulation: When we fail to navigate stressful situations with grace, we develop chronic stress situations, we again personalize failures and disappointments and we foster a disempowering atmosphere.
Lack of adaptability: As circumstances change and we fail to hold our priorities at the forefront, we miss out on growth opportunities.
Lack of creativity: If we see signs of events or patterns of people too soon that are indicative of a judgment that we made in the past or an assumption that we set out in the future. We tend to self-sabotage, slow down our progress, or give up entirely.
Predetermined destiny of failure: Sometimes we have grandiose bold visions of what we would like to create for ourselves in the future, but where we come from is not in agreement with that bright future or people around us are not supportive of our visions or there’s a consensus that we cannot reach that destination, so we tend to give up even after implementing the processes and committing ourselves to action. We tend to believe that the future is written and we’re destined to fail.
11 and 12. Progress decision and goal fulfillment decision
Possible brain error in the progress and goal fulfillment decisions
Lack of Seeing the Finish Line: In life, there are goals that we set and we lay foundations and systems to achieve those goals but, sometimes it takes a lot longer than we anticipate and we find ourselves struggling to reach the destination or we lose sight of what matters to us on the way. I don’t know if you came across this story in James Clear’s book Atomic Habits about the stonecutter who repeatedly hits a rock, perhaps a hundred times, without seeing a crack. However, on the 101st strike, the rock splits. Is it the 101st strike that did it? No, it’s all the strikes that had accumulated before. This metaphor highlights the importance of small, consistent efforts that, over time, lead to significant outcomes.
Failure to adapt to change: how we start something is never how we finish it, our physiology changes by the second, our thoughts change by the second, our circumstances change by time and we freeze in response to that change or we deny it, we tend to react in rigid ways that have us lose sight of what matters to us.
Key learnings and takeaways
Vision clarity: Encourage exercises in vision boarding or journaling to gain clarity on personal and professional goals.
Intrinsic motivation: Explore activities that align with your inner passions and values to foster self-driven motivation.
Authenticity in action: Promote self-awareness practices, like mindfulness, journaling, and self-development training to enhance authenticity in decision-making.
Prioritize: Work in terms of priorities. Tackle the most prior goals and focus your energy to complete one priority at a time/
Creating an enabling environment: Build supportive habits, accountabilities, thoughts, and networks of people to help you accelerate your progress.
Adaptability and continuous learning: Being open to change and engaging in lifelong learning to master the processes of active decision-making and leadership to innovate in your personal and professional life.
Look in performance: You hold unexplored realms of freedom within your mind so make sure you’re wisely dissecting what works from what doesn’t and engage in a judgment-free assumption-free environment of your own capabilities and the capabilities of people around you, you’ll definitely be positively surprised.
By now, I have shared with you many of the causes that lead to undesired decisions and outcomes so that you become aware of what does not work and why. I hope you find these insights revolutionary to your own journey of development and mastering active decision-making and execution of enabling systems and environmental changes that work for your visions.
So, next time you’re dealing with a challenge, shed light on it through the wheel of decision-making, examine which decision you’re being challenged by, and be open to evolving your vision as you receive new information and face new challenges. Flexibility and openness are hallmarks of wise leadership. And I'm certain you’ll be inspired by the creative solutions to your challenges that will appear amidst your personal reflections and the process of receiving constructive feedback.
If you’re eager to transform your leadership style, foster personal growth, and craft a brighter future—one proactive decision at a time, one great proactive decision will be to try out our services to accelerate your path to success, book your coaching call with us today here and if you're interested to join our growing facebook community for leadership development, join here.
Until next time, embrace your journey with kindness and curiosity. With warmth and wisdom,
Sara Hegy, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Sara Hegy is an award-winning scientist and a leadership coach who is dedicated to helping other leaders achieve their full potential while being fulfilled. She grew up in an environment where producing results is a measure of self-worth. Hence, she always struggled to apply self-development teachings until coaching helped her gain clarity on her struggles and gave her tools to overcome them. Through harnessing the power of her mind and taking effective action, she graduated with honors, won a scientific prize, and her findings raised a$2.7 million research grant. She's the founder of her coaching business that globally serves. Her mission: Passionate leaders who create massively and live a life that they love.
