Leaders can have many different titles, but the way I see it, they are really the CDMs — Chief Decision Makers within their organizations. Unfortunately, not all leaders excel at making decisions just because they have been put in a position to do so. In fact, many leaders struggle with decisiveness.

I trust that leaders understand that the decisions they make might have substantial ripple effects, and that can make the process of making a decision quite taxing. Some leaders obsess over details and fret anxiously over every aspect of the choices they see before them. They fail to delegate or include others in the decision-making process, and they take too much time and energy to reach their conclusions. Other leaders reduce the heavy cognitive load of decision making by making quick, ill-informed and poorly researched decisions. Or they delegate too readily, leaving decisions to those who may not be capable of making them.

Being decisive is critical if you’re a leader and that means performing a balancing act of sorts. Decision making isn’t a purely rational undertaking, especially when you’re making the types of decisions leaders tend to make in today’s corporate world. You have to tap into your intuition, logic, and emotions and consider the wide-ranging impacts your choices will have. Decisiveness requires you to combine a number of traits into a mechanism that allows you to act with responsibility, confidence, and in a timely manner for the benefit of your people and your organization.

If you are a leader who struggles with decision making, it’s only a matter of time before you may suffer the associated burnout. Studies have shown that decision making depletes the brain’s resources considerably, and if you are making a number of high-impact decisions every day, the strain placed on your mind can negatively affect your ability to make sound choices.

Thankfully, decisiveness is something you can build and improve upon - so let’s take a look at what you can do.

Use Emotional Intelligence as Your Decision-Making Superpower

It’s no secret that I believe in the power of emotional intelligence when it comes to effective leadership. I believe that it’s the key to transcending mediocrity and reaching a level of greatness. But it’s also a formidable tool that leaders can use when making decisions.

Emotional intelligence is your ability to tap into your self-awareness as well as the moods of the people around you and the circumstances you find yourself in.

What is your mood? What emotions are you bringing into the situation? Are you affected by exhaustion? Are you allowing the bad news you just heard to influence the choice you’re making right now?

When you’re self-aware and emotionally intelligent, you hone your ability to make decisions because you’re not allowing unconscious biases or the effects of exhaustion to dictate your choices. Instead, you’re able to consider the decision-making process more cohesively, utilizing your emotions and reason in perfect balance.

If you’re interested in improving your emotional intelligence, or “EQ,” there’s no shortage of information available on the topic. I recommend looking into the brilliant writings of Daniel Goleman to start.

But if you want some tips to help you boost your EQ right now, here’s where I would begin:

• Meditation and mindfulness practice raises your self-awareness and can have a positive impact on your EQ.
• Listen to your body — all of our systems are connected, so when your body seems to be calling out for your attention, try to understand the impact that it’s having on your thoughts and emotions.
• Keep a journal documenting your thoughts and feelings. If it helps, you can even score your mood and emotions on a 10-point scale. Journalling allows you to track your ups and downs, allowing you to make better (and better-informed) decisions.
• Be present in the world around you. Pay attention not only to people’s actions and words but also to their moods. When you have a better sense of your environment and the people within it, you can boost your EQ and give your decision-making brain better data to work with.

Be Comfortable with Uncertainty

Uncertainty can be a highly unpleasant state, but high performing leaders know how to make the uncomfortable comfortable. When uncertainty is felt, it can lead to rash, uninformed decisions. Making a quick decision provides temporary relief and gives the impression of decisiveness, but it’s not always the best route to take.

I recommend spending time with your feelings of uncertainty. Ask yourself what’s causing the anxiety and why the choices before you leave you feeling unsatisfied. You’ll find that the uncertainty won’t hurt you, but it might help you dig a little deeper for a breakthrough solution or a more appropriate decision. And if the uncertainty persists, it could be a signal for you to table the decision for a later time, involve others to expand the thinking around the issue, or perhaps delegate it to someone with the required expertise to deliver the most beneficial outcome.

Whittle Your Choices Down

It’s good to have numerous options, but too many choices can lead to analysis paralysis and the feeling of being overwhelmed. Make a habit of using the process of elimination in your decision making. And don’t be afraid to ask others to help you limit your choices. A good rule of thumb is only to decide once you’ve winnowed your options down to five or less.

Trust Your Gut

When it comes to decision making, never underestimate your intuition . Your experience and wisdom are always working for you in the background, and when you have a choice to make, these qualities manifest as the intuitive feeling experienced in your “gut.” It may not seem rational, but if your intuition seems to have advice for you, you should probably take it seriously. More often than not, it will guide you toward the best decision. After all, research shows that our intuition acts as a secondary brain, or “gut brain”, and should not be ignored -- balanced with objective facts, it can yield the best outcomes.

Are You the Best “CDM” You Can Be?

As a leader, you are a Chief Decision Maker, and that’s a big responsibility. If you struggle with decisiveness, you will probably struggle with leadership. However, there’s a lot you can do to make the process easier and more beneficial to you, your people, and your organization.

What are some of the struggles you face with decisiveness? How have you handled them? Have you tried the advice I’ve presented here? What has worked for you (and what hasn’t)? I’m curious to hear what you think, and I’d love to have a conversation with you about decisiveness. Reach out to me at 855-871-3374 or email me at joanne.trotta@leadersedgeinc.ca and let’s talk!

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