Leadership Matters: For intuitive decision-makers

In a recent article for Fast Company, Liz Funk writes about the secret weapon we all have in making big decisions—gut instinct.

Funk recommends a few practices for harnessing the power of intuition at work, including building a routine around reflection time and setting a window in which to make the decision.

These are good guidelines. But do they hold up for major decisions, the kind CEOs and executive leaders are often called to make—risky, sometimes irreversible decisions like merging with another credit union, expanding into a new market, or throwing major resources into a mobile strategy?

If you’re making a call that will affect the viability of your credit union—and perhaps the livelihoods of dozens or hundreds of people—is “going with your gut” a defensible strategy?

When you talk to CEOs about making these kinds of decisions, they will indeed often refer to relying on a special feeling that something was the right course. When I face these big decisions myself, I do listen to my instincts, but I also rely on two resources to test them before moving forward.

continue reading »