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Intuitive decision-making: what you need to know

I’m sure you would like to use more intuitive decision-making, learning to rely on your subconscious for wiser decisions. It’s more than just a gut instinct or quick reflexes. There’s an element of mastery when subconsciously noticing all the patterns and data without rationally analysing every detail.

Let me share with you an example I read about a few years ago:

In the Monaco Grand Prix, back in the 1950s, the race winner (Juan Manuel Fangio) braked as he came out of the tunnel on his second lap, which allowed him to avoid a mass pile-up. Other drivers accelerated rather than braked.
Why did he choose to brake instead?
Unbeknownst to him, his peripheral vision noticed that all the spectators were looking away from him rather than towards him. And while he didn’t make a conscious decision to brake, his body automatically knew that something was off.
Years of experience kicked in as the sea of faces was turned away and looking towards the accident rather than at the drivers exiting the tunnel.

This is intuitive decision-making: the ability to notice a subtle change in patterns (like the crowd looking another way) that guides you to a wise decision. Continue reading Intuitive decision-making: what you need to know

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How stress, fear and anxiety rob us of the ability to make good decisions

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While the news media is only partly to blame, making a killing of FUDGE (fear, uncertainty, doubt, greed, and envy), they are not the sole culprits. We live in a world where fear, stress, and anxiety are normalised. Each one of us chooses, on some level, to play this game. Or at least, we pretend that we have no other choices.

But, how do we make good decisions from a state of fear, stress and anxiety? In many ways, we’re hampered by tunnel vision, unable to see options broader than the scope of escaping the immediate threats that we perceive. We move towards safety rather than seeing the broader opportunities available to us. Continue reading How stress, fear and anxiety rob us of the ability to make good decisions