Would you agree that your quality of life is based on your decision-making skills? Every choice, no matter how big or small, can change the direction of your life, family, and business.
For mompreneurs, you are constantly balancing family life and business demands. Your personal growth and the impact you have on your family and business are dependent on the choices you make! And if you are like any other amazing mompreneur I know, you care a lot about that impact—so much that you might even find that you often overthink most of your decisions.
Understanding How We Make Decisions
Every decision-making process is influenced by two main factors: logic and emotion.
Logic focuses on facts, figures, and a clear evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages. Logical choices help create stability because they do not depend on our moods or emotions.
Emotions, however, add passion and instinct to the mix. It drives you forward with enthusiasm and, sometimes, impulsiveness. (PS impulsiveness is not always negative)
Let’s Start with Emotional Decision-Making
For many, emotional instincts are what move us forward in making decisions. Our “gut” or ‘heart” acts as our emotional guide, telling us what seems right. However, just following these instincts can sometimes mislead us. Intuition is a good thing, but it needs the support of logical reasoning when we make business decision.
Why We Can’t Always Trust Our Hearts💕
I often hear women say they make decisions based on their hearts. While this is not always a bad thing, it might not always be the wisest choice because the heart, can be deceptive.
Unfortunately, emotions have the ability to cloud our judgment. If the emotion we feel when we make a choice is strong, we can impulsively make a choice that serves our emotions and not our best interest.
Consider how many choices you have made due to emotions. How often have you told someone ‘yes’ when you should have said “no”? All because the thought of saying ‘no’ stirred an emotion you wanted to avoid feeling?
How many times have you invested in your business in a way that did not yield a solid rate of return? This could be because of how you emotionally felt when you purchased the product or course.
Making decisions based on emotions without looking for logic can cost us time and money.
If we cannot control making sound choices, we will live a life based on wherever our moods and feelings take us.
Logic — The Wiser Business Decision-Making Option 🦉
Unlike emotions, which often change quickly, logic is always reliable. Making decisions logically doesn’t mean there’s no passion involved; it means the passion is guided by information. Logic is about examining the short-term and long-term effects of our decisions. On the other hand, emotions often look for short wins without considering the long-term impact.
Build Confidence in Your Choices and Gain Clarity
When we look at logic, we examine any available data that supports our choices. We also remove cognitive distortions from our thoughts that are not analytically backed.
Now, I know I am about to lose some of you; hang in there. The word data might sound scary! But when you see how it creates confidence and clarity, it will soon become your favorite word! When we choose to base decisions on what the numbers say, we start to implement strategies that target growth where it matters. We also create a way to measure progress on our goals.
A Data Example You Can Relate With
Let’s consider this: say you see a cute shirt 👚on sale. The salesperson rings you up, and your total does not reflect the sale price. You are confident that the shirt should not be ringing that price because you saw the DATA on the sign that said it was on sale. So because of this, you have confidence that the register is not ringing correctly. And because you have data to prove it, you can confidently speak to the cashier to get the correct price.
Now, let’s switch this up. Say you picked up a shirt that was not on sale. But you “felt” it should have been on sale because the material felt a bit cheap. If you attempt to convince the cashier that the shirt should be on sale because you feel it is not worth the price, they will more than likely look at you like you are crazy. Remember, just because you feel a certain way does not mean it is that way.
That might sound like a silly example, but so is making decisions in your business without logic.
Learn to use analytics in a way that serves you by finding as much data as you can to support your decisions.
So what do you do when you are considering something that does not have analytical support? You look for FACTS!
Navigating Cognitive Distortions to Find Clarity
Sometimes, we twist facts to fit our feelings. Whether we are too hard on ourselves or play the victim of our circumstances, our feelings can often distort the truth. This is why it is important to be family with Cognitive distortions and how they can hold you back from truth-filled thinking.
For mompreneurs, it’s important to spot and eliminate these false thoughts so you can make wise decisions. When we focus on facts instead of opinions or distorted truth, we find clarity. And when we have clarity, we can stop the vicious cycle of overthinking!
How to Use Emotions and Logic In Decision-Making
The most successful mompreneurs use both Logic and Emotions to make great decisions that last. Emotions bring passion, and logic keeps things on track, keeping their business going strong and in the right direction.
TAKE ACTION:
- When making a decision, ask yourself if you are using emotion, logic, or a healthy balance of both. Any decision you make should be balanced. Did you know…You can logically justify something, but that does not mean it might be the right choice for you emotionally.
For example, say you have a job offer to work with a client that will pay you $$$. Logically, everything checks out. BUT emotionally, you know that client will stress you out. You have to consider the emotional impact of this logical decision to decide if moving forward is worth it.
- If this is a big decision, do not make it without putting pen to paper to look into short and long-term impact.
Often times it is this step that allows for a mompreneur to get unstuck and confidently move forward. This is because once it is written out, with all the truth, we can give ourselves permission to move forward, knowing it is the best decision.
- Do not make choices based on how others will feel. If the decision is logical and emotionally best for you, do not allow the impact on others to hinder it.
Please know that this does not give you free rein to ignore the best interests of others, but it does give you permission to value what is best for you. It is hard when our choices disappoint others. But meeting everyone’s expectations of who they think “you should be” is not your job.
- Do not waste time deciding once you have as much data and facts as you can collect.
Overthinking does not help, it only causes stress.
Write out the facts.
List your emotions.
Pray on it.
Then, move forward with a decision. (🫣overthinking is a choice, so choose not to do it).
I hope this post has been helpful! Would you love easy worksheets to help you make wise business choices? If so, grab my free decision-making guide here!
