Decision-making is increasingly distributed and more complex. In the economy of our century, we have to access information that is seldom sufficient, we have to translate it into knowledge to decide wisely, and all this before taking action, with the desire to improve productivity and competitiveness.
But to each decision, along with knowing, thinking and feeling, intuition can decisively contribute, which should already come out of the semi-clandestinity in which it was underlying.
We associate decisions with managers, but we have already witnessed the empowerment movement in previous decades, and more recently the profile of the new knowledge worker has been emphasized, highlighting both his desire to learn and innovate, as well as the assumption of responsibility and autonomy to make decisions.
Regarding the distribution of power in organizations, defects and excesses must be taken care of; but certainly the architecture of decision-making constitutes a solid indicator of collective intelligence, under the tendency that they are taken at the lowest possible level, without jeopardizing success.
In short, decision-making affects more people every day, and we must know how to combine reason with feelings, without excluding genuine intuition if it appears (and we must even favor its appearance).
Let us remember what empowerment supposes and demands for the individual, manager or worker, who assumes higher levels of power:
- responsibility for the results; freedom (formal authority) to decide; various resources for execution; necessary information; professional competence of the subject, and specific meta-competences.
It is necessary to explain the metacompetencies to which we refer specifically here: community spirit, perspective -to fit the parts into the whole and to notice the consequences, in the short and long term, of any change-, flexibility, commitment and everything that ensure that decisions are aligned with the overall or collective results of the company.
If an executive empowered a collaborator lacking a sensitive dose in any of these elements, we would be faced with an oversight of that one, or a trap for the manager or empowered worker. We speak, therefore, of decision-making in accordance with the responsibility, autonomy, resources, information and competence that the intelligent organization foresees for the person who occupies each job; of making decisions that correspond to each individual, and to which intuition or intuitive synthesis can contribute, along with rational analysis.
It should be added that empowerment dignifies the individual, who, with the assigned power, receives a kind of certificate of significance, of belonging to the organization, and of recognition of their competence: all this contributes to their professional satisfaction and self-esteem, and, as a consequence, it favors his relationship with himself and his intuition.
The intuition
Being multiple in its manifestations and in the reserves (among them the unconscious memory) on which it is nourished, intuition constitutes a valuable complement to reason, with which it is worth familiarizing to a greater extent. If we can accept that we do not make the best use of our conscious mind, we can also insist that the unconscious has a potential that we are ignoring or claiming. Inside of us there is much more than meets the eye, and it is surely worth looking out.
After resorting to dictionary and other definitions by prestigious experts, let us accept that intuition is plural, as Jagdish Parikh suggests: it manifests itself in different ways (words, ideas, images, sensations and even epiphanies); it is nourished by different reserves (conscience, experience, inherited, acquired unconscious, other minds…); it comes on suddenly but we could also talk about intuitive states; It is considered a faculty of the mind, but also a gift or a trait of character… In any case and if it is genuine, it comes to provide us with a knowledge, a sign, a valuable response, without knowing exactly where it comes from.
But why do we relate decision making to intuition? In reality, intuition helps us every day in communication, in solving problems, in innovation, in the detection of opportunities and, of course, in decision-making. It assists us even in the knowledge of ourselves, and also in learning.
Many of the technical and scientific advances have used intuition - sometimes by the hand of opportune dreams, or by chance events, or by a sense of direction that inexplicably appeals to us - and this has been recognized by the protagonists. But let's focus on decision making.
Intuition in decision making
There are certainly very different types of decisions, and we could even say that we spend our lives deciding; But we will also remember professional stages when we felt that all decisions were made by the boss.
When making a decision today - in the information age - we may have to consult a lot of data and make an extraordinary effort of analysis and synthesis. On many occasions, we make the decision without having consulted all the information, or trying too hard to analyze it, perhaps because we are being asked with some urgency. It seems that intuition - if it were presented - would fit here as a quick and possibly effective solution, but I am not going to defend intuition as a convenient or advantageous substitute for analysis and reason, but as a valuable complement to them.
Without questioning the need for quick judgments that, for example, correspond to the referees in sports competitions and that are also sometimes accurate in companies, what we suggest here for making important decisions is to carefully study the information corresponding to each case., and arrive at a conciliatory synthesis of reason and intuition.
In some cases, genuine intuition works to respond - immediately or after some time - to a major problem, dilemma, or concern that reason has previously delved into, and in other cases we may first experience the intuitive urge, then subject it to acquiescence of reason and even of the heart.
In general and in the company, we can say that decisions consist of a choice between several alternatives, that we make them to favor achievements and attend to unforeseen events, and that we do so thinking both in the short term and in the medium and long term. Let's simply distinguish between strategic, daily and reactive decisions, to show the constant presence of intuition.
Strategic decisions
If, as executives or executives, we were to look after the future of the organization, or of our department or division, we would need a lot of rational and emotional intelligence, and also a good dose of intuition: Bill Gates says it, remember, and many other entrepreneurs say it. from all sectors. It is true that a company is not always managed with the future in mind, because the intention of the owners could be to nurture its value and sell it; But let's think about the most common case of establishing a strategy for business prosperity. And remember that, in the company, we understand strategic decisions to be those that, as a strategist, an individual adopts, affecting the operation of the organization, from their particular vision and to consolidate future business.
It may be thought that some strategic decisions are made jointly by several people, although in practice there may be one person who imposes or transmits his vision to others.
Alternatives are studied, valued according to certain criteria and risks are identified; but in rational analysis - the one that would lead one alternative to victory over the others - there may be left out underlying elements that only intuition would make emerge. If the rational solution did not leave us feeling convinced, it could be because intuition was incubating or warning us. Perhaps we would have to consider some unidentified alternative, or perhaps some detail would have escaped us when evaluating the deployed ones. We should not urgently address strategic decisions, or close them by a set date (perhaps the one we plan to present the strategic plan to the President of the Company).The Zeigarnick effect - the mental folder to prepare the delivery of conclusions or decisions - could interrupt or fail ongoing incubations.
The fact, by the way, that we feel satisfied after adopting one of the alternatives does not necessarily mean that we have been right: we may have reached what was best for our own, parallel or spurious interests. Let us not confuse intuition with interests, deductions, occurrences, suspicions, fears, desires, prejudices, presumptions, obsessions, etc. Whether we are satisfied or dissatisfied or uneasy about what we feel after making a decision, we should contact ourselves to find out why. In strategic or far-reaching decisions, let us spend time on analysis and also give ourselves some time for incubated messages to emerge.
Day-to-day decisions
Every day you come to the office, the factory or the office and you have to start by establishing your work plan, if you haven't already set it; that is, deciding what to do at each moment. We may suddenly recall something (a call, a report, an administration) that perhaps had been the subject of prolonged procrastination and that we decided to tackle now: we soon realized that our initiative has been timely, and that it would have been a mistake to let more time pass.
If we are bosses, perhaps some collaborators await instructions from us and, already in conversation, it seems that mutual understanding fails us, as if we had pricked ourselves, as if someone had gotten off on the wrong foot today: we decided to change the conversation. A timely change of conversation can save us from a shipwreck, and does not imply a renunciation of our purpose.
We may have to decide, for example, with which supplier we will work on a certain project, and that forces us to study their offers; In the end, we will make a decision, if it behooves us, or we will elevate our opinion to the director, but what elements will have intervened in our judgment?
It may be objective factors such as price, deliveries or quality references, but we can also let ourselves be carried away by emotions (positive or negative), interests, prejudices, first impressions and even authentic intuitions, difficult to argue.
Indeed, to a greater or lesser extent, decision and posture are part of our daily life, and we resolve them on the go or take time. Faced with a particularly complex and important problem, perhaps we take time to study and analyze it, and give enough clues to the subconscious to generate a signal, a solution, a eureka. Even after the decision has been formally made, we can still have valuable insights from intuition. It is, let us remember, that the decisions that affect the day to day are consistent with the strategies, cultures and individual and collective objectives, although we do not always have sufficiently defined references in this sense.
If as knowledge workers our work is technical, with continuous use of technical knowledge and skills, we must make sure to identify in each case the knowledge required, to document ourselves properly, to distinguish reliable and useful information from vain or crooked, and to properly apply what has been learned; remember that we can enter states of intuitive fluidity, in which, hit after hit, everything seems to go well. We are, increasingly, ourselves who assign urgency and importance to each task, and we decided to direct our attention, while still managing interruptions and new elements to consider. If we are surrounded by collaborators, we must pay attention to their efficiency and professional satisfaction, and decide when it is necessary to intervene or how much freedom of maneuver we can leave:good chance for the intuition-empathy tandem. If we used only reason for this kind of decision, it would be - Peter Senge says - like walking with one leg.
Reactive decisions: problem solving
Let us now focus on technical or operational problems, and even interpersonal conflicts. The first thing we notice is the symptoms or consequences, and from there, going back, we ask questions that lead us to the origin: to the cause of the problem. Experts offer us theories and methods for everything, and also suggest different questions to identify problems: what happens, when, why… Let's say that a screw has broken and that simple incident generates, however, dramatic consequences in a electromechanical system, which therefore stops working and interrupts a process.
It seems likely that, no matter how inaccessible the screw is, we will end up finding it through sequential inferences or mere visual examination. Not having produced greater evils, we can finish the analysis there, and put a new screw.
We wouldn't care much about why it has broken, unless the question is why it breaks often; If so, we would say that the previous times we would not have solved a problem but a symptom. Perhaps it breaks because it is subject to irregular vibrations, transmitted by a subtle mechanical mismatch, a consequence of…
Let us remember that a system is a whole whose parts are interrelated through causal and consequential flows; Beyond complex equipment such as telephone exchanges, or other simpler ones such as our household appliances, the human being is a very complex system, and, of course, the company is.
When solving a problem, we initially intend to return to the previous stable situation, but we may have to create a new third situation that improves things, if the desirable systemic perspective alerts us to it. Well, to perceive the dependency flows of the parts of a whole, intuition connects with the accumulated conscious and unconscious experience on it, and would not connect if such experience were not available. In effect, not all of us can perceive with the same clarity the consequences, in the short and long term, that changes in some areas of the company can generate in others. But we do not only need experience: also intuition that makes the precise signals spring up at each moment; that favors the connection between the different levels of consciousness.
When it comes to interpersonal conflict, perhaps we have to be especially intuitive: people are the most valuable resource of organizations, but also the most complicated to manage. As bosses, we cannot consider a conflict between collaborators simply because those affected declare it out of date; But our intervention can be more harmful than beneficial. Ultimately, we often apply false solutions to everyday operational problems, and without realizing it, we sow to reap future problems. The rush to solve problems, or the effort to appear decisive, can be bad advisers when it comes to neutralizing the difficulties, of different nature, that arise. Intuition provides us with valuable clues, if we cultivate it and listen to it.
conclusion
Intuition is said to be the "crown jewel" of intelligence, which it valuablely complements. Obviously, everything that seems to shine through is not intuition, and self-knowledge helps us distinguish the authentic signs (which also carry a kind of stamp of authenticity). But, to favor intuitive help in decision-making:
- Review your beliefs and values related to your work. Concentrate on each activity living the "here and now." Practice reflective thinking in moments of calm. Entrust work to the subconscious and pay attention to the results. Try to better perceive your own and surrounding realities..Depth into problems until you understand them well. Ask yourself more, and take advantage of all your faculties. Observe the mechanisms of your intuition and become familiar with them. Fill yourself with legitimate purpose, and with determination to achieve it. Reconcile your intuitions with reason and cultivate both.
Everything seems obvious at first reading, but at a second we can give the signifiers more meaning. More things can be done, but these are within our grasp. I do not elaborate further, but I invite you to cultivate your intuition and share your experiences in this regard. I would say that human beings seem to waste many of their faculties, since the survival of the species is assured; but, just as space has been opened for emotions, it must also be opened for intuition in the company of the era of knowledge and innovation.
