Finding Mr. Spock — Unemotional Decision Making For Your Enterprise

Facts Don’t Matter
It’s a fact, people make almost every decision based on emotion, then back it up with facts.  They won’t tell you they do this, but they do.  

The facts don’t even have to be accurate.  Because facts don’t matter in an emotional decision and most decisions are made by emotion.  

Vehicles, political candidates, organic food, clothing, even investments — all emotional choices for most people.  

Enterprise Calling Spock
You make decisions every day.  Some of them are one dollar decisions, others might be million dollar decisions.  You can get emotional over choices that cost you a buck.  But you never do.  It’s the big money decisions where emotion wreaks havoc.  Don’t let it.  Here’s how.  

When you’re faced with a big decision, put all the data on the table.    

Now remove emotion from the room.  This is easier said than done when there’s a lot on the line.  I know, I’ve been there!  Purchasing farms, revamping my product offering, huge investments on business expansion — all stressful decisions.  It’s easy for an outsider to tell you not to worry.  But you’re the one losing sleep, with indigestion, who feels like your hair is falling out.  

This is when you gotta find your Mr. Spock.  Yes, I’m a Star Trek dork.  Not the movies, the old TV shows.  Spock is a Vulcan.  He doesn’t possess feelings, only logic.  Pull yourself back from every decision and ask, “What would the smartest person on the USS Enterprise do, minus the emotion?”  

In other words, imagine you are a completely unrelated entity viewing this decision through a non emotional lens.  Then what would you do?  

It’s YOUR Enterprise
“But Damian,” you shriek, “people’s lives will be impacted by my decision!”  Yep.  So will yours.   In fact, your life is already impacted.  Because it’s YOUR business.  I’m willing to bet you’ve already festered more, and contemplated the outcomes more than all the people you’re worried about, put together.   

I willingly admit, I struggle as an employer.  Call it the curse of the self employed.  People management is a weakness.  I once had an absolute disaster of an employee.  She lied about her competencies, didn’t take instruction well, and was combative at every juncture.  

I was afraid to even inquire about work, dreading the ensuing battle.  I told myself I didn’t want to fire this employee because of the headache it would create.  That’s when a smart friend of mine — completely uninvolved with the business and possibly a Vulcan — clarified things:  “Damian, you’re already dealing with a headache.  And you’re paying for it!  Why not just make the headache go away?”  

Genius.  Vulcan.  Under any other circumstance I would have seen this obvious solution myself.  But I was too close to it.  I let emotion harm my enterprise.   

Then came clarity from my Vulcan observer.  This was, after all, MY business.  That I began on a shoestring budget.  That I built and shaped and cried and rejoiced over.  Just like it’s YOUR business too. 

Poor Choices Result in Poorness
You’ll make a lot of decisions in running your own business.  Never forget, emotional choices are usually poor choices.  And poor choices result in poorness.  

Damian Mason is a a self made businessman, speaker, and writer.  He helps people do business better.  www.damianmason.com .

We encourage you to share! If you reuse any piece of this blog be sure to attribute the content to Damian Mason at www.DamianMason.com.