How to Process Information to Make Better Decisions
I write a lot about making decisions. It’s one of the most important roles a business leader has.
It’s a skill, too. You don’t have to be naturally gifted at decision-making; with practice, you can get better.
In general, having more information—at least, more relevant information—leads to better decisions.
The more you know, the smarter your choices.
But there’s another aspect to making decisions we don’t always consider.
Who’s delivering that information.
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Everyone has an agenda.
I don’t say that with any malice. It’s simply the truth.
The information you receive is being filtered all the time. The people who provide it are operating based on their own motives.
That doesn’t mean your employees and advisors are out to get you. Far from it.
If you’ve built a strong company culture and you trust your team, they may very well have the best interest of the business at heart.
However, they’re also human.
Which means that fear, conflict avoidance, and a desire for status or power can all be competing with telling you the full, unvarnished, objective truth.
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Anytime you receive feedback or information—and you should be soliciting it regularly—you also need to evaluate it. I use these questions to help me process information from my team:
- Who is the person in front of me? What do I already know about this individual? I use data points like their DISC profile, my past experiences with them, and any context I have about their personal life to understand who they are in this moment.
- What is their agenda? What does this person want? I’ll think through what they have advocated for inside the business and what they have shown me about what they want from their role.
With these first two prompts, I now understand the filter through which I am about to receive information. Everyone has a filter. It’s not good or bad. With that knowledge, I can move on to the final prompt:
- What value can I extract from what this person is saying? Now I can use my best judgment to process the information being shared with me and decide what is useful. Am I using my own filter? Absolutely, and there’s no way around it. But part of being a leader is exercising good judgment, so try to get out of your own way as much as possible to extract the value from every nugget of info you receive.
Even the people who drive you up the wall have information that is valuable to you. Yes, you may discard 90% of what they say, but the 10%, or even the 1%, will be pure gold. Don’t overlook it.
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It’s also really important that you seek out information, opinions, and feedback.
The most vocal people on your team aren’t necessarily smarter or wiser or more important than everyone else. They’re simply the most willing to speak up.
And while that does have a value of its own, you need to pay attention to everyone’s voice on your team.
Solicit information from people who don’t jump up to volunteer their thoughts. Look for the folks who watch and listen. They often have the most insightful feedback, but they won’t be the first ones to fire off an email, speak up during a meeting, or grab you in the hallway to chat.
Be proactive. Go to the best voices to help you make your decisions.
(Keep in mind, those voices may not always be on your leadership team. If you have an employee whose opinions you trust and value, find ways to bring them into the conversation.)
You have to rely on your team to provide you with information.
It’s your job to process that information and use it to make the best possible decisions.
The kind of decisions that help you get ahead.
That bring in the right people.
That help you grow.
P.S. Not sure you’re getting the right information from your team? Speak with our consulting team to see how we can help.
