Our series now arrives at a mistake that sits at the very heart of leadership itself: poor decision making. Every day, leaders are called upon to make choices—some small, some monumental. The quality of those decisions determines the trajectory of their teams, their organisations, and ultimately their own legacy.

Yet decision making is rarely taught. It is assumed to be an innate skill, something great leaders are simply born with. The truth is far different. Effective decision making is a discipline, a practice that can be learned, refined, and mastered. And its absence is one of the most costly mistakes a leader can make.

The Gut Instinct Trap

I will be honest with you. There have been times when I personally struggled with making decisions. I used to rely heavily on my gut instincts without engaging in any proper analysis. In the moment, it felt efficient, even decisive. I was making calls quickly, moving fast, trusting my intuition.

But here is what I learned the hard way: speed is not the same as wisdom. Making decisions on the spot often came with consequences. Sometimes those consequences cost me dearly—financially, relationally, and strategically.

The problem with pure gut instinct is that it is shaped by your biases, your mood, your limited perspective, and the pressure of the moment. It is not that intuition has no value; it absolutely does. But intuition untethered from information is guesswork dressed up as confidence.

The Power of the Pause

Through training and hard-earned experience, I came to understand the importance of one simple but transformative practice: the pause.

I learned to say these words: “Let me ponder on that for 24 hours. Let me gather more information. Let me read up on it.”

This is not indecision. This is not weakness. This is strategic discipline.

The pause creates space for several critical things to happen:

  1. Emotional Cooling: Decisions made in heightened emotional states—whether excitement, frustration, or pressure—are rarely optimal. Time allows the emotional fog to clear.

  2. Information Gathering: You can seek additional data, perspectives, and expertise that were not available in the moment.

  3. Clarity of Thought: You can weigh options against your values, your strategy, and your long-term objectives rather than reacting to immediate stimuli.

  4. Sleep on It: There is genuine neurological benefit to allowing your subconscious mind to process complex problems overnight.

Building a Better Decision-Making Process

Improving your decision making is not about eliminating intuition; it is about surrounding it with rigour. Here are practical steps to elevate this critical skill:

  1. Establish a Framework: For significant decisions, create a simple process. What are the facts? What are the assumptions? What are the alternatives? What are the potential consequences of each option?

  2. Seek Diverse Perspectives: Invite input from people who think differently from you. Especially seek out those who will challenge your assumptions, not just confirm them.

  3. Distinguish Decision Types: Not every decision requires the same process. Routine choices can be made quickly. Strategic, high-stakes, or irreversible decisions demand more time and analysis.

  4. Learn from Every Outcome: After a decision, good or bad, conduct a brief retrospective. What went well? What would you do differently? This turns experience into wisdom.

  5. Know When to Decide: The pause is powerful, but it can become paralysis. Set a clear deadline for your decision to prevent endless deliberation.

The Confidence to Say “I Need Time”

Perhaps the greatest shift is internal. It requires the confidence to resist the pressure for an immediate answer. In a culture that often celebrates snap decisions as strength, the leader who says, “I need time to think this through” demonstrates genuine maturity.

Your team, your investors, and your stakeholders will ultimately respect you more for making well-considered decisions than for making fast ones. The quality of the outcome matters far more than the speed of the response.

Decision Making as a Leadership Discipline

Poor decision making is not a character flaw; it is a skill gap. And like any skill, it can be developed. The leaders who master this discipline do not necessarily make more decisions than others. They make better ones.

They understand that each decision is a brick in the foundation of their organisation’s future. And they take the time to lay each one with care.

Catch Up on the Series: