It may sound contradictory, since we assume that being a business owner is all about making decisions all the time. The problem is that mental bandwidth has its limits too, and one of the first things a business coach would advise is to limit the number of decisions you make.
We probably make hundreds of small decisions over the course of a day, and those small decisions are what get in the way of making big business decisions.
There must be many secrets shared by successful people, and one of them is being disciplined, organised and having a clear mind to make good decisions on the things that matter. We may not notice it, but from the moment we get up in the morning we start making small decisions: Which suit shall I wear? What colour? Plain or striped? Which shirt, which tie? What shall I have for breakfast? Which route will get me to work early? What do I tell that client who called the other day? Where shall I have lunch, and what?
Barack Obama himself has said that, to limit decisions about what to wear, he settled on owning just two kinds of suit, one black and one navy, always matched the same way. For special occasions he doesn’t choose the suit at all, because protocol has already chosen it for him.
The personal assistants of executives at large companies have more decision-making power than many senior managers. They’re not there just to answer the phone and note down appointments, but to free their boss from a great many small decisions. They also act as the boss’s external memory, and once a day they go over all the important points with them.
How can we limit our decisions properly?
Look at successful business leaders. Many people think they’re creatures of habit because they’re fussy, when the truth is that having fixed habits is simply more useful.
They tend to have breakfast and lunch in the same places, choosing somewhere they feel comfortable whether they’re on their own, with their partner or with clients. One less decision.
They don’t have to think about what to eat for breakfast or lunch. As a rule, breakfast is always the same. Or, if they’re on a diet, they already know what Monday’s or Tuesday’s meals are.
They don’t have to spend much time planning their personal schedule day to day. As a rule, every day of the year is already planned: paddle tennis on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m., a massage on Wednesdays at 8, dinner with their partner and children on Fridays at 10 at restaurant X. Their work diary is another matter, and their assistant takes care of it.
Some of them believe that if your personal and working life is scheduled, there are fewer unpleasant surprises, and your mind is clearer and less stressed. The same goes for small errands. Someone who is about to negotiate a 10-million-euro contract wants nothing less, the day before, than to have their head full of tidying up paperwork, getting stuck in traffic to pick up a suit from the dry cleaner’s or wasting two hours taking documents to the tax office. Perhaps it’s because of these small details that virtual assistants and companies offering this kind of small service at a low price are increasingly finding business opportunities.
I know many of you will think this is nonsense, and that some will say what a dreadful life it would be to have everything planned. But take a look at your own daily routine and you’ll see that most of us do practically the same thing every day and every weekend. We feel as if we’re improvising, but as a rule there’s very little improvisation, even though we waste a lot of time treating small decisions as if they were big ones. Some people think they’re spontaneous and yet have a set day on the calendar for sleeping with their partner: “Not Friday because I’m tired, and not Sunday either, because I need a clear head on Monday, so Saturday’s better, since I don’t have to get up early on Sunday.” So much for spontaneity 🙂
As I always say, you lose nothing by trying, so try cutting down on those small decisions by setting yourself some habits and learning to lead a more orderly life (which doesn’t mean a monotonous one). And for parents with young children: if we start instilling order and habits in our kids, beginning with study habits, we’ll already have done something for their future.
Further reading
Featured image: Sonia Belviso, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.
