“Intuition will tell the thinking mind where to look next.” – Jonas Salk
Sometimes as leaders we struggle to figure out what’s next. We know things need to change, whether it’s how we lead, what we expect from our people, what we do for our clients or customers, or any number of other things. There is something different we need to do and we need to figure out what that something is. And that’s not easy.
Our tendency as leaders in today’s world is to lean into the data. We have what feels like unlimited information at our fingertips, and we assume that whatever answers we need must surely be somewhere in that mass of facts and figures.
So, we pore over numbers, and trends, and we spend money on AI that’s supposed to help us pore over those numbers and trends fast, or that’s just supposed to do it for us. And after we look at all that data, quite often, we still aren’t sure what to do.
Don’t take this as an anti-data conversation. We should use the information we have available to us to help us make decisions. We should make sure that our biases aren’t getting in the way when we choose our futures. Data can be incredibly helpful.
But it can’t just be about the data. You’ve spent a lifetime learning and experiencing, and all of that learning and experiencing is somewhere in your brain. The best leaders I know look at all the data, and then step away. They quiet down all the noise from the facts and figures, and tune into what their intuition is telling them. And then they act on it.
Those best leaders don’t shy away from data, but they don’t allow it free reign in their decision-making process. They use both the data and their intuition (they’d probably call it their gut) and they make sure both have their say.
When you’re thinking about the future, whether it’s yours or that of the organization you lead, are you a “data only” leader? Or do you allow your intuition to influence outcomes? Don’t ignore your gut feel just because it doesn’t fit on a spread sheet. Make sure it’s part of the conversation.
