How To Avoid Bad Business Management Decisions

There are choices to make each day in the business world. Should more time be allocated to this project, should we go forward with what we have, or should the whole thing be scrapped? With so many decisions to make, it can be difficult to do what is best for the company. Here are some common mistakes you may have come across when making important choices. This list should help you reevaluate the way you do business.

- Not Going With Your Gut
Your body tells you what is right more often than you may realize. When you feel like you should stay at home a certain night, this is your instinct kicking in. Many people who would have been involved in the attack on the World Trade Center report to have stayed away from the buildings that day because of what their gut told them. They followed certain feelings and avoided devastation. This, of course, does not always work. There were thousands of families who needlessly suffered without any warning or sign. But sometimes you are given a sign perhaps because your brain understands more than you do.
So follow your feelings when they overwhelm the senses. For example, you may have made a decision, and then soon after come down with a headache. If you cannot seem to get that choice out of your mind, consider rethinking it.
Sometimes you pick up information that your mind does not register but you do. You may not like a person, and not know why. Perhaps you can tell by their body movements that they despise you, although nothing obvious can be pinpointed. A stomachache is a good way to tell that something is wrong. Bad decisions can lead to stress, so follow the body's signals to correct your mistakes. Remember it is never too late for correction.
- Only Seeing The World The Way We Want To See It
Our minds are constantly processing information. We hear so many sounds and see so many sights that we have to filter out the less important things. When the clock ticks in the background or a bird flies by the window, we may not even realize it is there.
Perform this little exercise to understand this concept. Sit still and listen for a clock ticking or for the air conditioning. A light may be flickering, even, and you do not catch it unless you hone in on it. Thanks to this mechanism we are able to perform many tasks without getting sidetracked. We can listen to a friend at loud party by narrowing in of their words.
Unfortunately, however, this translates into perceiving the world the way we want to see it. This can lead to biases that cover up the truth. The philosopher Kant found that sometimes we need to change our whole way of thinking. A paradigm shift may need to be made if you see a person in a negative light but need to get over it.
Sometimes in business we see only certain choices because it is hard to get out of the box. Open up your thinking by bringing in other minds to counter yours. With all that you filter out, it can be beneficial to overlap and compare ideas.
- Trusting Too Much In The Experts
Experiments have been performed showing how we rely on expert opinion too much. Studies have showed that when told by an expert to kill another person, most of us will do it. We would push the electric lever because we believe that those in the white lab coats know what is best for us. Consider this: who knows what is best for your company?
Your marketing department may push for certain choices to be made, but it may be up to you to correct them. Make sure that you keep in mind the opinions of many people. Brainstorm with groups. Use your advisors to bounce ideas off of.
Take these steps to avoid making mistakes as a manager.