We humans are hardwired to seek out certainty despite living in an uncertain world. And our oftentimes unconscious pursuit of said certainty can result in us reducing everything in our lives into an either/or decision.

This is either a good or bad thing.

This will make me either happy or sad.

This will make my life better or worse.

Applying either/or logic to our decision making might simplify the process, but it’s highly unlikely to improve our results.

Improving our decision making requires a different mindset altogether. It should instead help us to weigh the pros and cons while acknowledging our lives will probably be better in some ways, worse in others, and different in ways we can’t predict. This approach also helps us decide if the perceived pain is worth the anticipated outcome ahead of time.

Now this may all seem obvious to you already but the real challenge comes in its application. 

"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function." F. Scott Fitzgerald

In attempting to apply this decision-making process myself both personally and professionally, I’ve found two components that seem to help the most in progressing from knowing to doing.

Humility 

The certainty-seeking monster that is our brain swims in a pool of endorphins when we just KNOW we are “right” about something. On the flip side, questioning our priors and/or admitting that there is just so much we don’t know for certain goes completely against the grain. But practicing humility allows us to more clearly see when we’ve defaulted back into our ingrained either/or decision-making logic. 

One approach I’ve found particularly helpful in application is to make the case AGAINST your natural inclination before making a decision. 

What haven’t I already considered? 

Why would I NOT do this?

What other options are available? 

We might very well land right back where we started but we do so with a more well formed justification for our decision. And that’s usually how better decisions get made.

This first component also becomes much easier in application when paired with our second one.

Practice

Unfortunately, a mindset shift like this doesn’t happen overnight and there will be bumps along the way. The good news is that all that’s required from us is that we learn from our mistakes and keep working at it. 

Like any good habit, it takes time to build and the more we practice, the better we become at adopting the right mindset instinctively rather than consciously having to think about it every time we make a decision.

The powerful combination of humility and practice can go a long way in our application of opting out of either/or logic and improving both our lives and finances through better decision making.

If you find yourself having trouble navigating this journey on your own, please know that you’re certainly not alone. Talking about it out loud with someone can help us get out of our own heads and out of our own way. And that alone can help improve both our mindset and decision making.

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