How to Make Decisions That Will Move Your Business Forward
Every decision you make can significantly impact your journey to success, even the small ones.
But you need to understand the action steps behind each decision because, without that, it is just an idea. Join us as we reveal the practical and effective steps you can take today to propel your business to the next level.
Follow The Girls of Grit:
We'd Love to Hear Your Stories!
Your experiences are important to us. Share how you've navigated catalysts for growth and personal transformation. Connect with us on social media or leave a review on your preferred podcast platform. Your feedback and stories inspire us and guide future episodes!
Transcript:
Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies
Anneliese Rhodes: Do you find yourself in a phase where you are unsure about the next steps to take in your business? It's like being at a crossroads, not knowing which path will lead you towards your progress and success. Or maybe you are just feeling stuck and can't seem to move forward.
Cynthia Ficara: Whatever the case may be, tune in as we reveal this one thing that you can do in your business that will help propel you forward.
Welcome to the girls of grit podcast hosted by Annalisa Rhoades and Cynthia Ficarra, two professional women bringing you over 40 years experience as top performers, top singers. and leaders in the male dominated medical device industry,
Anneliese Rhodes: grounded in grit. Our mission is to cultivate a platform that will pave the way for women to stand at the forefront of leadership, driving positive change and shaping the landscape.
Of traditionally male dominated industries, we are dedicated to fostering an environment where women not only face challenges head on, but also thrive as leaders charting their unique course to CEO status of their own chosen career paths. Welcome to the Girls of Grit podcast. It's time to dig in.
Welcome back, everyone to our show. This. Secrets and medical device sales. I am Annalisa Rhodes. And I am Cynthia
Cynthia Ficara: Ficarra. And together we are the girls of GRITS. Today, we are going to provide you with one thing that can help move your business forward. Cause we know what it's like
Anneliese Rhodes: when we're not moving forward.
Right, Lise? Absolutely. It reminds me of having that question in the back of my head. Is it too early to call on this customer? I just called on her last week. Should I call on her again? She's not replying to my messages. She's not answering my emails. Ooh, I don't know. Um, I just can't seem to decide what I'm going to do.
I just am stuck with calling on her.
Cynthia Ficara: You know, I, I kind of feel that way sometimes when I think of a target that I have written down for the quarter and you realize, you know, we're halfway through a quarter and I'm thinking, Oh my gosh, I, I'm not there yet. Like why am I not there? And should I go this direction?
Should I go that direction? And sometimes I'm in this moment where I'm just like. At a crossroads. And even though I know I need to get there, I feel like maybe I don't know how.
Anneliese Rhodes: So what's missing in all of these scenarios that we just talked about?
Cynthia Ficara: Yes, Lisa, that's what we're going to discuss today. The one thing that's missing and the one thing that you can do in your business today is.
Drum roll.
Make a decision. Yes. Today. That's what we're talking about. We're talking about decision making because it's even small, smart decisions. That can have significant impact on moving your business forward. And I think it's really, really important that we all know that no action steps behind the decision without them.
It's only an idea, so not having action steps behind a decision is only an idea.
Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah, I agree with you. And you know, it's funny because you think that this is so easy. Well, of course I'm making a decision, but sometimes we can't, sometimes we get so caught up and all of these things that keep us from moving forward, making the decisions, propelling our business into the next level.
So today we're going to talk about some of those reasons why and get you to that final conclusion of. I'm just going to make the decision and that decision will be the right decision.
Cynthia Ficara: I think you've got it. And, you know, every decision counts, you know, no matter how small it seems, everyone counts. So today we're going to just walk through 3 areas of decision making.
First, we're going to talk about the science behind decision making. And then we're going to discuss why it's hard to make a decision. And then how we overcome that. So I am referencing an article that we're going to put in our show notes and it's out of nest labs. And the actual title is called the science of decision making.
Why smart people do dumb things. I guess we've all been there, right?
Anneliese Rhodes: No, I've never done anything dumb. Have you Lisa? No, never, never, never. This was a really great article. I'm really glad you found it, Cindy, because it really does. I think it will help our listeners today to kind of identify some of the.
of the reasons why maybe they are struggling making those decisions. And, and like you said, there's a little bit of science behind it. And then there are just the outline reasons of why we struggle. So Cindy, take it away with the science, because I love when you talk about science.
Cynthia Ficara: It's my favorite Lisa, you know, a lot of times when we look at articles, this one, I just really did zone in and really enjoy, but what I learned is that it turns out that our brain reacts in different ways.
When we can make our own decisions. So the anterior cingulate cortex, which we will refer to as the ACC, not the football conference, um, and the orbital frontal cortex, and the ventro medial prefrontal cortex are all involved in this complex process. So, it's the ACC orbital, frontal and ventral medial. And I just think it's so interesting because our brain is so complex and there's so many parts and everything it takes to make a decision.
So what's interesting that these areas are not only involved in the formation of a decision, but it signals the degree of confidence. Associated with the decision, and I think that was what was kind of mind blowing to me. So, the in particular is involved in the management of what is called reinforcement information.
So, this is when you do something, observe a consequence and then adapt your future behavior accordingly. So, there were studies that found that the ACC made it difficult to use reinforcement information to guide a decision making. So to make decisions, you need to be able to leverage information to adjust your actions.
And there's other important sources of data that your brain uses in decision making, and that would be your emotions. So you have scientific information and then you also have emotional information. So we would love to think that all of our decisions are rational because We're women, and of course, everything's rational, right, Lisa?
Of course. But the research will just show otherwise. And I just thought that was really, really interesting. 1 more thing it mentions is according to the somatic marker hypothesis, our emotions strongly influence our decision making, whether we are about to make our decision, the somatic markers, they are feelings in our body that are associated with emotions.
So we'll take, for instance, nausea and discuss or rapid heart rate and anxiety. X to tell us what we're doing. And so that to me, think about it. You're about to make a big decision. Say you're, you're about to sign a check and you're going to buy this house and it's a huge amount of mortgage and you're, you're hold your breath and you think, Oh my gosh, this is so much money.
Do I want to do it? And you almost feel sick and then you do it. Or think back to, again, this article says smart people make dumb decisions, right? Think back to when you were a teenager and you knew you were about to do something wrong. Nope. But you kind of did it anyway, and your heart rate races, and you're thinking, this is probably not a good decision.
This is not a good decision. And it makes you very anxious. So maybe that's the physical reaction of decision making that's telling us this is not a good thing.
Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. And you know what? As you're talking about all of this, it is coming to mind at the end of the day, we need to be aware of how we are feeling in those moments so that we remember them either good or bad.
Right? So are we aware? When you're getting ready to sign that big check, are we aware of our body? What's happening with it? And then did this happen before and how did the outcome, what did it look like? Right? Maybe you've actually done this in your past, maybe not signed a big check, but maybe also made another big decision that your heart rate sped up.
You were very anxious. You were sweating, whatever, but then everything was fine. And so. I think sometimes it's the way that we apply those emotions in our brain again, and it's reminding us of either a really good time or a really bad time. So I think if we're aware of that, you know, maybe when we were younger and we made a bad decision and our heart raced, when we get older and we're making this financial decision, are we tying that to something that happened in childhood and it totally is not the same?
Or are we being smart about it and remembering, Hey, you know what? I made this big decision to invest in a company, you know, five years ago. And I was really nervous at the time and I totally second guess myself, but I pulled the trigger anyhow and look, I did great. Well, maybe again, now, if you've done the same type of due diligence and research and you're still having that same emotion, maybe it's just your body reacting to it.
But Tie back to when you did something successful versus something terrible, because I think sometimes, yeah, I think sometimes we're, we're really hanging on those emotions more than, and that's that part of that brain that's hanging onto that. So I think it's important to also be really aware of the situation and be able to leverage it, all of that in your mind.
Cynthia Ficara: And the human body protects us. And you know, the somatic marker hypothesis that we were just mentioning with emotions is actually the fight or flight response. And I'm sure many of you have heard of that where it protects you to make that right decision. It's actually based on survival, you know, so I guess so much for rational decision making because there's actually a host of all these biological responses that are happening in our background.
As you said, in our past. And in our bodies that help us for this mental process. And I just find it pretty fascinating.
Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. So this article also talks about some of the things that hold you back. And I love this first one because I feel like we all do this a whole lot and it's called analysis paralysis.
And I can definitely do this where basically you're going down that spiral of just Analyzing every single thing. Ooh, I don't know. When I made that sales call, did I sound appropriate? Was I professional? Was I smart in how I was talking to them? What did my voice sound like? Do they like me? They were kind of standoffish.
They were rushing to, and it's like, it just goes on and on and on. And you're like, you, you want to stop yourself and say, stop overanalyzing everything. Just. Make the decision to call on that customer again, to talk to them about meeting for dinner and, you know, the things that you need to make decisions on in order to move your business forward versus getting so caught up and overanalyzing every little thing that you now become.
Paralyzed in a decision making process and you can't move forward at all.
Cynthia Ficara: So I want to spend a few more minutes on this because I think analysis by paralysis is quite common in sales. And I'm going to tell you where I see it often is people that are new. And part of that is the unsureness of, I haven't done this before and thinking too much of what if I do something wrong rather than just doing it.
Bye. I also see analysis by paralysis in people that say they've been here in a job for a while, and maybe there was an area of their job that they were not. That knowledgeable in or doubted things, and now they feel why I've been here too long. I can't ask anybody. So instead of going forward, they just.
Stop and they just paralyze themselves with this fear and not go forward, which again, Lisa, you know, previous episodes, we discussed fear the acronym for fear that applies very well to this situation. Analysis by paralysis is, what's our acronym?
Anneliese Rhodes: Fear. False evidence appearing real. And you're right. This is a total fear response.
Absolutely. In both of those scenarios that you described, both being new and being afraid to admit that you don't know the answer to something, or you haven't experienced it yet, so you don't know what the outcome is going to be, and so you're so scared to move forward on making a decision. Decision because you don't want it to be the wrong one.
Or on the flip side, you're a tenured person, a tenured rep who's been doing this or manager or director for years, and you in your mind, can't afford to make a wrong decision. And so you're just overanalyzing everything because you've been here for so long. You should make that right decision that every decision should be spot on the money.
The truth is nobody's perfect. And so in each of these. Scenarios that you described, Cindy, you're exactly right. This overanalyzing can absolutely paralyze you to make any decision like at all, and then you just don't even move forward. You're stagnant in your process. And it's like, how do we move? How do we get out of this place?
How do we get unstuck?
Cynthia Ficara: I love that. How do we get unstuck? It's right. And, you know, something else, it's a little bit opposite of what we're talking about. Instead of analysis by paralysis on the other end of the spectrum, there's an overconfidence. So you can overestimate your ability and be super confident that, oh, I'm making a good decision.
Oh, I'm making a great decision. And it's interesting because in this article, it kind of talks about that. And there's different studies pull in a correlation between intelligence and critical thinking. Thinking so when you collect your mental skills that you have that allow you to think rationally and it's kind of like think of it like in a goal oriented way.
But then there's also a little bit of self doubt that's kind of good for decision making. You know, that little bit of gut check is good for us. So if we're really confident again, as women, we talk about that. Pay attention. To those moments of intuition, pay attention to that gut feeling, pay attention to that slight little voice in your head that says, Oh, should you do that?
Because that may be the reminder of maybe it's not such a good decision, especially if you're overconfident and critical thinkers at times can be really skeptical of everything, like including actually their own ability in making decisions, but they end up taking a lower amount of time. But then better decisions, as opposed to those intelligent people that have limited critical thinking skills.
So you can be very confident. And I think it's important to think about all these things. If you're overconfident, maybe you need to check yourself for a minute. And critically think through the decision you're going to make so that it ends up being a good decision, but overconfidence is the 2nd thing. I would believe that can hold you back for making a good decision.
2nd to analysis by paralysis.
Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. I like that. It reminds me actually of, you know, that anticipation factor when you're competing, right? So when you're getting ready to dive into the water and let's just say you've trained for so long for this race and you know, you're like, Oh, I got this, I got this.
Actually a little bit of anticipation, a little bit of nervousness is a good thing because it's that adrenaline rush that pushes you forward, that propels you out into the water to do that swim. Then of course, it's all the training that gets you through the entire event, but that initial little bit of, Oh Makes you make that move.
I think it's the same thing with this overconfidence, a little bit of that gut check, a little bit of that self doubt makes you go, let me recheck myself real quick and make sure that this decision that I'm making is the right decision. Just because I may know everything about it, is it still the right decision to make?
Cynthia Ficara: And these biological responses in our bodies guide us, and it's just up to us to pay attention to these little signs along the way and guide us the right way. They're there.
Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. Agreed. So the next one that it talks about is lack of emotional or physical resources. So sometimes we are really tired. Who doesn't get tired in their work life balance?
I mean, it's, uh, it's physically and mentally draining. And a lot of our jobs that we have long days and long weekends, and we've got kids and we have family, and there's a lot of things that take up our resources, whether that's physical or emotional or mental. And so when you have a, especially a big, tough decision to make.
Man, I don't know how many times I've been told this, sleep on it. Make sure that you're waking up with a fresh, clear brain to really do that critical thinking that's necessary for that big decision. Because if you're making big decisions and you're emotionally, mentally, physically exhausted, your brain isn't actually going to make that decision.
Complete in tune decision, and it's going to be half halted by the things that are holding you back. So I, at least I can absolutely attest to this. And I also realized actually, sometimes too, when I'm sleep deprived, or I'm stressed out over hitting my number, whatever, I actually make decisions more radically, more emotional driven.
Then I probably need to, because I'm not taking the time to sit back and think about it. I'm just so tired. Then I'm like, well, I got to get this done. I got to get this done. I have had no sleep. I've still got to do these cases, but I've got to get this decision made. What am I going to do? And then I just make it and I don't actually take the time that I normally would have taken if I had properly rested my brain, my body, my mind.
Cynthia Ficara: And so the consequences may be different. And you know, you use the example, of course, of a big decision and sleeping on it. And I also think there's a way with smaller decisions, because again, a big decision is a path of small decisions leading you there. And sometimes I'm not remember either when you had kids or if your mother, parent, father ever said this to you is just stop count to 10 before you say anything, or you make a decision.
Just stop count to 10. And it is amazing that I think ultimately, if you count to 10 and take a deep breath, you know what you're doing, you're trying to decrease those cortisol levels. When you're stressed, your body pushes up the cortisol and you're just in overdrive. Take a breath, relax, level out, and then your decision may be a little more rational.
And what you said, I also think there's another component to feeling stressed out and busy. Is a good way to describe it as information overload. Sometimes we just have too much. You know, you said something that made me think about when you're really busy. You're like, oh, just make a decision. Have you been in a situation where somebody says, okay, would you like to do this?
And then they lay out 20 options. In 20 different avenues when you're just like, whoa, whoa, whoa, first of all, like, I can't make a decision based on all this information. I think it's just a lot because then we can't really hone in on the facts that we need to make. Appropriate decision making, it's just too much fluff.
So if we can pare it down. Focus not be so overwhelmed and overloaded with too much information, simplify it and then it's much easier to make. A small
Anneliese Rhodes: or big. I kind of liken it to when you go shopping at like a new store and it's like, Oh, it's like everything is out there and everything is calling your name and everything is pretty and blingy.
And you're like, Oh, it's like target. Right? It's like target. You go in there for like two things and you come out with 20 and it's a totally funny meme. Everybody does it. I swear. But like you can't concentrate on one or two things because you're so overloaded with everything. And when you're tired. Or you're mentally just, you know, Oh, I just need a mental break type place.
Don't make those decisions because there's a chance that you make the wrong one. And then you have to go back and you have to fix it. And nobody likes fixing bad decisions.
Cynthia Ficara: No, you're exactly right about that. That's true. So let's talk about fixing decisions. Okay. So what are some things that we can do to overcome this?
So we've already kind of talked from the very beginning, if we're stuck in our business, if we're at a crossroads, we know we need to make a decision because sometimes it's just a matter of maybe we're not moving forward because we really haven't decided to do so. Because if there's a new hospital I want to go to, and maybe I'm speaking with my manager and I have a conversation saying, well, I, you know, haven't made any progress yet.
Think to myself. Have I made the decision 1st of I am really going to go to this hospital and if I am, I have to really kind of define what I'm doing and make a clear path and then go from there. So, I feel like a good way to start. When you need to make a decision is number 1, you need to define the problem.
So take a step back, understand what it is you're trying to decide. And then that's how you go with where you want to make your decision. And then, secondly, I think you have to publish your criteria. So, whatever it is, you're trying to consider. Weigh it out, but then again, eliminate multiple options. If you agree with me on that,
Anneliese Rhodes: yeah, no, I do like you're saying you, you basically need to weed out the things that are probably not.
They're distracting you from your true goals. They're distracting you from your decision making. So weed out all the small things, right? Is don't give yourself 20 different. Avenues to go down, give yourself to, and make sure that the 2 that you are deciding to choose between are good, solid avenues to go down.
And again, that's all about trying to focus. Don't allow so many things to take away from your distraction. And truly Cindy, what we're talking about here today is making. Small decisions, like you said in the beginning, you know, small decisions are so important for your business and for your overall decision making because small decisions just lead to the big decision.
So if you're stuck in a situation where you're like, I don't know what the right answer is here. First, you got to weed it out and make sure that you don't have all these other little things picking at you. Are you tired? Are you, you know, tired? Really second guessing yourself when you don't need to. Are you confident?
Are you too overconfident? Don't get paralyzed by all of these. What ifs, what ifs just have two or maybe three options and then make a decision, make it small, but make the decision, make the decision to call on the customer, make the decision to go drive to that account that you want to become yours. And maybe for the day, just figure out where the hospital is, who the key players are, make some office appointments for lunches, and you've done your decision making for the day.
And from that you build, and then you continue to build until finally, when that big decision comes on who to call on or what to do next, you'll already know because you've got the background there.
Cynthia Ficara: Yes, exactly. And once you have those options, a good idea, take out a pen, take out a piece of paper, write down your options.
So you can kind of figure out which ones are the best way to take, but it is absolutely most important as you led to, you must develop and implement a plan of action. Again, what did we say earlier? If a decision has no action steps behind it, it's only an idea, and you can think about your Progress in your business with great ideas, but until you actually make the decision and put action behind it, it's never going to get done.
So writing it down is absolutely the way to go. And then you implement. And now that you've implemented your decision, something we've discussed before that I think is really, really important is one of the most important steps in making a decision. Now you evaluate. The solution that you came up with, so say, it was a matter of shopping and you were in target and you saw the bling bling and you walk out with 20 things instead of 2 and then you look in your wallet and realize, oh, darn now, I don't have money to go do something fun.
I was going to do ask yourself. Was that a good decision? And if it wasn't, then guess what? The next time you go into target. You're going to have to pare that down a bit. Either you only get your two items and ignore all the bling bling and leave the other 18 behind, or maybe compromise and you go in for two and you come out with six.
But either way, it's a matter of evaluating when you make a decision. That is going to help you next time. And anything that you do over time can help build a habit. And when you get into the habit of looking at actions you need to take, did this work? Did this not? Then you know what to repeat for the next time.
And how do you move your business forward? Small, simple decisions. That matter that become good decisions and then you know how you made a good decision and it's rinse and repeat. That's how you move your business forward and it all begins with 1 thing and that's making a decision.
Anneliese Rhodes: I love it. So is that our call to action?
Cindy is our call to action to make a decision.
Cynthia Ficara: Yes, I think what I would like to tell everybody out there today is this. First, it's really, really important that you identify an area where you're stuck in your business. So close your eyes. Think about it. It may pop in your head right away. And now the call to action for today is this.
Make.
Anneliese Rhodes: A. Decision. I love it. Small decisions lead to big decisions. Thank you so much everyone for tuning in to another episode of the secrets and medical device sales brought to you by the girls of grit. We are so happy you continue to tune into us. Please don't forget to write into us and tell us things that you want us to discuss.
Cynthia Ficara: And I want to thank you for making the decision to listen to us today. Thank you. Bye bye. Bye bye.
