Judgement: How to Trust Your Thinking Without Getting Stuck in It
Enhance your leadership judgement by balancing intuition and analysis, learning from mistakes, and avoiding overthinking.
In leadership, good judgement is about making clear, effective decisions without overthinking or rushing. It’s a mix of experience, emotional intelligence, and staying open to change. Here’s how you can sharpen your judgement:
- Spot the Difference: Judgement means evaluating facts carefully, while judgementalism relies on assumptions and damages trust.
- Simplify Decisions: Filter information, prioritise tasks, and focus on what truly matters.
- Balance Confidence and Humility: Trust your instincts but stay open to feedback and new ideas.
- Learn from Mistakes: Reflect on past decisions to identify patterns and improve.
- Avoid Overthinking: Use techniques like setting decision deadlines or seeking outside perspectives.
- Trust Intuition: Combine mindfulness and pattern recognition to make faster, informed choices.
Good judgement isn’t about being perfect - it’s about acting with confidence, learning from outcomes, and staying adaptable. Start small, reflect often, and let each decision refine your skills.
Strategic Decision Making for Leaders - Balancing Data and Intuition
Judgement vs. Judgementalism: Understanding the Difference
While they may sound alike, judgement and judgementalism are worlds apart. Understanding this distinction is crucial for building trust, making thoughtful decisions, and nurturing strong team dynamics. Let’s delve into what defines sound judgement and how its harmful counterpart, judgementalism, can undermine effective leadership.
What is Judgement?
Judgement is the ability to evaluate situations, weigh evidence, and make reasoned decisions based on facts. It’s a deliberate process where you gather relevant information, consider multiple perspectives, and choose a course of action that aligns with your organisation’s goals. Think of it as your internal compass, guiding you to assess performance based on observable behaviours rather than unverified assumptions.
Exercising good judgement also means staying curious when challenges arise. Instead of leaping to conclusions, you ask open-ended questions to uncover more context. This openness allows you to reassess your initial thoughts if new information comes to light, ensuring your decisions are well-informed and fair.
How Judgementalism Hurts Leadership
Judgementalism, by contrast, involves making snap judgements - often negative - without a full understanding of the situation. It’s driven by biases or assumptions, which can cloud your thinking and damage your leadership credibility. While sound judgement opens doors to growth and collaboration, judgementalism can fracture relationships, stifle talent, and disengage teams.
Being judgemental often means relying on unfounded assumptions rather than solid evidence. For instance, this might look like speculating about a team member’s motives without knowing their circumstances or criticising their character instead of addressing specific behaviours.
This approach fosters a fear-based environment, where team members feel reluctant to take risks, share ideas, or admit mistakes. Researchers have linked judgemental leadership to behaviours like "excessive fault-finding" and "condescension", which tear down rather than build up. Such an atmosphere erodes psychological safety, a foundation for trust and innovation.
At its core, the difference lies in how assumptions are handled. Leadership expert Stephen Covey captured this perfectly:
We judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their behaviour.
If you notice yourself making negative assumptions about someone’s motives, it’s a sign you may be veering into judgementalism. The solution? Shift your perspective to assume positive intent. Give others the benefit of the doubt until clear evidence suggests otherwise. This mindset not only strengthens relationships but also creates a more supportive and productive team culture.
Core Principles of Good Judgement
Good judgement is less about having all the answers and more about knowing how to seek them, trust them, and grow from them. These principles provide practical ways to sharpen your decision-making skills, helping you navigate challenges with clarity and confidence.
How to Filter Information
In a world overflowing with data - 463 exabytes every single day - the real challenge isn’t access to information but identifying what’s truly useful. For leaders, honing the ability to sift through this torrent is non-negotiable.
Start by organising your decisions. Tools like the Eisenhower Matrix can help you prioritise effectively:
- Urgent and important: Act on these immediately.
- Important but not urgent: Schedule time to address these.
- Urgent but less critical: Delegate these where possible.
- Neither urgent nor important: Eliminate these tasks altogether.
As Joey Justice puts it:
"A core element of productivity is prioritisation. You don't have to do everything on your to-do list."
When gathering information, focus on quality over quantity. Look for reliable sources - whether that’s industry reports, expert advice, or insights from colleagues. Running small experiments can also provide clarity. With the average person making around 35,000 decisions daily, it’s essential to conserve your mental energy for what truly counts.
Once you’ve filtered the noise and focused on the essentials, the next step is balancing confidence in your decisions with the humility to embrace new ideas.
Balancing Confidence with Humility
Strong leaders know when to trust their instincts and when to seek fresh perspectives. Striking this balance starts with self-awareness.
Take time to reflect on your strengths and areas for growth. Feedback from colleagues or mentors can be invaluable for this process. Active listening is equally crucial - genuinely hearing your team’s input ensures you’re considering diverse viewpoints before making decisions.
Language also matters. Using phrases like "we", "our", and "us" instead of "I" or "me" fosters a sense of shared purpose and teamwork. As C.S. Lewis wisely observed:
"In leadership, humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less."
Acknowledging your team’s contributions goes a long way in building trust and respect. Embracing humility as a strength can elevate your leadership and create a more collaborative environment.
With insights in hand and a grounded sense of self, the final piece is learning from the decisions you’ve already made.
Learning from Past Decisions
Reflecting on past choices, whether they succeeded or fell short, can uncover lessons that refine your judgement. Set aside time for regular reviews - keeping a journal of key decisions and their outcomes can help track patterns.
Analyse your decisions to pinpoint what worked, what didn’t, and where there’s room for improvement. Involving your team in these reviews can reveal blind spots and provide fresh perspectives for future decision-making.
Mistakes, while frustrating, are opportunities to learn. Each one highlights assumptions or biases that might need rethinking. For example, you might realise the need to build extra time into project schedules or implement steps to slow down under pressure.
Finally, don’t underestimate the value of external feedback. Collaborating with mentors, coaches, or trusted colleagues can offer fresh insights into your decision-making habits, helping you refine your approach over time.
How to Stop Overthinking
Overthinking can sabotage good judgement, trapping you in an endless loop of analysis. Like filtering information or balancing confidence with humility, avoiding overthinking is crucial for maintaining clear and effective decision-making. The trick lies in recognising when you're caught in the cycle and using practical strategies to break free.
Spotting Overthinking Triggers
Start by identifying what tends to set off your overthinking. Research indicates that nearly everyone struggles with it to some degree, often feeling drained or inadequate as a result.
High-stakes decisions are common culprits. When the stakes feel enormous, your mind naturally wants to examine every detail. Add uncertainty to the mix, and you might find yourself revisiting the same thoughts repeatedly without resolution.
Perfectionism is another major driver. Neuroscientist Sanam Hafeez explains:
"Perfectionists and overachievers have tendencies to overthink because the fear of failing and the need to be perfect take over, which leads to replaying or criticising decisions and mistakes."
Look for warning signs in your own behaviour. Are you replaying conversations long after they’ve ended? Do you spiral into endless “what if” scenarios? Maybe you plan endlessly but hesitate to act, or you take so long deciding that opportunities pass you by.
Overthinking often involves ruminating on past choices or excessively worrying about future outcomes. Recognising these patterns is the first step towards shifting into action.
Practical Ways to Ground Your Decisions
Breaking free from overthinking requires a mix of mental clarity and physical grounding. Here are some techniques that can help:
• Use the 5-4-3-2-1 technique: This exercise is excellent for snapping out of analysis paralysis. Identify five things you can see, four you can touch, three you hear, two you smell, and one you taste. It redirects your focus from abstract worries to the present moment.
• Set a decision deadline: Give yourself 24 hours to decide on a matter. Jeff Bezos supports the "70% rule", saying:
"Most decisions should probably be made with somewhere around 70% of the information you wish you had. If you wait for 90%, in most cases, you're probably being slow …(and) being slow is going to be costly for sure."
• Write it out: Whether it’s a pros and cons list or a SWOT analysis, putting your thoughts on paper can help you get clarity. Once written down, it’s easier to spot whether you’re uncovering new ideas or just rehashing the same ones.
• Seek an outside perspective: Talk to a trusted colleague or mentor. A fresh pair of eyes can cut through complexity and reveal the obvious choice you might be missing.
• Weigh the cost of inaction: Sometimes, recognising what you risk by doing nothing can push you to act. Winston Churchill famously said:
"Perfection is the enemy of progress."
• Schedule reflection time: Instead of letting thoughts invade your entire day, set aside 15 minutes in the morning or evening for focused thinking. When overthinking creeps in outside of that time, redirect your attention.
Taking imperfect action often teaches you far more than endless analysis ever could. Each decision you make provides valuable lessons, helping you build the experience and instincts needed for better judgement in the future.
Building Your Intuitive Wisdom
Good judgement is a blend of sharp analytical thinking and the subtle art of intuition. It’s about recognising patterns, processing information efficiently, and making decisions with assurance.
Bill Gates summed it up well:
"often you have to rely on intuition."
Albert Einstein also highlighted its value:
"I believe in intuitions…I sometimes FEEL that I am right, I do not know that I am."
The key is learning to develop and trust your intuition while staying alert to potential biases. The following insights will guide you in using intuition more effectively.
How Mindfulness Enhances Judgement
Mindfulness gives your mind a much-needed pause from the constant stream of activity, creating the mental clarity that sharpens judgement. This clarity allows you to notice subtle details and patterns that might escape purely logical thinking.
Randel S. Carlock, an INSEAD professor, explains:
"Meditation creates space in one's mind to think."
This mental breathing room is essential for stepping back from immediate pressures and gaining a broader perspective.
Starting small can make a big difference. Dedicate just five minutes in the morning and before bed to mindfulness. During this time, focus on your breathing and observe any thoughts or feelings without trying to change them.
For those with packed schedules, "micro practices" are a practical alternative. Give your full attention to small daily tasks like brushing your teeth or washing your hands. These moments of focus help train your mind to stay present throughout the day.
Another helpful tool is the mindful check-in, especially during busy or stressful periods. Pause for 30 seconds to notice your surroundings and how your body feels. This simple habit can stop stress from driving rushed decisions.
Lisa Penney, a professor of management, highlights:
"Mindfulness is about learning to self-regulate our attention."
This ability to control where your attention goes is essential for sound judgement. Mindfulness not only clears mental clutter but also enhances your ability to recognise patterns, a crucial skill for informed decision-making.
Using Pattern Recognition in Decision-Making
Pattern recognition is a powerful complement to mindfulness. Our brains are naturally wired to spot patterns, and the more experience you gain in a particular area, the better you become at identifying meaningful ones.
Daniel Kahneman puts it simply:
"Intuition is nothing more and nothing less than pattern recognition."
When faced with familiar situations, your mind can quickly connect the dots and suggest likely outcomes. This is your experience working behind the scenes.
Leaders who reflect on past decisions are 22% more likely to trust their decision-making abilities. This trust comes from reviewing how previous choices played out and recognising the patterns behind successes and setbacks.
After major decisions, take time to reflect - what went well, what was overlooked, and how did the outcome align with your expectations? This practice builds a mental library of patterns you can draw on in the future, helping you spot early signs of challenges or opportunities.
That said, it’s important to watch out for personal biases. What feels like pattern recognition can sometimes be confirmation bias - seeing what you expect rather than what’s actually there. To counter this, actively seek out perspectives or data that challenge your initial assumptions.
Doug Dillon advises:
"Pay attention to the intricate patterns of your existence that you take for granted."
Some of the most valuable insights lie in subtle, easily overlooked patterns. To uncover these, consider creating feedback loops within your organisation. Front-line employees, for example, often notice trends and issues that senior leaders might miss because they’re closer to daily operations and customer experiences.
The goal isn’t to rely solely on pattern recognition but to integrate it with analytical thinking. Lynn Tilton captures this balance perfectly:
"I definitely move from my intuition. But intuition without intellect is like buying a plane without any propulsion. I do the analysis, but my decision comes from my place of knowing. You can't shut off your intuition."
Mastering intuitive wisdom takes time and practice. By combining mindfulness with pattern recognition, you create a solid foundation for decisions that are both logical and instinctive. This balanced approach helps you act with confidence while staying open to new insights and evolving circumstances.
Conclusion: Trust Your Thinking Without Getting Stuck
Effective leadership thrives on a blend of reason and intuition. It’s not about striving for perfection but about making informed decisions with the information at hand, while staying flexible enough to adjust as circumstances evolve. The best leaders know how to balance careful analysis with instinct, creating a solid foundation for confident choices without falling into the trap of overthinking.
This approach requires rejecting the false dilemma of choosing between logic and gut feeling. Instead, combine data-driven insights with the wisdom gained from experience. When faced with complex decisions, narrow your focus to a few key options rather than getting bogged down by an overwhelming number of possibilities.
Confidence grows through practice. Keep track of your successes and reflect on the lessons learned from each decision. Remember, leadership rarely involves decisions that are purely right or wrong. Many choices exist in shades of grey, making intellectual humility essential. Actively seek feedback, encourage diverse perspectives, and turn disagreements into opportunities to learn. At the same time, establish clear markers for when to pivot as new information arises, and be transparent about uncertainties to foster trust and support for experimentation.
The aim isn’t to eliminate doubt but to take action with confidence while staying open to change. Define your risk limits, act decisively, and let each decision refine your judgement. Over time, this process helps you prioritise progress over perfection.
Trust your judgement, stay adaptable, and allow each choice to strengthen your leadership skills.
FAQs
How can I tell the difference between good judgement and being judgemental as a leader?
The difference between good judgement and being judgemental lies in how you approach situations and the impact your decisions have on others. Good judgement involves thoughtful, objective decision-making that considers the full context, values diverse perspectives, and seeks to build understanding. This approach fosters trust, promotes teamwork, and contributes to a constructive and encouraging atmosphere.
In contrast, being judgemental often means making snap decisions based on personal biases or incomplete information. This can result in unfair criticism, strained relationships, and a negative working environment that hinders progress.
To cultivate good judgement, focus on self-reflection, practise active listening, and stay open to feedback. These habits not only enhance your ability to make balanced decisions but also contribute to a more inclusive and supportive team dynamic.
How can I stop overthinking and make better decisions?
Overthinking often makes decision-making feel overwhelming, but these tips can make the process smoother:
- Embrace imperfection: No choice will ever be flawless. Instead of chasing an unattainable ideal, aim for a decision that feels "good enough" and practical.
- Set a time limit: Establish a clear deadline for making up your mind. Having a defined time frame can cut down on endless deliberation and push you towards action.
- Define clear boundaries: Use specific criteria or constraints, such as deadlines or must-have features, to narrow your options and prevent endless analysis.
By incorporating these methods, you can streamline your thinking, approach decisions with greater confidence, and ease the mental strain of overthinking.
How can mindfulness improve decision-making and judgement in leadership?
Mindfulness plays a key role in improving decision-making and judgement for leaders by sharpening self-awareness, enhancing focus, and strengthening emotional control. Leaders who incorporate mindfulness into their routine are more likely to identify their own biases and emotional triggers, enabling them to make decisions with a clearer and more balanced mindset.
Taking a moment to pause and reflect before responding helps curb impulsive choices, especially during stressful or high-stakes situations. Mindfulness also nurtures mental flexibility, allowing leaders to consider alternative perspectives and carefully evaluate potential outcomes. This thoughtful approach fosters leadership that is both effective and resilient.