Smart Business Growth with Nicky & Ness

Beat Decision Fatigue and Boost Performance

• Nicky & Ness • Season 3 • Episode 3

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Could you be sabotaging your company's success with decision fatigue? Discover how this silent productivity killer might be draining your resources and leaving your business in the dust. 

On today's Smart Business Growth Podcast, Nicky and Ness tackle the pressing issue of decision fatigue in leadership. We explore the heavy toll of constant decision-making on leaders, revealing how it can inflate costs, erode profits, and stunt sales. By navigating the chaos of busy traps and disordered work environments, we offer strategies to realign your business goals and sustain a vibrant work culture. Our discussion highlights the importance of staying focused to prevent burnout and avoid fostering a culture of dependency and micromanagement.

We promise you a roadmap to revitalised decision-making. Establishing a clear "True North" can transform your decision-making process by anchoring choices in your core business values and vision. 

Learn how empowering your team to become decision-makers not only eases your burden but also nurtures their growth and sense of purpose. We delve into automating decision-making through strategic questioning, ensuring every decision resonates with your objectives. 

This episode is packed with actionable insights to enhance your leadership approach and promote enduring business success. Listen in and arm yourself with the tools to overcome decision fatigue and lead your team with renewed clarity and confidence.

Learn more about Nicky and Ness https://businesstogether.com.au

Buy a copy of Healthy Hustle: The New Blueprint to Thrive in Business & Life www.healthyhustle.com.au

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Nicky LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/connectwithnicky/
Ness LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessamedling/

Give us a call
Nicky Miklos-Woodley 0403 191 404
Vanessa (Ness) Medling 0400 226 875

Or send us an email hello@businesstogether.com.au

Music by Jules Miklos-Woodley

Nicky:

Welcome to the Smart Business Growth Podcast with Nicky and Ness.

Ness:

We would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of country, the Turrbal and Bunurong people of Brisbane and Melbourne respectively, where Nicky and I both work and live, both work and live. There's a really interesting stat that I came across. There's McKinsey research which found executives spend between 40 to 70% of their time making decisions. That seems about fair and it got me thinking, particularly as we start a new year around. How can we, as leaders and business owners, avoid getting to this stage of decision fatigue? Decision fatigue seems to be something that grows as the year goes on. So many people may have had a break over Christmas, come back feeling refreshed, but the more we make decisions you know, up to 70% of our time then this cumulative effect of the repetition of making decisions and the exhaustive decision-making ends up in what we call decision fatigue.

Ness:

Now, why does this matter? Well, decision Design Australia released a white paper in April last year and they talked about the fact that poor decisions made by leaders lead to, in 58% of cases, increased business costs, in 40% of cases, a loss in profit and, in 35% of cases, a drop in sales. I don't know about you, Nicky, but that blew my mind and reading that and seeing the impact that poor decision making can have on a business. We just have to be able to get this right, and I think it's such an important topic for us to start the conversation at this time of the year in. So I'm curious what was your response and reaction to hearing that?

Nicky:

Ouch, no, thank you. I mean drop in sales, loss in profit, increased business costs. We work so damn hard to grow the business, to grow profit. You know to keep costs at a minimum to all of these things and I think you know what's interesting about this is that when we think about decision fatigue, is it avoidable? Is decision fatigue?

Ness:

avoidable? I think it is definitely, but I do also see how we get there. What are the impacts and the flow-ons of having to make so many decisions all the time if we don't have any kind of guidance or compass or anything in order to be able to help us determine how to make a great decision? You know, I certainly I don't know about you, but for me, if I get to a point where I've got way too many decisions to make, guess what I do Bury my head in the sand and completely avoid making any decision whatsoever.

Ness:

And I think that this whole idea and concept of decision fatigue can play out in a way that obviously is going to impact the business. It's just when you see those stats. It kind of gives you that kind of kick in the gut that says, geez, this is really important, it really matters. What else do you notice? You know the businesses that we work with and the leaders that we work with. What's the impact? Probably not so much on the business, because we kind of had those stats. But what are the other impacts around this whole concept of decision fatigue?

Nicky:

I mean, I think it's also to look at how do we get there right, like we were saying around. And so, therefore, the impact on the individual, because what this screams at to me is busy trap, it screams to me, business chaos, it screams to me juggle straight, being all things to all people, and when we're in that state, then decision fatigue is an unfortunate outcome of that. So, like you said, it could be that some people, our innate approach or reaction to this is avoidance. I can't deal with it, I'll bury my head in the sand. It can absolutely lead to overwhelm. So we still stay stuck. Nothing moves forward. And if we think about that, we have goals we want to achieve, we have outcomes that we're striving for, we have a true north that we want to move towards, and so staying stuck and staying in overwhelm doesn't help us progress and move forward.

Nicky:

I think also, the other thing that can happen here is that we end up saying yes to too many things, but yes to the wrong thing.

Nicky:

We were having a conversation with another leader yesterday about this whole space that we can play in, where it's yep, that'll do, that'll do. So the standards can drop to either what we say yes to, to the quality of our work, to what we're doing. So, again, it can really impact us staying aligned to our vision. It can impact, you know, when we talk about in previous episode 12th of January is when years resolutions tend to start to break down. You know, we don't we tend to have that short term view of things. So it can really impact our ability to be able to achieve the things that we really want to achieve, that have meaning, and instead we end up getting stuck in chaos. We're still on jungle street and we're still in the busy trap, and that can also lead, of course, to burnout. Or, of course, what we talk about with entrepreneurial addiction. So what might seem like such as, yeah, decision fatigue, oh, yeah, we joke about, I've got decision fatigue Actually there's really serious impacts to business and to the individuals within the business?

Ness:

Absolutely, and I also think about how this impacts on your team. So if, as a business owner, you don't have the systems and the processes set up, if you haven't empowered your leaders or your team to make their own decisions and understand what a good decision is and how to get there, then they're going to continually come to you as their leader, and you will then have to not only come up with all the decisions that you need to make as an executive or a leader in the business, but also be making decisions on behalf of your team, who can't make decisions for themselves and I think around you know this is a trap that we can fall into if we go down the deep, dark path of micromanagement, because it just continues to put more and more pressure on, so actually, your team. They're just doers, they are just doing the do, not making decisions, which is putting even more pressure on you as a leader to make more decisions and therefore the quality of your decision-making can suffer. It's really, I mean, like I don't want to be all doom and gloom. I think that there is a brilliant example of that comes to mind from the Healthy Hustle book is Michelle and Gregory. Michelle and Douglas, michelle and Gregory, michelle and Douglas.

Ness:

I have married off to someone completely different, but Michelle and Douglas they decided a number of years ago they had a growing business, they had a team and they had four small children and they decided they want to go and live in Spain for a year. So after going through this process of working out well, we have to explore this. We can't let this opportunity pass. But if there's a roadblock that we can't get through, then sure, we won't go. But as they uncovered and unpacked all of the things that they thought could stop them from living overseas for a year and running a business, what they discovered was everything they were able to overcome. They were able to find a way through. So they spent time. They made the decision and then they spent time preparing their team and getting their team ready and helping their team understand how to make a decision in the business without them there, but helping them buy into what mattered, how to look at all the different aspects that are important in their business.

Ness:

And I remember Michelle talking about telling her team you can't break the business, and that just was really. I guess it's quite enlightening to think about. Sometimes we don't want others to make decisions because we worry that they're going to do it wrong. They're going to make a mistake, it's going to have a big impact but, as she said, if somebody makes a decision and it breaks the business, we've got bigger problems to be dealing with here. So she empowered her team her and Douglas empowered their team to say make the best decision you know how to make and we'll evaluate that afterwards.

Ness:

So setting your team up to succeed is really about helping them step into a position where they don't need to necessarily rely on you. Now, that's not to say that they didn't touch base with the business whilst they were away overseas, but, as one thing she pointed out was because of the time difference, often a problem that was sent through or emailed or text through in the working day here was nighttime there and by the time they got to it, it had been resolved or the decision had been made. So I think there's something we can take away from that in thinking in relation to if we are making a lot of decisions, how are we setting our team up to support us to do that in a way that's going to help the business succeed? So there you go. We have light and dark.

Ness:

Yes, and I think that you know if we are to look at breaking down how to avoid decision fatigue. I want to share with our listeners and our viewers today what those probably the top three things are. What are the three things that you can do to help get out of this trap? Because we don't want increased business costs, a loss in profit and a drop in sales. So, Nicky, what would you say? The number one thing that we would recommend would be how do I choose between our top three?

Nicky:

I think they're all well.

Ness:

Okay, let me, let me, it's like children.

Nicky:

It is like children, the place to start, because it is the anchor, it is what we call the true north is to make sure that you've got some clarity of direction, that you've got some planning that has been put in place, and we talked about this a little bit in last week's episode as well.

Nicky:

So your plan on a page we call it a plan on a page it's part of a whole True North framework and it's called the True North framework for a reason because it is literally the anchor to come back to. When we're clear on what is important, we know what to prioritize and then it's easier to say yes or no to things. And that's going to help with this decision fatigue. Regardless of if you're the business owner, a leader or a team member, everybody needs to be clear on what the true north is, what the outcome is, where we're all going. And so, again, not to go into detail, but make sure you set what that is, that the team knows what that is and you are checking in with it monthly, weekly and quarterly. So that was an odd order weekly, monthly and quarterly. True North. You've got to have what your clarity of direction and what's important. That would be number one.

Ness:

Yep, I'd have to agree with that, because if we're clear on the vision of where we're going in the business and we're clear on our values and you know, making sure that the culture is aligned to what we want it to be, then all decisions need to be filtered through that. And if that isn't clear, then obviously decisions are being made aligned to what you know. You'd have to ask how poor? How are poor decisions made when you don't have that true north?

Nicky:

to come back to yeah, because you can make a decision, but we don't know the quality of the decision or the impact of making that decision.

Ness:

Yeah so yeah. Have you heard? Our book Healthy Hustle the New Blueprint to Thriving Business and Life, is available right now to purchase. In Healthy Hustle, we take you through real-world, practical and achievable steps to move you away from unhealthy hustle to a place of happiness and living, whilst continuing to achieve incredible business results. Order your copy now at healthyhustlecomau.

Nicky:

So number two really aligns with what you were talking about around delegating or turning doers into decision makers. So we talk about this, as you might have a team of amazing people in the business. They're doing a great job. It's almost transactional though, like they're literally doing the work but they're not necessarily making decisions, they're not empowered to make decisions. That then take some of the load off you or some of the load off other leaders, and also it empowers them. There's a sense of purpose in that. They're more likely to feel well, they're likely to learn, to grow, just like in Michelle and Douglas's case and they will get to learn themselves. So there's an empowerment around that. So we want to delegate so that you can turn your doers into decision makers, and there's a lot of benefits to that. But I'm going to shorten that there, because the next step, the top three, the third point is going to help you that Ness will share, because I'm going to throw this one to you. Point three is going to help how you can turn your doers into decision makers.

Ness:

Absolutely so. I love that they link so all of them link so closely together. This one's about automating your decision making, and that is through asking high quality questions. So often we look at how can we set a structure up in order to set our team up to succeed when they take action. Now, if we have a decision-making process within the business or for ourselves, where we get to ask ourselves a number of questions and then have that time to sit and do the thinking around, what impact does making this decision have? If we are making decisions on the fly, it's going to be much harder to be able to identify any problems that come as a result of that. And I think that you know, obviously, there's a different layer of decisions that we make. I mean some decisions around what am I going to wear to this meeting, or you know what I'm going to have for lunch? Pretty low quality decisions potentially, but this is more around. You know, those things that you could have fatigue on. So how can we make it easier for you?

Ness:

And the three that we use in our business are not necessarily going to be working in every single business, although I'd be surprised if some of these questions don't resonate for everyone. But this is where we go to Now. We have three questions. The first one is is this taking me closer to my goal? So, if we have to make a decision about doing something or not doing something, this is where we come back to that true north. We need to know what our goals are. We need to know what our vision is. So are we moving closer towards that or further away from that by saying yes to this? The second one is If I say yes to this, am I going to be able to keep my hustle healthy? Because you know we are all about healthy hustle, not hustling for the sake of just hustling. So we need to consider what impact is this going to have on me being able to be my best self? Is it going to mean that I'm going to have to work longer hours? Am I going to have to work on weekends? Is it going to mean that I have to compromise some of my boundaries? And you really have to ask the question. If the answer is yes to all of that, is it worth it? Now, sometimes we might say short-term pain for long-term gain, but really we need to be consciously aware of what choice we're making and what impact it has, not just on us but on our teams and on our families.

Ness:

And then the third question in our decision-making triage, I guess it is is do I feel good about doing this? Because if it's something that you're saying yes to and I can think about a scenario with a client where they want new business they bring a client into their business and they know from the get-go that this client's going to be trouble, and yet they move ahead with it anyway because they're looking at something different. So am I going to feel good about this? Oh, I don't know that I can work with that person. Their values don't align. I get the ick whenever I speak to them, but I'm going to go ahead and do it anyway because I think it'll get me.

Ness:

Money is not necessarily going to be a decision that's going to be helpful. So I think this one you've got to be a little bit careful on, because we can't just feel good all the time about the things that we do. Sometimes we have to do things that are a stretch and can feel uncomfortable. But I think for me personally, what this comes back to is does it feel good or do I feel good doing this? Is it aligned to my values. That's sort of where I go to. What about you, Nicky?

Nicky:

That's what I'm thinking as you're saying this, because, you know, nothing has meaning but the meaning that we give it, and so you know it might be, particularly if there's a team. The questions might differ slightly, but maybe the do I feel good about this could be is it a values fit, you know, or getting really clear on values fit is good because it's decision making triage for a variety of different decisions, but something in there around a good fit, because, even if we talk about the hypothetical, that is absolutely a real scenario for so many people, and I had a coaching session on this just earlier today around the type of clients that we work with. So let's just say we're wanting to grow our business. New client comes in. Is it taking me closer to my goal, my revenue, whatever that might be? And, by the way, when you're doing this, don't say my goal, put in what your goal is, so it's really meaningful for you. So is it taking me closer to say, a revenue goal? Well, yeah, a new client would be, but then it might be that there's a no.

Nicky:

For is this helping me keep the hustle healthy? That actually might be a no, because you already know that they're going to take up a lot of your time outside of business hours, or it's a totally new segment or industry that you're going to have to put a lot of work into. Do I feel good about this, or does it align with values? That might then be a no. So you might get the idea. The formula here is if you get three yeses, then it's a heck yes, let's do it full steam, ahead you go. If it's two yeses, then you need to dig a little bit deeper around this, and if it's one yes, then it's actually a no. So in that hypothetical example that many people can relate to, it might be that it's taking you closer to your revenue goal, but it's not helping you keep the hustle healthy and it doesn't feel good, or it's not aligned with values, and so you can see then already it's helping you make the decision easier.

Nicky:

But again, you can tailor these questions based on what is right for you as a business owner, as a leader, and then you might come up with some questions with or for your team, and they might vary a little bit, because certainly you don't want your team to be like does this feel good for me? They're going to use that as a really good excuse to get off the hook for a lot of things. I'm sure Not all team members, but I'm sure there's a lot out there that would leaders as well. So yeah, I think you've got to go in with eyes wide open and kind of just really think what are my non-negotiables and what are the business non-negotiables, what did work and what didn't work last year? So how do we create decision-making questions around that?

Ness:

Absolutely, and I think those decision-making questions, you know, one of the things I remember learning I think it was a Tony Robbins thing was about the quality of your questions will determine the quality he was talking about of your life but effectively, of your business as well. So, when it comes to identifying the questions that are going to help you to be able to move away from decision fatigue, so that you know that you've done all the pre-thinking it's kind of like that Barack Obama and Steve Jobs wearing the same outfit every single day, so they don't have to make a decision about what am I going to wear today. If the pre-thinking is done now, then you are setting yourself up for the year. That's not to say that you know you might tweak the questions as the year goes on, but at least you have a starting point. Give it a try.

Ness:

Just to reiterate that the key things that are going to set you up for success is, first of all, your true north. Know your plan, have reference to your vision and what your goals are, at least for the next quarter, when you're making decisions. The second thing is about moving your team from doers to decision makers. So how can we set up processes and structures so that they can make decisions and feel empowered, just like Michelle and Douglas' team did, which gave them a holiday overseas for a year.

Ness:

So, why not? And then, of course, the third is to automate it. Get your decision making questions really clear, and you can borrow ours until you find ones that fit yours. And get started with that and you know, see what impact that's having, because this matters too much for you just to ignore it and bury your head in the sand. So, on that note, Nicky, actionable action. What's something someone can do in the next 24 hours to be able to apply what we've talked about today?

Nicky:

It has to be. Come up with your three questions for your decision-making triage. Just get started, pop some down. And what we've done is like I've got ours on a post-it note, I stick it on my computer, put it somewhere visual. It doesn't have to be perfect, you can change it, but really get clear, start to get clear and just write something down with your triangle, your three key questions. Remember if there's three yeses, it's a hell yes, let's do it. If there's two, maybe dig a bit deeper and delve. If it's only one yes, it's a no way.

Ness:

Amazing. Thank you so much. Thank you for listening and watching again and we will be back in your listening ears next week. See you later.

Ness:

See you later again and we will be back in your listening ears next week. See you later. Thanks for listening to today's ep. If you loved what you heard, connect with us over on LinkedIn and let's continue the conversation over there. Did you hear you can now buy our book Healthy Hustle the new blueprint to thrive in business and life at healthyhustlecomau. Want us to speak to your team or run a workshop on healthy hustle in your workplace? Send us an email or go old school and give us a call to discuss. Until next time, happy listening and here's to thriving in business and life.