Have you ever trusted your gut instinct? You know, the deep down inside the pit of your belly feeling you get when you just know something to be right, or wrong. It is not uncommon for me to trust my and allow it to strongly influence my decision-making process.

But is it OK to make decisions based on “trusting your gut”?

Rational people will tell you, “No.” They will list a host of reasons why trusting one's gut is a terrible way to lead, however, I’d argue to the contrary, when you know you are right based on your gut instinct, despite what the data might suggest, maybe, just maybe go with your gut instinct.

I remember several years ago I had a customer whose growth rate was insane. Their operation went from a 20,000 square foot building to a 300,000 square feet in a matter of years, and employees were added to keep up with the rapid expansion. Things were looking really good. For me, the fun came when each and every purchase order was bigger than the last, and for a long time servicing their account was a full-time job.

And then the phone call came, my buyer told me that they had been acquired by a Fortune 500 company, and that things were about to get really insanely busy. I wanted to be excited by the news, but my gut told me that the huge orders would quickly be coming to an end, and that the business stream I had there would soon evaporate. The data did not support my gut instinct, but I suspected my gut was right.

Within 6 months of the acquisition, the buyer announced that they were shutting down the operation. The business model in place prior to the purchase just didn’t fit with the parent company and because the parent company didn’t know how to adapt, my customer became a ledger entry loss on an accountants spreadsheet. And hundreds of people lost their jobs and what once was a great company ceased to exist.

Gut instinct saw through the data of what on the surface appeared to be a really good thing. Does that mean you should only and always trust your gut instinct? Of course not, however knowing when and where to trust is paramount in ones success. Gut instinct becomes a sixth sense, it can’t nor should it be ignored. It may not always be right, but looking back at my personal track record trusting my gut, I can tell you it has been right more than it has been wrong.

The challenge here is simple, next time you are faced with a tough decision, or something about the decision you need to make just doesn’t feel right. Lean in to your gut - you never know what it may be trying to tell you.

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Stop Living Life Like a Firefighter

I would wager a bet that you didn’t realize you were a firefighter. Most people will never realize the truth that they live life as a firefighter. I know what you are thinking, I’m not referring to a literal firefighter. No, quite to the contrary, most people live their lives rushing from one crisis to the next, always reacting to the moment.

I don’t need to tell you how much stress that can bring to one's life. Crisis management is a great skill, but certainly not one that needs to come into play day after day after day. And yet day in and day out people rush around seeking to avert one crisis after another, never getting the time to stop given the need to react to crisis after crisis.

Have you ever heard the saying, “Lack of planning on your part does not equal a crisis for me”?

This concept is as relevant in your personal life as it is in your business life.

Living life intentionally and on purpose is a great way to get out of the role of firefighter and gain. Proactively planning your life is a great way to start getting out of the reactionary lifestyle and makes for a much calmer day.

An intentional life is one that is well thought out, planned and deliberate. That doesn’t always mean a crisis can be averted, however when you seek to put structure and order into your life, the likelihood of a crisis is exponentially diminished. Even better - when a crisis is presented - your intentional planning mitigates the circumstances leading to a better outcome than the people presenting the crisis expected.

So what is the takeaway?

How about spending some time this week being intentional about your calendar. Put your time to work for you.

Own it.

Master it.

Most importantly make it your own. Be intentional, be proactive, and hang up your firefighting suit once and for all.

(Did you know you can get Monday Morning Minute delivered to your inbox every Monday morning? Visit PSCoachTN.com and register to have Monday Morning Minute waiting for you each Monday as you start your work week.)