Here’s a quick tip to help you with any dilemmas that send you into a tailspin of confusion, second-guessing anxiety or analysis paralysis.

(Can you tell I am familiar with the Indecision Gremlins? We Librans do like to weigh ALL the options…)

This quick tip has become invaluable for knowing what to do in both my work and my life in general.

I believe that the relief of resolving a dilemma is a much-underestimated joy.

But that’s not all…

In addition to helping you make decisions quickly, or at least, knowing in a split second how you REALLY feel about the options – this tip will also have the lovely side-effect of honing your intuition and trusting yourself more.

Both of these are worthy assets for any creative.

So, if you ever struggle with indecision, this is for you…

Intuitive decision making

I recently received an invitation to an event that had the potential to rapidly uplevel my career.

On paper, it looked like an excellent opportunity.

But, as much as I was flattered to have been considered, as much as I wanted to want to accept, as much as I knew it made complete sense to go for it…

A part of me knew it was a no.

And that part of me was… my nose.

Because whenever I have a decision to make, one that’s becoming an inner tussle (usually between Head and Heart), I’ve learned to ask myself;

How do I feel about it?

And then I get my answer in terms of a physical tell – as in the giveaway facial cues or nervous ticks so beloved by poker players.

When it’s a yes – however scary, daunting, or bewildering – I find I am grinning uncontrollably.

For example, in this scenario.

However, when it’s a no, I wrinkle my nose.

Or rather, it wrinkles itself!

It’s involuntarily. But it’s still revealing.

And it tells me all I need to know – ie, that it’s a No.

So, these are my two basic tells – for Yes and No – and knowing these helps me so much whenever I’m stuck in indecision or feeling anxious about a dilemma.

I get a quick hit of direction from my intuition to help me assess the best option for me.

While I find that journaling can also help me untangle many a dilemma, that remedy can be quite time-consuming and it’s not always an option.

So, having an instantaneous tell from my Inner Decision Maker can be hugely helpful in making faster decisions.

And I’ve learned that making decisions aligned with my intuition also tend to lead to less post-decision anxiety or regret, however it all turns out.  

What’s your tell?

So, if you’d like to be able to make faster or more intuitive decisions, I highly recommend you explore your own Yes and No tells.

BTW, there are other physical intuitive messages that can help us, eg I get a tingling on the top of my head whenever a great idea is coming in.

But all you really need to know to make basic decision making easier are your own Yes and No tells.

So, if you don’t yet know yours, I invite you to experiment the next time you have a decision to make.

Take a moment, take a breath (this helps you to reconnect to your physical self instead of being too much in your head – where dilemmas live!).

And then ask how you feel about the options, one at a time.

Then be on the lookout for any physical sensations or involuntary twitches.

When you’ve done this a few times you’ll soon know for sure what your Yes and No tells are.

Another way to discover your particular physical responses is to ask someone who knows you well, someone familiar with your facial expressions.

Ask them if you do anything in particular when you’re excited or when your uncertain or doubtful.

You may be surprised how they’re already pretty familiar with your tells!

So, I hope you find this little trick helpful.

As modern life is increasingly offering us more and more decisions and dilemmas, the ‘anxiety of choice’ is becoming a constant issue, especially for those of us with creative dreams or big visions for the future.

And of course, if you already know exactly what your own tells are – I would LOVE to hear!!

UPDATE:

Sometimes a No can turn into a Yes, especially if you trust yourself and back your responses.

For example, my wrinkled nose reaction led me to turn down the opportunity, but it bounced back in a new and improved format that actually got me smiling!

At that point, it was a Yes.

Don’t ask me how or why, but I trust all will be revealed in time.

And in the meantime, I feel happy that I heard – and followed – my intuition, which gives me peace of mind as the events, people and results all play out as they will.

So, whatever the outcome of this particular decision, I get to enjoy the calmfidence of trusting my own judgement, which could well be the happiest outcome of all. 🙂

PS If decision-making is a difficult issue for you, I’ve put together a simple process for creating a single-page blueprint of what matters to you.

It’s called The Rudder Board and it’s designed to help you avoid choice overwhelm and decision fatigue, so you can preserve your precious decision-making fuel for the things that really matter.

Details below!

Numerology as a scheduling tool
(for over-inspired creatives)

My remedy for choice overwhelm & decision fatigue