In order to achieve success in a business of your own, you need to be able to make rational decisions.
Rational decision makers generally make logical decisions based on the facts alone, and ignore the feelings of other people.
Humanists usually consider people first when they make decisions.
They are very sensitive about other people’s feelings, and they tend to approach business decisions with a great deal of compassion.
The analytical, logical and somewhat impersonal rationalist has been shown to be associated with survival and success in small business.
Unfortunately, the sensitive and compassionate humanist does not tend to perform as well.
So if this is the case, Katrena recommends not identifying yourself as a rationalist or humanist at all. Rather visualising a spectrum from rationalist at one end and humanist on the other end and asking yourself how much breath of behaviour you have access to.
For example when I am making a decision I like to use whole brain thinking. I like to think that I am very rational, logical and able to work through a problem step by step. Thinking about things from all angles. Then once, I have thought about it rationally, I then like to start to bring in all the thinking power from the people point of view. Thinking about how it would affect my clients, colleagues, partner and what I feel about things myself. Looking at the problem or decision from the people involved point of view.
How much of the spectrum do you have access to?
If you find that you don’t have a broad breath of behaviour, then work on stretching your comfort zone. As a people person, I was naturally a humanist by nature. As I studied business I developed my ability over time to think rationally, finding solutions to problems and making decisions systematically. Eventually the behaviours become congruent and natural, but you have to use your whole brain not just one side of it.
I work with a lot of women on their business and find that helping business owners with strategic planning, creative thinking, financial management and modelling helps them discover that rational thinking is fun and creative, not just safe and sensible.
When you get the balance right in business you can become as successful as possible in your field of excellence. If you have always said, you are a people person, then stop saying it and start working on stepping out of your comfort zone. Being able to access both sides of the spectrum at will is one of the secrets to business success.
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