Pre-Empt Your Inner Judge

Normally, my judgments based on intuition/sixth sense have paid off.

- Naveen Khajanchi, NHK Foundation

In my work in executive search, I have almost felt like an astrologer for correctly pinpointing people in the right positions, and making quick decisions about who belongs where and who should do what! But it is a tricky business. It is even harder for leaders because they have to take decisions quickly and as accurately as possible. A good sense of judgment is a good leadership attribute. But where it fails us is when we forget to take shades of grey into consideration. At times, our decisions do go wrong and I have learnt it the hard way that it is important to balance intuition with data and objectivity.

It is all about our ability to hold on to our biases and merge them in mindful manner so that objectivity is not lost.

In a recent blog on the importance of biases in our judgment, I explained how shedding judgments can help executives develop a sense of purpose in what they do. I am not contradicting this view. We should be as open as possible to different possibilities. But saying or thinking this, and applying it is another matter. For the most part, we claim to be open-minded, but implicit stereotypes and prejudices rise from our subconscious when we are not aware of it and colour our judgment.

Such stereotypes are more detrimental today with more diverse workforces and a multifaceted ‘millennial’ generation, which is difficult to understand. Applying a one-size-fits-all perception of competence to a twenty-something in a hurry is not the most effective way to uncover the talent in your ranks.