Good morning!

Now more than ever, leaders are navigating immense complexity. We’ve coached thousands of senior leaders and have noticed that a critical superpower of effective senior leaders is decision-making.

So, what drives better decision-making? Self-awareness.

• A study of 70,000 decisions by Thomas Graeber and Benjamin Enke finds that self-assurance doesn’t necessarily reflect skill. Shrewd decision-making often comes down to how well a person understands the limits of their knowledge: they are well-calibrated about what they know and don’t know, acknowledge their blind spots, and engage others in the decision-making process.

• So many of the decisions we make day to day are automatic and based on information we’ve subconsciously stored about what is “good” or “bad.” But some decisions are heavier and need conscious thinking. This HBR article, A Simple Way to Make Better Decisions, highlights the value of writing to pull us into self-awareness, resulting in more balance, clarity, and confidence in decision-making.

And it could go without saying, but we’ll say it—one of the outcomes of high-quality executive coaching is increased self-awareness. So, if this resonates for you or your leaders, please do reach out. We’d love to support you.