“Wise Decision Making” written by Suzanne Henwood published in Great Health Guide (April 2017). Reflect back on past decisions, notice if you made them from your head, your heart or your gut? Perhaps you used a combination to make your decision. Read more to discover the benefits of this kind of decision making.
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Great Health: Wise Decision Making
written by Suzanne Henwood
Take a moment to reflect on a past decision, which you felt was a good decision. Where did you make the decision from? Was it from your head – all about logic and facts, was it a rational explanation that said you should choose a certain outcome? Or did you decide from your heart? Was it driven by what is most important to you, how you feel and how others might be affected? Or was your gut involved? Was it about who you are at your core? Or was it protecting you in some way? Did you act on it quickly?
HOW DO YOU MAKE YOUR DECISIONS?
The art of using your multiple intelligences:
Excitingly, the very latest applied neuroscience tells us we have multiple brains (or intelligences) and that wise decision making is most likely when we use all three brains in a certain order. Each brain has its own ‘Prime Function’ and when working positively across all three prime functions in each brain, then the brain expresses itself in what is called ‘Highest Expression.’ By focusing on the individual brains and allowing each brain to function optimally and resourcefully, facilitating highest expressing of the brains – then new wisdom emerges which is transformational.
Experience from mBraining shows that prior to making any decision, there is a benefit from balancing the body and its autonomic nervous system, to fully access all your intelligence. Use breathing to create heart coherence and enable full access to inner wisdom. If ever there was a time in history when wise decision making is needed, surely it is now!
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Look to your right…
Process in mBraining Decision Making Model:
1. Take a minute to quieten and balance your body. Sit quietly, back straight, shoulders relaxed, feet flat on the floor, hands in your lap and bring your attention to your breathing. Consciously bring your breathing into a rhythmic pattern where you breathe in for a count of 6 and breathe out for a count of 6. Hold this pattern for 3 minutes.
2. Recall the decision you wish to make and taking your attention to your heart area, ask your heart:
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What it truly desires
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How it feels about the situation
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How any decision would affect significant others
Allow your system to go quiet so you can hear or feel what your heart is saying.
3. Now, thank your heart and move your attention to the head. Ask your head:
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What it thinks about the situation/decision
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What does it already know (and is that a fact or might it be your mind read?
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What story are you telling yourself about it – what meaning are you giving the story you are telling?
Be careful not to get too deeply into old ingrained stories – as you may just reinforce a story which may not even be true.4. Thank your head and move your attention to your gut. Ask your gut:
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What decision would keep you safe?
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Which choice motivates you to act?
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Which choice/option ‘feels’ right’?
You may find placing your hands on your tummy allows you to access your gut intuition and intelligence.
USE BREATHING TO CREATE HEART COHERENCE & ACCESS YOUR INNER WISDOM
5. Continuing to breathe in your natural beautiful rhythm and reflect on the intelligence that has emerged from all three brains. Are the brains in agreement? If not – what is required to bring them into agreement? What value or resource can you take into the body to enable all three to agree with the decision you have chosen to go with?
6. As you bring the brains into alignment, imagine the decision flowing around the brains and remain quiet and contemplative. This is the point at which new wisdom will emerge. It may be a word, a picture, a feeling, a symbol – you will understand it and can interpret what it means. It may be new information, or it may confirm what you thought you knew. Allow yourself some time to sit with this new wisdom.
7. Be honest with yourself and check for any bias and old thinking. Genuinely ensure all three brains have now had their input before making the final decision.8. Finally – check out how the new decision feels. Imagine six months down the line having made that decision – how does that feel? What will you be doing and who will you be, having made that decision now?
I encourage you to have a play with this process on a small decision first. It may take a few practices to be able to recognise your heart and gut – if you have not included them in conversations for a while. And be gentle with yourself. Explore the options in a loving way that always has your best interest at heart.
Author of this article:
Dr Suzanne Henwood is an Associate Professor in Health and Social Sciences and a Master Trainer of mBIT (multiple Brain Integration Techniques). If you have any questions about mBraining or the mBraining decision making process – you can always find her at website.
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