Moshe’s Blog

How to Make Decisions Based on Your Committed Principles – Especially When You’re Busy, Stressed, or Scared

His Death Barely Slowed My Scrolling

“Oh, Thomas died,” I said to myself when I read the announcement in my LinkedIn feed. “That’s too bad.” Then I instantly scrolled down to see whatever was next in my feed, feeling a little uneasy. Then I stopped myself.

I argued in my head. The first voice said: “Really? That’s all you’re gonna give, half a second of attention to a colleague that just passed. Are you seriously that heartless? Or that busy?” The other voice in my head countered… “Hey you got a lot to do. You didn’t know Thomas very well anyway and haven’t talked to him in years. And he’s dead, he won’t know or care! Be efficient.” Wow. I’m happy to say the first voice won; I took a moment to appreciate knowing Thomas.

As a leader, you are constantly faced with decisions about where to put your valuable time and attention. Making those decisions is vastly easier and far more efficient when you’ve committed to key principles and strategic values to guide you. Like in the case of the death announcement, you might invoke the core Amare Way value of “uplift and connect.” Or a principle of “people first.”

By making decisions this way, you consistently assess your options relative to those guiding principles and values rather than making it a “one-off” mood-dependent choice. This helps you be a more consistent, aligned, and strategic leader; ultimately, one free of regret

1. What guiding principles and values are you committed to?

2. How do you know when you’re not acting in alignment with your principles and values?

3. Are your decisions different when someone is watching?

3 Amare Ways To Be a Principled Leader

1. Commit to guiding principles. List three principles or values that are unconditionally non-negotiable for you. Write down why each is important. Announce your commitment to them. Post them in plain sight. Refer to them out loud when making hard decisions so others see your principles in action.

2. Stress test in “cold” settings. Imagine several scenarios that are likely to challenge your resolve to hold to those principles – e.g., fame and fortune, avoiding conflict. Whatever it is for you. Now make a specific plan for how you’ll bring yourself back to the guiding principles you committed to.

3. Stress test in “hot” settings. Pay attention in real time to when your resolve is challenged in the heat of the moment. Acknowledge the temptation to sway from your commitment. Then take a deep breath and say no thank you. Quickly enact the plan you made in the prior step.

Once you’ve committed to particular principles and values, that choice is made. Done. Now empower that choice by aligning your decisions with those values. This is the practice of a love-powered leader people will trust and follow.

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