Avoiding Emotion-Led Decisions

Our passions and our emotions are essential for inspiring and engaging our teams, but it is all too easy to allow those things to drive our decision making, replacing logic and clouding judgement.

In this article, we look at decisions made around employee relations issues (for example suspensions, disciplinary warnings and dismissals), but the logic can apply across all work-related decisions. When we are making decisions about the future of an organisation or individual within it, it is essential that we balance the heart and head to make sure we are making an informed and reasonable decisions and are aware of any likely impacts or implications.

How emotion is introduced into decision making

When we have invested time and energy recruiting and training an employee, it can sometimes feel like a personal betrayal when their behaviour or performance falls below acceptable standards. This is particularly true in small teams or family-run organisations, and where the impacts of poor conduct or performance are potentially larger. If the issues persist, or a disciplinary or capability process is begun, emotions can begin to cloud our judgement and set us on a pathway to taking decisions based on sentiment rather than strategy.

When we feel this sense of betrayal, our sympathetic nervous system kicks in because our brain recognises the situation as a threat or stressful.?The brain sends cortisol and adrenaline to flood our system, readying the body for a 'fight, flight and freeze' reaction, speeding up our heart rate and delivering more blood to areas of the body that need more oxygen.

This reaction slows our ability to process certain information and reduces our ability to think creatively. It also blocks off some of the cognitive tools we need to make complex decisions and manage risk. Generally speaking, we stay in this heightened state for as long our brain perceives the threat, meaning that if we take a critical decision such as whether to suspend or dismiss someone during this time, our judgement may have been clouded.

The risks of getting it wrong

There are risk associated with any decision we take as leaders and managers. Where we allow ourselves to be lead by our emotions, particularly during a disciplinary or capability process, we open ourselves up to potentially expensive and drawn out claims of unfair dismissal, discrimination, bullying or harassment.

So how do we take ourselves out of this state?

1. Awareness. If you can look inwardly and identify that you are behaving in an emotion-driven manner, this is the first step to managing those emotions and forming a balanced judgement in any situation. We recently wrote about emotional intelligence and how you can increase your EI and improve your responses to situations such as this.
2. Breathe. There are breathing exercises you can try to dampen down the 'flight, flight or freeze response', resetting your nervous system.
3. Take a break. Distracting your brain with something else is a wonderful tool for resetting those emotions. Whether you take on another task, grab a coffee, go for a walk or even meditate; this time out can give you the space to refresh your body and mind. It is rare that a decision has to be made right away so take good time to get it right, particularly if the decision relates to someone's career.
4. Check the data! Evaluating any 'hard' data is a great way to keep depersonalise and rationalise performance or conduct. Your data (or investigation) should give a clear picture that you can refer to. If there is no data to look at, list out all the issues on paper so you can physically see them, perhaps as a pros and cons list, or evidence for and against.
5. Step back. Take a moment to apply yourself to the situation as if you were advising a friend. Stepping outside the situation often gives us a level of clarity that we didn't have before. If you struggle to do this, try asking a friend,?mentor or external HR consultant who can offer the same result - just bear in mind the need to respect the confidentiality of those involved.
6. Research. Look for evidence that you are making the best choice possible - and then look for evidence that you are not. This will remove any 'confirmation bias' which can arise when we do an internet search. There are many trusted forums and external advisers available to tap into.
7. History. Looking back at previous decisions you have made, or previous case law, can be a really useful tool in identifying whether you are keeping a cool head or rushing ahead with a decision based on your emotions. Look at what has failed, what succeeded, what provided the best outcome to rationalize your decision making.
8. Reduce the circle. When the whole senior?management team are involved in an employee relations process, we can create an environment where everyone has an opinion and emotions can become far more layered and reinforced. Be wary of ‘egging’ each other on or getting tied up in spiralling narratives. Keep the circle small to those with decision-making responsibility; the line manager and Human Resources for example. This also leaves others impartial and uninvolved, and therefore available to hear an appeal if needed.
9. Keep to the issue! Make sure you really focus in on the evidence or issue itself. If you find yourself considering information that was not previously raised, that are hearsay, or generally affect the employee’s character, they may not be pertinent to the concern at hand. Remember the core issue at task here and bring your focus back to it.
10. Project into the future. Imagine you are standing on the witness stand at a tribunal. Can you confidently and publicly explain the reasons for your actions or your decisions? If not, you may need to rethink your approach, or at the very least set down some notes detailing your thought process and the information considered when taking your decision.

Running a business can be an emotional experience, with highs and lows along the way. Having feelings and emotions is an important part of being a human and gives us the essential empathy needed for your team and your customers. The message here isn’t to discard your emotions, but instead to learn to monitor and manage them to allow for sound judgement and robust decision-making.

For support in any of these areas please do call us on 01582 252500, we offer 15 minutes advice?for free to new callers. Or do get in touch by email.

Author - Hayley Doody