What’s most important?

A friend of mine helped me today. I had a minor decision to make yet I found myself stuck. So I asked her for help. Rather than give me her opinion, she gave me a process. She said:

“Ask yourself which is more important.”

She went on to explain how she makes decisions when she’s feeling indecisive. She looks at all the choices on their own and asks herself, which is most important. Looking at each option on its own in detail helps her see what it offers. Then she compares it with the others to see which one aligns better with what she values the most.

In other words, make the decision based on your values, not on your current emotional state.

This is critical. Making decisions using our values helps us make more consistent choices. It helps us make decisions that work better for us in the long run.

As you work with customers, use this tool.

For example, you might find yourself tired, crabby, angry or simply stressed out. If your emotional state is elevated, it’s hard to focus on the needs of others. Our emotions are designed to get our attention, to get us to focus on our situation.

But this conflicts 100% with our job. We can’t serve our customers well when we’re focused on ourselves. So use this simple (but effective) tool to get your focus where it should be.

Ask yourself, “What’s most important?”

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