7.1: Mindset and Decision-making

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In an earlier chapter we discussed mindset and locus of control. When making decisions, we focus on two aspects of mindset:

A positive self-empowering mindset
A negative self-victimizing mindset

Our mindset is impacted by the internal and external factors to be discussed in this chapter. We have to recognize that allowing a negative mindset or external locus of control to impact how we make decisions is our choice, but a positive mindset or internal locus of control will have a positive impact on our decision-making process. Compare this idea to being in the car. You want to be in the driver seat of your life (positive mindset, internal locus of control = self-empowering), or you can choose to sit in the passenger seat and not be in control of where the car is going (negative mindset, external locus of control = self-victimizing). When we allow a negative mindset we give up control to:

Time: delaying the decision is easy until we run out of time and/or options (e.g. “I can’t deal with this right now”);
Fate: thinking “what will happen, will happen, no matter what I do”
Others: going along with what someone else decides
Comfort: choosing the path of least resistance or what is familiar and comfortable
Emotions: going with how feelings in the moment

When we use a positive self-empowering mindset to make decisions, we use a decision-making process that lets us identify and analyze our options. After the analysis of our options, we then make the decision using one of the approaches listed below:

Analytical - What option has more pros than cons?
Intuitive - Which option feels right?

Remember the psychological preferences we discussed earlier in this text when discussing personality typology theories. According to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Thinking-Feeling (TF) dichotomy is how we make decisions. If we are on the Thinking side of the continuum, we make decisions using logic, and we value fairness and reason. If we are on the Feeling side of the continuum, we make decisions based on personal values and how decisions might affect others, and we value harmony. If we prefer Thinking, we may tend to use the analytical approach to decision-making, and if we prefer Feeling, we may tend to use the intuitive decision-making approach. As with all our preferences, however, we can function on either side of the dichotomy, and we may use different decision-making approaches according to different types of decisions.