In a world with so much data at your fingertips, marketers need to learn how to extract insights from numbers. If you only believe the data, you might think all 60-70-year-old men who live in England, are wealthy, like music and enjoy dressing up are the same demographic.
Now think of Prince Charles and Gene Simmons of Kiss.
Intuition allows you to process information and to see past the data.
Leaders Trust Their Intuition
Every week I listen to How I Built This, a blog by Guy Raz that NPR produces. He interviews business leaders who started their companies from scratch. From Sara Blakely of Spanx, Kevin Systrom & Mike Krieger from Instagram, Gary Erikson from Clif Bar, Joe Gebbia from Airbnb, Angie Hicks from Angie’s List and on and on.
The most common theme I hear from this discussion is simple. In the face of reams of data, they trusted their instincts. They didn’t ignore data or disregard what the logical side of their brain told them – but they acted from a place inside.
Often these inspiring leaders will say something like, even though everyone said I was crazy, I still did what I sensed or believed was right. They refused to fight a gut feeling to go in a certain direction. They used the information to help guide them in a direction, but made right or left turns, based on instinct.
Intuition – the distillation of inspiration
Next time you become faced with a challenge at work, give yourself a chance to process all the information. I like to sit quietly or walk to allow my intuition to help guide me. I don’t force it, but often if I just let the information marinate, I find the right decision and build trust from the gut.
Data helps you draw a picture, but your intuition is the artist inside that picks the right colors.
How has your intuition helped you create?
Looking for help with your marketing? Trust your intuition and text or call me to start a conversation. I can help you grow your business. 919 720 0995 or jeffslater@themarketingsage.com
Photo: Courtesy of Prince Charles and Gene Simmons
