In our data-obsessed era, this might sound like heresy.
But after two decades in real estate and a year leading Harcourts South Australia, I’ve learned something business schools don’t teach: sometimes, your gut knows what your graphs cannot tell you.
The data trap we’ve all fallen into
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not anti-data.
Market trends, customer insights, and performance metrics are crucial.
But we’ve developed an unhealthy obsession with having every piece of information before we act.
I see it constantly in boardrooms.
Leaders paralysed by the quest for complete certainty, teams endlessly analysing while opportunities slip away, decisions delayed until the “perfect” dataset materialises (spoiler: it never does).
The harsh reality? In leadership, you will never have all the information you need.
And waiting for it is often the most dangerous decision of all.
Why your intuition isn’t just “feeling lucky”
When I talk about trusting your gut, I’m not advocating for reckless gambling.
Intuition in leadership isn’t mystical, it’s the culmination of years of experience, pattern recognition, and subconscious processing that happens faster than your analytical mind can keep up.
Your brain constantly absorbs information: body language in meetings, subtle market shifts, team energy.
Intuition is your mind synthesising all this data, including things you can’t easily quantify.
In real estate, I’ve seen agents walk into a property and immediately sense whether it’ll sell quickly, despite what comparable sales data suggests.
They’re not psychic, they’re picking up on dozens of subtle cues that don’t show up in spreadsheets.
The small stuff syndrome
Many leaders apply the same analytical rigour to every decision, regardless of magnitude. This is exhausting and counterproductive.
At a senior level, your energy and attention are finite resources.
If you’re agonising over minor decisions, you’ll have nothing left for what truly matters.
I categorise decisions into three buckets:
- Big bets: These deserve thorough analysis
- Reversible decisions: Make these quickly and adjust if needed
- Irreversible but low-stakes decisions: Trust your gut and move on
The magic happens when you stop sweating the small stuff and reserve your mental energy for what really counts.
Building a culture that embraces calculated risk
One of my biggest challenges is helping my team understand that imperfect decisions made with good intentions are often better than perfect decisions made too late.
Here’s what I tell my team: I trust that you will always have the intention of doing the right thing.
This gives people permission to act without perfect information, knowing they have my backing if things don’t go to plan.
When someone makes a decision that doesn’t work out, we don’t ask, “Why didn’t you get more data first?”
We ask, “What did you learn, and how do we apply that learning moving forward?”
When gut feelings and data clash
When your intuition and data point in different directions, try these strategies:
- Question your assumptions: Sometimes our “gut feeling” is unconscious bias
- Consider the cost of being wrong: Think about the consequences of each potential mistake
- Test when possible: Run a small pilot to validate your hunch
- Trust your track record: If your intuitive decisions have generally served you well, that’s data in itself
The confidence to lead forward
Your team needs you to make decisions with confidence, even when you don’t have all the answers.
Indecision is contagious and more damaging than making the occasional imperfect choice.
Earlier this year, we had to decide quickly whether to expand into a new market segment.
The research was incomplete, the timing felt rushed, and half my team wanted to wait for more data.
But something told me we needed to move.
We did, and whilst it wasn’t perfect, that decision opened doors we wouldn’t have had otherwise.
Moving Beyond Analysis Paralysis
Here’s how to start trusting your gut without abandoning good judgement:
- Start small: Practise making quick decisions on low-stakes issues
- Reflect regularly: Keep a decision journal tracking gut versus data-driven choices
- Create decision frameworks: Develop clear criteria for when to rely on intuition versus analysis
- Build diverse perspectives: Surround yourself with people who think differently
- Accept imperfection: A good decision quickly often beats a perfect decision slowly
Your Invitation to Lead with Confidence
Leadership isn’t about having all the answers, it’s about being willing to make decisions when others cannot or will not.
The most successful leaders dance between data and intuition, using both as tools.
The question isn’t whether you should trust your gut or follow the data.
The question is: are you confident enough to make decisions without perfect information, and wise enough to know when your experience is telling you something your spreadsheets cannot?
Your team, your organisation, and your market are waiting for leaders who can move with both wisdom and speed.
The data will never be complete, but your leadership doesn’t have to wait.
Trust yourself.
You know more than you think you do.
