The Posture of Your Decision

Joseph King Barkley, the president of the MetaPerformance Institute, recently wrote a thought-provoking post on LinkedIn. It relates to how he handles exploratory calls with coaches who are considering joining Foundations, a coaching training program offered by the Institute. He said,

“I do not care if they join. 

I genuinely only care about one thing.

Whether or not they are making an empowered decision.

Empowerment is about agency and ownership.

When you're empowered, you know what you're choosing. 

You know exactly what you’re saying YES to and what you’re saying NO to. You’re happy with the trade-offs. You make decisions based on clarity. You're moving toward something, not away from something.

Disempowerment is about avoidance and victimhood.

When you’re disempowered, you’re not connected to what you’re choosing. 

You’re unclear about the trade-offs you’re making. Meaning, you do not understand the true cost of inaction. Disempowered choices are reactive and often made out of fear. You’re typically running away from something instead of toward something. It’s rooted in blame. It’s often a decision you make because of external factors instead of an internal conviction.

My only goal on Discovery Calls?

Help coaches get clear on the trade-offs so they can give an empowered YES or an empowered NO to joining the program.

Either one is a win.”

I find the distinctions raised here useful and fascinating for analyzing the internal posture of our decisions more generally. All of us make decisions—some big and some small. 

This week, I invite you to examine a decision you’re currently pondering by asking yourself:

How clear am I about the trade-offs of action vs. inaction? 
Am I running toward something or running away from something? 
Am I acting from external factors vs. internal convictions?
Am I empowered or disempowered?

God bless,
Dan

P.S. If you’re interested in learning more about Foundations, I encourage you to reach out to Joseph King Barkley. Who I am as a coach today is in large part due to my having completed the program.