Decision Making Mastery

By Carl Massy

Would you agree that the quality of the decisions we make, day-to-day, determine the life experience we have, and ultimately our destiny?

 

Our decisions shape our life. They shape the quality of our relationships. They shape whether our projects work or don't. They shape if we have an expansive life experience or a meek life experience. They shape whether we end up in a job we love or a job we loathe. They shape what we walk towards and we walk away from. They shape whether we expand or contract in life.

 

Given decision making is so important, why the BLEEP were we never taught the ins and outs of how to make consistent high-quality and empowered decisions?!?!

It is time to correct that gap in your education.

 

Let an ex-Army Major and former Olympic Games security consultant, and current NLP master practitioner and Success Coach share with you the tips, tools and strategies that will change your destiny, by upgrading and up-skilling your decision-making powers.

 

Learn these fundamental elements:

• The number 1 decision-making rookie mistake
• The biggest obstacles to high-quality decision making
• The primary resources needed in your toolkit
• The importance of failure (aka: feedback)
• A specific 'Process' for high-quality decision making

Carl is the author of 18 Ways We Make Life WAY Harder Than It Needs To Be, The Successful Mind, The Guidebook to Happiness, The Guidebook to Optimum Health and The Guidebook to Authentic Success. He writes a Weekly 'Happiness Tips' Newsletter, has a podcast series called Life Masterclass and conducts workshops and seminars online and around the world, from his tropical home base in Bali.  

• Language: English
• Publisher: Carl Massy
• Release date: Feb 1, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224273027

Carl Massy

Carl Massy is an Ex-Australian Army Major and Olympic Games Security Consultant, turned Mindset Coach, Speaker and Trainer specializing in Happiness, Health, and Success back in 2007.  Carl considers himself an expert Strategist having combined 20 years of international strategic planning with 24+ years of training, research and experience in the Personal Development and Neuro Linguistics Programming (NLP) fields. He is fascinated with why we do what we do (or don't do), plus creating very practical and strategic ways to be the Co-Creator of our destinies.   He has Coached CEO's, world champion athletes, actors, entrepreneurs, multi-millionaires, single mothers, Olympians, business owners and retirees from all over the world the world, helping them to change the course of their lives, and create their ultimate lifestyle. In his corporate wellness workshops he has worked with companies like Chevron, SWIRE, ExxonMobil and Aspire Zone Foundation. Plus he has been the co-owner in a dynamic yoga centre in Bali.  Carl is also a personal fitness trainer, Life & Business Coach, hypnotherapist, Reiki Master, NLP Master Practitioner, corporate wellness trainer and world explorer who brings a very diverse range of experience and expertise to his work. His passion is to increase the health, happiness and success of everyone he connects with. He is currently based in Bali, and works with clients remotely or with clients who fly into Bali for immersive experiences; plus writes a very practical Weekly Newsletter.

Book preview

DECISION MAKING MASTERY

Become a Skillful and Conscious Co-Creator of your Destiny

by Carl Massy

Books by Carl Massy

The Guidebook Series

The Guidebook to Happiness

The Guidebook to Optimum Health

The Guidebook to Authentic Success

The Successful Mind

18 Ways We Make Life WAY Harder Than It Needs To Be

(All books are available as Paperback, Digital or Audiobooks at your favourite online Bookstores and audiobook platforms)

Copyright

Decision Making Mastery Copyright © 2021 Carl W. Massy

All rights reserved.

Published by:

The Weekend Bookclub

www.theweekendbookclub.com

DEDICATION

To my amazing partner, Ferry, who is forever there behind the scenes, making me look more polished then I tend feel on occasions, and giving me a reason to strive for my best. You make me, and my life, so much more colourful, entertaining and rich. Thank you.

And to all of the amazing teachers, past and present, I have had the privilege to learn from and share experiences with — thank you for sharing your wisdom.

To every person I have had the privilege to work with or connect with, you continue to help me learn, grow and evolve.

And finally to every soul on this planet who is doing their best each and every day to make the most of this experience called life, and I hope get to create an even greater life experience as a result of what they may learn in these pages. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Chapter 1: My Background

Chapter 2: Choices = Destiny

THE ESSENTIAL KEYS

Chapter 3: Neuroscience 101 - Setting the Framework

Reptilian Brain

Mammalian Brain

Cortex

Chapter 4: The Right State

Physiological State

Emotional State

Chapter 5: On the Subject of Wisdom

Chapter 6: Getting Practical with Consciousness

Chapter 7: The Power of Discernment

Chapter 8: The Super Power Called Creativity

The Neuroscience of Creativity

What lens of perception are you looking through?

The right environment

The quality of the questions

Chapter 9: Choosing Courage as Your Fuel of Choice

Courage and vulnerability

Chapter 10: What You Need to Know About Willpower

Chapter 11: Your Brain, Your Gut and Your Heart

Trusting your gut

The wisdom of the heart

MISTAKES, MYTHS & OBSTACLES

Chapter 12: Learn from Your Mistakes, Don’t Run From Them

Chapter 13: Obstacles to Good Decision-Making

The influence of your Beliefs

What stories are you telling?

Chapter 14: The Fear Story

Chapter 15: What’s the Rush?

Caveat on asking for more time

Chapter 16: The Fear of Making Mistakes

THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

Chapter 17: Determining Consequences

Chapter 18: The Decision Making Process

PART 1: THE PREPARATION

PART 2: THE PROCESS

IMPORTANT INSIGHTS

Chapter 19: Lessons from 14 Years in the Australian Army

Chapter 20: Evolution

Chapter 21: Values

Chapter 22: Changing Your Mind

Chapter 23: Your Internal Guidance System

QUICK STRATEGIES

Chapter 24: Simple Strategy - Three Brains System

Chapter 25: Simple Strategy - Essential Versus Desirable

Conclusion

Recommended Resources

BONUS: My Favourite Productivity Tips

Introduction

‘We only know what we know, and don’t know what we don’t know.’ Unknown

Hands up if you have made some really bad decisions in the last months, weeks, or even today. Maybe you made the decision earlier in the day to have that extra piece of triple layered chocolate cake in the office, and had to crawl your way through to the end of the day after a ‘Level 5’ sugar crash and a stomach that felt like it was likely to rupture at any moment. 

Why did you do it? Why? Why have that extra piece of cake when you could be pretty sure (after the last 20-30 experiences) that you would very likely feel bloated and, after the inevitably enjoyable sugar high, you would crash and burn for the afternoon? I have always been fascinated with the question of ‘why’. I have always sought to understand why we do what we do when we often know it’s a (really) bad idea.

I am also fascinated by trying to figure out ways for us to be on this journey of constant and never-ending improvement in all areas of our life that matter. What strategy can we implement, tool can we use, or tip do we need to enact, to circumvent our tendency to take the path of least resistance, even when we know at some level it is a bad idea? In my last book – The Successful Mind – I delved deeper into the subject of the brain, mind, consciousness, and our subconscious to better utilise the power of our minds to get our most desired results.

I decided for this book, I was most interested in getting really practical when it comes to how we can improve our decision-making abilities. I have a belief that the quality of the decisions we make shapes the destiny we experience. Bad decisions generally lead to an unfavourable result, which can lead to additional pain, discomfort and negative consequences. While good decisions can lead to joy, fulfilment, meaningfulness, success (however you define it) and positive outcomes for the people in our lives. Great decisions can also lead to leaving an enriching legacy that contributes to the well-being of all of humanity.  

I decided to write this book throughout 2020, and as I come back to edit the Introduction, I am flabbergasted by the amount, degree and nature of the poor decisions made throughout the whole covid-19 experience.  Right from the start, it was poor decision after poor decision, which confirmed a number of specific principles we will uncover together in this book. As well as there being more ideal strategies when it comes to making decisions, it is also important to understand how the brain and mind work, so they can be your greatest allies, as opposed to your most sinister adversaries.

My desire for you, in reading this book, is to become (much) better at decision-making than you were before reading it. I want you to have practical tips, tools and strategies you can walk away with. If this book allows you to make just one better decision this year, I know it has the potential to change the entire course of your life and therefore your destiny.  If you become just a little better at decision-making, then you have effectively created a course correction in your destiny and that makes me super happy. It makes the hours of collecting my thoughts and expressing them in this book worthwhile. The truth of the matter is, that if just one person was able to make one better decision, which created a course correction in their destiny, I will go to my grave a happy man.

It was Joseph Campbell who articulated the concept of the Hero’s Journey. And before I go any further let me say that all of us are heroes and all of us are on this journey called life. Campbell suggested that part of the hero’s journey is to advance on a quest, to face trials and tribulations, to overcome adversity, and return to his or her people having learned and grown as a result. But the loop is not closed until the returning hero shares what they have learned along the way, to better serve the people. We go through trials and tribulations to learn, and then to share our experiences with others, so they benefit from our experience, and (hopefully) don’t make the same mistakes we have made.

This makes me hopeful that through a lot of really bad decisions I have made – including the loss of significant money or emotional pain for years on end, very messy relationship break-ups and weeks on crutches – I can serve you well. And given I have had the experiences; you don’t have to wade through the same gale forced winds I did. However, let me be totally honest with you now and throughout this book. Knowing what I will be sharing with you, you will probably still make some really bad choices. But my aim is for you to make a LOT less, and also greatly balance that out with some magnificent decisions. Decisions which are so aligned with who and what you are that there is a metaphoric choir of angels singing your praises from the sky above.

If you have not read any of my books before, I want you to know I am all about honesty, vulnerability and using my own personal experiences like a car manufacturer uses a crash-test dummy to test if their products work. I will share with you some of my worst decisions-making moments, so you will have the chance to not follow in my poorly placed footsteps. One set of poorly placed footsteps (and a monumentally bad decision) has an origin story when I started doing gymnastics at the age of 10, with the loop closing quite dramatically and painfully when I was 47 years old. I am actually shaking my head profusely as I write this, but in a bemused sort of way. 

As a result of my introduction to gymnastics in my early teens, I moonwalked my way into the ‘break-dancing’ scene and use to serve up my signature move of a round off and back somersault. As I advanced into my late teens and early twenties – my early Army days – I also liked to do back somersaults off the back or front ends of cars, off bar tops and off any other elevated surface. My impromptu and amateur gymnastics days came to a pretty dramatic halt in 1994 when I did a back somersault off a bar at a junior Officers social event in Sydney. It certainly looked the part, but because I blew the landing (and didn’t bend my knees to absorb the centrifugal force of the somersault), I came close to fracturing both of my heels. Needless to say, I spent weeks on crutches and made the smart decision to retire from gymnastics for good.

It was definitely a smart decision. You would have made the same choice if you were in my very uncomfortable shoes. But have you ever made a ‘smart’ decision before, only to renege on it some time later (because you forgot about the pain of that bad decision)? I am going to assume you have your hand up in the air. Unfortunately, I made the very well-thought-out-decision to come out of retirement at the ripe young age of 47, when indirectly challenged by a 10-year old who was busting some gymnastics moves on the grass at her parents luncheon party. I decided it was time to roll out and dust off my signature round off back somersault routine.

The first time I performed the somersault, it was no 10 out of 10 performance, but it still proved to my 10-year old opponent that I still had some impressive tricks up my sleeve – at my age. Unfortunately doing it once was not the worst of my bad decisions on that day. It was the cataclysmic poor decision that followed which was the proverbial icing on the cake. I decided that if I just ran faster, and performed the round-off even more aggressively, I would get the lift I needed to execute my 10 out of 10 landing. I am sure you are beginning to understand where this is heading.

Yes, I did get more height. Yes, I did get better rotation. And yes, I did land very poorly on my ankle and tear a number of ligaments. Ouch!!!

The formula was this: bad decision, followed by a disastrous decision! Does any of this sound familiar to my fellow homo sapiens reading this book? 

But, as I am always about learning and growing, I quickly committed to understanding where the chinks were in my decision-making process. The first mistake was my being peer-pressured into the impromptu gymnastics competition by a 10-year old. That damn EGO thing! One of my principle teachings is the downside of ego-based living versus love-based living. And just like you, I am a student of life, and I am a work in progress. In this case I let my serving of EGO over-ride quality decision-making. Big mistake number one. When it comes to high quality decision-making, being ruled by the ego, as opposed by this thing called love and service (and wisdom), presents a pretty slippery slope, when it comes to the ultimate outcome. Keep this insight in mind as you make your way through this book, and you navigate your way through life. A great question to ask yourself often is: ‘Am I doing this to serve my ego or serve the greater good?’

The other thing I know was a factor in that poor choice, and also an important principle we will explore throughout this book (plus relates to triple-layered chocolate cakes), is the fact I was loaded up on sugar and my mind was in a state of hyper-activity. I can assure you this is not the best mental state to be making intelligent decisions in.  Fortunately for me, I lived through the experience. I learned from the experience. And I have definitely – hand on my heart – completely retired from my amateur gymnastics career! Doing handstands are okay since older yogis have been doing them for years, but back somersaults - not okay.

One of the ways I teach in my workshops, seminars and with my private clients is through personal experience. There have been a lot over the last 51 years, and I am not too proud or shy to stand up and say I have made a lot of bad decisions over the years. But at the same time I have made some fabulous decisions, which have seen me living and working in Bali for the last 13 years. I have a fabulous long-term relationship – 13 years and counting - with a beautiful woman that brings out the best in me. I am in a financial position where I can be picky and choosy about what work I undertake. I have never had a mortgage but own and live in a beautiful house overlooking the rice fields. I have travelled the world, to more than 50 countries and lived in America, Greece, Italy, and Qatar. I have great health and vitality and although I am not