Decision making is often presented as a purely rational exercise. We analyze the figures, we compare the scenarios, we plan the risks. And yet, certain striking decisions in the history of companies cannot be explained only by models or analyzes. They are the fruit of intuition.
Intuition, this small inner voice or this feeling that guides certain choices, is often misunderstood. It is sometimes perceived as mysterious, subjective, even risky. However, many leaders consciously exploit it to navigate uncertainty and seize invisible opportunities in the eyes of others.
The real challenge is to cultivate this intuition reliably, to use it as a strategic lever while avoiding falling into the irrational.
Intuition: a natural ally of leaders
Intuition is not a mystical gift reserved for some elected officials. It is based on experience, expertise and the ability to detect invisible patterns in complex situations. For a leader, it can manifest itself as a sudden impression, a silent certainty or a rapid reaction to an opportunity.
Historically, daring decisions taken on the basis of intuition have changed business trajectory. Steve Jobs often talked about following his intuition when he decided to design or Apple products, even before the market knows what he wanted. Jeff Bezos based Amazon on a deep conviction that online commerce would explode, before financial data could justify it. These examples illustrate an essential point: intuition works especially when it is based on deep knowledge of its field and on years of accumulated experience.
Why intuition is precious in uncertainty
The business world is more and more complex and uncertain. The markets evolve quickly, technologies are constantly transformed and consumer behavior is often unpredictable. In this context, relying only on quantitative analyzes can become a trap.
Intuition allows you to navigate this complexity. It helps make decisions when the data is partial, when the models are not enough or when time is running out. It also promotes innovation, because it makes it possible to perceive opportunities not yet codified and to test ideas before the market validates them.
In other words, intuition is a guide in fog, making it possible to complete rationality with a form of global perception of situations.
Intuition and rationality: a complementary duo
There is a risk of confusing intuition and impulsiveness. Real intuition is informed by rationality: it does not reject the facts, it integrates them silently into a subconscious decision -making process. A leader who blindly follows his intuition without checking the data takes the risk of being wrong. The trick is to create a dialogue between intuition and rationality. Intuition makes it possible to generate options and to perceive weak signals, while rational analysis is used to confront them with reality, to identify risks and to choose the best way.
In practice, this means that intuition does not replace the analysis, it completes it. It guides the first steps, directs creativity and makes it possible to decide when traditional models are insufficient.
How to cultivate a reliable intuition
Intuition does not fall from the sky. It is built and strengthens over time. For a leader, several practices allow it to be developed.
- Accumulation of experience: intuition is the fruit of subconscious learning. The more a manager knows his market, his customers, his competitors and his team, the more relevant his intuitions will be. Experience is the fuel for intuition.
- Observe carefully: intuition is often born from the attention to detail, to the behavior of others, to weak signals and to emerging trends. The leaders who take the time to observe, listen and question their environment nourish their ability to perceive the invisible.
- Taking a step back: moments of loneliness, reflection or even meditation allow the mind to process information in a subconscious manner. These withdrawal times help to clarify the presents and distinguish real intuition from impulsive reactions.
- Test and learn: intuition is refined with experimentation. Intuitive decisions must be faced with reality to verify their relevance. Each success as each error enriches the experience base on which intuition is based.
- Dialogue with others: intuition does not develop in isolation. Exchanging with peers, mentors or teams makes it possible to confront your presents with other perspectives, strengthening their reliability and their accuracy.
Intuition as a strategic tool
When intuition is cultivated and integrated into the decision, it becomes a powerful strategic tool. It makes it possible to detect emerging trends before competitors, to choose daring innovations, or to make rapid decisions in times of crisis.
She also plays a psychological role. A leader who trusts his intuition inspires confidence in his team. This confidence results in reinforced cohesion, more fluid decision -making and collective capacity to adapt to uncertain.
However, this force requires discipline. It is not a question of following your spontaneous “favorites”, but of developing informed, conscious and structured intuition.
The limits of intuition
Despite its assets, intuition has its limits. It can be biased by emotion, prejudices or excess confidence. Certain situations require an analytical rigor that only rationality can provide, especially when it comes to calculating financial risks or respecting legal constraints.
The key is to know how to recognize when it is appropriate to trust your intuition and when it is necessary to resort to analysis. This ability to combine intuition and rationality is what distinguishes effective leaders from others.
Concrete examples
Many historical decisions illustrate this role of intuition in the company.
In the 1970s, Howard Schultz felt a strong intuition on the potential of coffee in the Italian way during his trips to Italy. Even if the initial analyzes did not guarantee success in the United States, he followed his feeling, giving birth to Starbucks.
More recently, Reed Hastings, founder of Netflix, made an intuitive decision to pivot towards streaming while the majority of experts thought that the market was still too young. Its intuition, combined with the analysis of technological trends, has enabled the company to widely anticipate its competitors.
These examples show that intuition works especially when guided by experience, observation and reflection, rather than by irrational impulses.
