Your Key to Easier Decisions

When it comes to life and trading, we’re always presented with more options than we could ever say yes to.

And I feel this even more during certain seasons — like the end of summer / back to school, when routines change, calendars fill up again, and it can feel like everything is landing on your plate at once.

So here’s a neat little trick, based in science, that can help you navigate those decisions. I’m not saying to use this every single time you make a trade — although technically, you could. But it’s especially useful for the decisions that aren’t strict “musts,” yet sit in that “strong want” category.

Step 1: State the Facts — Without Emotion

Just tell yourself the neutral version of whatever it is that’s up for decision making. For example, your neighbor Jim has invited you to an end of summer BBQ, but it’s on a weeknight.

• Jim is my neighbor.
  
• He’s having a barbeque.
  
• It’s on X day at Y time.
  
• He invited me.
  

That’s it.
No judgment, no inner narrative — just the facts.

Step 2: Try the Muscle Test

This is where the “science-based trick” comes in.

Take your dominant hand — for most of us, that’s the right hand — gently shake it out, and relax it.

Now take the affirmative version of the scenario.
Even if the thing you’re considering isn’t “good” or “bad,” the affirmative is simply:

I’m going to Jim’s party.

Place the nail of your middle finger gently against the inside tip of your thumb.
Stay relaxed.
See if there’s any reaction in your body.

Then immediately say the negative:

I am not going to Jim’s party.

Keep your fingers in the same position.

And pay attention.

If you truly relax and don’t overthink it, one of those statements is going to make your middle finger “flick” off your thumb.
It’s subtle, but it’s real — and it usually aligns with what your gut is leaning toward.

“But Won’t I Bias the Answer?”

That was my first question when a colleague taught this to me.

But funny enough, the more I used it, the more I realized:
our bodies don’t lie.

If you move quickly, without analyzing it to death, the flick response shows up on the statement your intuition is pointing you to.

This is why it’s so helpful when you’re in that in-between space…
when the decision feels muddy…
or when you’re overwhelmed because there are too many things to juggle at once.

Use It in Life — And Yes, In Trading

Muscle testing can support you in any part of your trading journey:

• deciding whether to tweak an aspect of your trading plan
  
• choosing whether to try a new technique
  
• whether a workshop or training is worth your time
  
• whether a particular educational investment is right for you
  

There’s no limit to where it can help — as long as you go in with an open mind.

All it does is reveal the leaning you already have, the one that’s hard to articulate when your brain is tired or overloaded.

And remember:
You can always choose the opposite later.
This just gives you one more layer of insight — the kind that’s hard to get through logic alone.

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