Leadership, by definition, involves making decisions. And many leaders like to have enough data and research to point a clear path forward before making those decisions.
That has become well-nigh impossible during the chaos over the last few years. Waiting for the new normal won’t cut it – as I’ve written many times before, there is no new normal, only endless and repeated #VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity).
This uncertainty makes decision-making harder than ever. The levels of disruption make decision-making an hourly chore, not a once a task, as #Disruption is the new normal.
Persistence used to be a virtue, but these days, persistence is another name for just being too slow.
As an analogy, let’s examine winning tactics for the youth soccer and National Hockey League matches that I enjoy. The winning side uses teamwork to find the right shot, and when they have the opportunity, they TAKE THE SHOT.
Some teams (and business leaders), on the other hand, keep on procrastinating, waiting for more data, more analysis, more facts, more ways to take the optimal shot.
Eventually the defense (or the competition) catches up, and they never take the shot.
The winning teams (and winning businesses) must use due diligence. Examine the history of the goalies – do they give up more goals on the left side, the right side, high or low? Then TAKE THE SHOT.
Try to break down risks and take them one at a time, and don’t look back. Get moving. Do not second guess.
Give yourself a deadline for a decision and make it happen.
No matter what, your side will never win if you never TAKE THE SHOT.
Jim Tompkins
Chairman and Co-Founder, Tompkins Leadership