Frozen by indecision? You need a plan

Every day you put off making a decision, your business risks losing customers and opportunities. A 90-day plan helps you take back control

I was stopped on a small goat trail near the peak of Mount Fitzwilliam, frozen by indecision. It was the summer of 1996 and I was following my buddy Terry Brock on an expedition in B.C.’s Mount Robson Provincial Park.

I couldn’t go forward and I knew I couldn’t go backward. I was scared and couldn’t move. Looking down, I quickly understood that one mistake in my footing could result in a tumble down 1,000 feet of rock to certain injury or perhaps worse.

We’ve all been there: frozen by indecision about the best way to go when faced with difficult choices. I’ve seen the same thing happen to business owners.

I remember walking into one client’s establishment and immediately knowing something was wrong. His staff members were tense and he looked upset. As we walked to his office, he voiced concerns about changes happening in his business and how his employees were responding. He’d made notes about what he might do but had been staring at the options for hours, unsure of what to do next.

Business owners have plenty to worry about. Costs keep rising, customers’ expectations are changing, trade disputes create uncertainty, and new technologies are forcing them to rethink how they operate.

The danger is that business owners can become so worried about making the wrong decision that they make no decision at all. And while they’re waiting, costs continue to rise, customers make other choices and opportunities disappear.

I remember another client who faced a serious disruption to his business. Rather than wait for things to improve, he contacted his landlord, bankers and suppliers to explain his situation and discuss his options. He looked at his expenses, considered what he could afford and thought about how he could operate differently when conditions improved. He didn’t know how everything would turn out, but he had a plan and knew what he needed to do next.

My first client was struggling to decide what to do. Without a plan, he was overwhelmed. He hadn’t considered the best, worst or most probable outcomes or worked through what he would do in each situation.

Many entrepreneurs are so busy dealing with immediate problems that they don’t have time to think about what their businesses should look like three months from now. But spending a few hours planning for the next 90 days can make an enormous difference. Ninety days is long enough to make meaningful changes but short enough to focus on what you can actually control.

Start by looking at where your business stands today. How much money is coming in? How much is going out? Which customers and products are making you money? Where are you losing it? Don’t rely on what you think is happening. Look at your numbers.

Then consider three possibilities. What happens if business improves? What happens if things stay about the same? And what happens if sales decline or your costs increase? You don’t need to predict the future. You need to know what you could do in each situation.

Decide in advance what would cause you to change course. If sales fall below a certain level, what expenses could you reduce? If business picks up, where would you invest first?

Once you’ve considered those possibilities, choose three or four priorities for the next 90 days. Perhaps you need to improve cash flow, reduce unnecessary expenses, reconnect with customers or find new markets.

Identify who will be responsible for each priority and how you’ll measure progress. Take time each week to see what’s working, what isn’t and what needs to change.

And don’t make those decisions alone. Talk to the people who work for you. They deal with customers and day-to-day operations and may see problems or opportunities you’ve overlooked. Ask them what they think could be improved. When employees understand what you’re trying to accomplish and help develop the plan, they’re more likely to support the changes needed to make it work.

That doesn’t mean every decision will be easy. You may need to stop doing something that worked well in the past, change how you serve customers or admit that an investment isn’t producing the results you expected.

Not every decision has to be permanent, either. If you’re considering a new service or technology, try it on a small scale before committing more time or money. Small steps can give you the confidence to make bigger decisions.

High up on that goat trail, I had to evaluate my options and overcome my fears. Standing still wasn’t going to get me off the mountain. Once I started walking again, my anxiety about falling subsided.

The same thing can happen in business. When we stop staring at everything that might go wrong and start working through what we can actually do, the challenges often become more manageable.

Having a plan won’t eliminate uncertainty, and it won’t guarantee that every decision you make will be right. But standing still won’t solve your problems either.

You don’t have to know exactly where the next 90 days will take your business. You just have to decide what you’re going to do next and start moving.

David Fuller, MBA, is a commercial realtor and award-winning business coach. A lifelong entrepreneur and author of Profit Yourself Healthy, he specializes in helping business leaders scale growth and manage succession.