As I sat and watched two of my favorite primetime TV shows last night, I realized that both had one common denominator – decision making. The two shows were Deal or No Deal and The Apprentice. The first show requires people to make gut instinct and mathematical decisions on walking away with a handful of cash or going for it all and possibly walking away with only a single penny. While the other show deals with making decisions based on a project handed to them to complete. They need to manage the project, the people and make split-second decisions that could land them a job with Mr. Trump or hear “You’re fired” and be humiliated on national television.
So what do these shows have to do with this blog? Quite simply, it’s the process of making a decision as a business owner.
If you are considering opening a business, can you make decisions? Sure, it’s easy to say “Yes I’d love to be my own boss!”, but making these decisions is more than just a dream. It involves a process of looking inward, making a plan and setting goals.
Think of a situation where you made a split-second decision and a positive resulted in achieving the goal or solving the problem. Now think of a time when you had to make another decision and the results were less than pleasant. How did you arrive at your choice in each situation and how can you improve on both decisions? What if you make a decision as a business owner and the answer you arrived at didn’t solve the problem? How do you react personally? Do you pout and look for someone else to resolve the issue or do you take responsibility for the decision and find a way to keep this from happening again?
During your time as a business owner, you will have situations arise where a decision needs to be made immediately and others that will need a lot of thought. As our business begins to slowly grow, we are now faced with the decision of broadening our hours, our equipment and taking bigger risks. The plan is there right in front of us, the idea(s) are there and now it’s time to ask; “Can I make a decision?”