In business, what happens when you get punched in the face . . . ?

I have been asked to coach dozens of mid-to-large business leaders about how to strategically plan to grow their businesses and outpace their competition, while redefining the marketplace. One of the things that I coach them about “Commander’s Intent”.

Mike Tyson, infamously is credited with the quote: “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

So how does this apply in growing a business? Simple, founders/entrepreneurs can’t be everywhere all the time, and they have such a HARD TIME trusting and letting go. ??

When I was a young Army Officer, every combat mission was briefed with (at the time) what was called a 5 Paragraph Operations (OpOrd) Order. The paragraphs were 1. Situation 2. Mission 3. Execution 4. Service and Support 5. Command and Control. Obviously, there was lot more detail underneath each heading.

As a young Lieutenant and later as a Captain/Company Commander, I learned the most important Section was Section 3 a. "Commander's Intent". It is basically a simple verbal picture of what success looks like at the end of the mission. This intent is based on The Commander trusting that if all else fails, work towards, or as close as you can get to the Commander's Intent. The result will be successful whether the plan is followed exactly or not.

This is what makes the US Military great is we can improvise and adapt based on intent. We weren't an Army that blindly followed step-by-step orders. We remember the vision of the Commander’s Intent and use initiative to get there.

Founders and entrepreneurs embrace this, trust and let go. (Trust but verify). Your job is to communicate intent clearly and vividly.

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