How to Make Better Decisions (and Fewer Mistakes) in Your Business

Proof positive that CEOs who lean in to peers’ knowledge and experience navigate around obstacles and accelerate success

Anyone who owns or leads a small or mid-sized business is looking for a success recipe. You don’t have to believe in what the internet calls “hacks” to recognize that those who have faced similar challenges likely have experience and insights worth listening to. The question is where to seek out these wise voices.

CEOs can be pretty isolated. Sure, you collaborate with your team, network with clients and industry professionals, and hang out with friends. But it can be hard to find others with whom to share the real struggles of being the leader on whom the difficult decisions for the business will always fall.

This means that many senior executives get accustomed to doing their own thing. Such self-reliance is overall positive but it can, at times, shut down our growth mindset. One of the best ways to reopen the lifelong learner residing within is through a Vistage peer advisory group. ?

The proof is in the transformations

The idea behind Vistage is to bring together a small group of CEOs and business owners, in person and on a monthly basis, for probing, confidential discussions of key issues and opportunities. Vistage membership also includes one-to-one coaching with the peer advisory group facilitator, someone like me known as a Vistage Chair, and a wealth of other resources.

Research indicates that the Vistage concept really works. Companies owned by Vistage members grow 2.2 times faster than the competition. I know the power of Vistage, however, from what I’ve witnessed firsthand. I’ll share two quick examples.

#1 Immediate, bottom-line impact

Our 12-member peer advisory group recently invited a speaker with expertise in pricing strategies. The Vistage speakers’ bureau of elite subject matter experts is among the members-only resources I referenced above.

This speaker recommended customized price adjustments within offering categories and customer niches. We all benefited from the input but for one of our members, a manufacturer, the impact was astounding. He invited the speaker to meet with his executive team and crafted revised pricing that immediately boosted the company’s profitability.?

By how much? Enough to pay for Vistage membership for several lifetimes, I like to joke.

#2 A better direction, professionally and personally

In another case, a member faced a career turning point. He was the CEO of a company, which the owners sold, and he’d reached an impasse with the acquiring VC. He decided to look for other opportunities and stuck with our peer advisory group while between positions because he wanted feedback on the options he was considering.

The group reflected back to him his own talent and capabilities and expressed their concerns that he wouldn’t be happy working for someone else. After declining several prominent positions that, upon reflection, weren’t the right fit, he launched his own enterprise.?

In less than two years, he’s looking at seven-figure revenues. His peers knew him well.?

Focus on what counts

As these stories demonstrate, Vistage delivers significant ROI on the time invested. I take pride in helping members grow their businesses faster but I’m also inspired by a quote attributed to Albert Einstein:

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

In my opinion, Vistage is most valuable in those areas that “count but can’t be counted.”?

Of course, Vistage will help you expand revenues and scale up the employee roster, but we’ll also help you in ways that matter more. We’ll listen and offer suggestions as you build great teams and create a culture where people want to work. And we’ll encourage you as you find ways to better serve your family, friends, employees and, importantly, yourself.?

Vistage isn’t for everyone. Is it for you?

In the introduction, I talked about CEOs’ common habit of doing things their own way. I put that information up front to warn business owners and senior executives that Vistage is different. It’s an environment in which members receive significant pushback—or call it push-forward—from their peers.?

Vistage is where you bring ideas to have them questioned, critiqued, evaluated, and enhanced by fellow business leaders who are just as smart as you are. You do it not because it’s always comfortable, but because it helps you make better decisions and fewer errors.

Don’t bother with Vistage if you need to dominate every conversation. You won’t learn anything. If, on the other hand, you believe there is value in sharing your failures so others can avoid the same mistakes, as well as listening to your peers’ successes so you can apply the learnings, then Vistage is an unparalleled resource.

We have an incredibly tightknit group here in the Louisville area, which spans industries, age brackets, races, and genders. We’re eager to evolve by inviting a select few strong, passionate, giving individuals to join us.

How can you tell if Vistage might be right for you? Speak with a Vistage Chair, attend a session in your community, spend one-on-one time with members, and then make a decision for yourself. If you want to get started on step one, feel free to reach out to me here.?