Lighthouse or paralysis?

Not long ago I came across a great young business, two guys that found a niche in a bespoke tailoring trade. A business with a great energy and potential, determined to move such an old industry forward.

I was pleased to see that they recognised a need for external expert support that would enable them to grow fast, and help them in areas they weren’t experts in so they wouldn’t be slowing down the development of their business. They had received great advice from the experts with lots of potential to improve their business, yet they weren’t implementing these ideas.

‘Why not?’ I hear you asking. The problem was that they had three different advisors for separate parts of the business, suggesting lots of diverse ideas. These proposals were all good, but there were too many of them - and were pointing the business into different directions. How do you choose what to prioritise?

It’s like going to a restaurant with a menu 20 pages long. All those tasty choices, different prices, set options and offers of the hour! By the time you reach page 8 you don’t remember anymore what you actually wanted when you walked in through the door.

Decisions, decisions…

The brain is a fascinating “animal” to be aware of, to understand and conquer. We think that our mind is free, clear and that we have control of it. The truth is that we are ruled by our past, patterns we developed and experiences we lived through. The brain has its own laws we hardly know about.

Think about this: you ask for a quote and get only one price option. How do you feel? Uncomfortable? Restrained?

What if you get two? Hmm. Black or white. Left or right. You feel forced to take a side.

Now how about three? One low, one high, and one just in the middle. Easy! The middle looks really good and reasonable, isn’t it? Happy times! (Yes, always offer 3 options to your clients, and highlight the middle one as a best seller. It’s called no-brainer. I wonder why… lol).

Now imagine receiving 10 options. They are too similar to choose from, you really need a spread sheet to try comparing them and make some logical decision. Result? You don’t make a decision at all. It’s called a DECISION PARALYSIS.

Business paralysis

We all wonder why businesses stop growing or even crash, whilst everyone involved is keen to grow it fast. In the business there are tons of decisions to be made on an everyday basis. That includes:

• you as a leader deciding on the business direction
• the experts you bring on board suggesting what routes your business should take
• your employees making their own decisions how to deal with their tasks and challenges and as a consequence building a perception about your business
• your suppliers and partners representing your business
• and not to forget – your customers deciding whether to like you or not, buy from you or not, or stay with you or not

What happens if no one clearly understands what the right decision looks like?

More so in current times, when the rise of digital media over the past 10 years has made running a business suddenly much more complex. Marketing is not simple anymore, every business is now global, there is more competition, customers are more informed and became the decision makers. Relationships are the paramount and a quick push sale is a matter of past.

We experience both sides of the decision paralysis – as business leaders, and as buyers.

Build your own Lighthouse

There is a solution to the problem though, and it’s not so complicated. You simply need to turn your business into a strong, beautiful lighthouse with lots of stories to tell.

The Construction

True foundations of every business are its values. Strong values talk about what you really stand for, how you make people feel and what you deliver. They are not things your customers expect – like quality or great service, they make you original, one of a kind.

The light at the top of your lighthouse is your vision. It makes you visible in any weather conditions and drives everyone clearly and easily in the right direction towards you. It’s a guide and source of energy.

The values foundations and the light vision are connected, they come from each other. For the structure to strongly stand on the edge of the cliff, you need a clear and practical long term strategy that interconnects business, brand and marketing into one solid body of the building.

The Storybook

Here is a place for your manual – sweet and short stories for everyone to read before they go to bed. About the journey that you took to come to this cliff and build this lighthouse. The people you helped along the way. The ships that came your way. The crew that solved puzzles and helped you to navigate and reinforce the lighthouse. The stonemasons, carpenters and farmers that knew exactly what type of stone, wood or food you and the travelling ships need. Make it a best seller and your lighthouse will keep growing exactly how you want it to, even if you take a very long holiday to the Caribbean to get away from the wind and rain.

Clarity makes decision making simple

Having your lighthouse makes it easy for you to decide between good options and opportunities. Which path leads directly towards your vision? You can have long list of great ideas, but knowing your core value shines a light on those that are right for your business. It brings consistency and makes everyone else understand why those specific decisions are made.

The storybook is a guidebook helping people in the business to learn how others made the right decisions; the customers to get excited about who you are and how you can help them; your suppliers to know what is expected to be delivered. With a great story your business will flourish.

Don’t waste your time – build your own lighthouse and decision making will become a piece of cake!