How To Make Big Decisions In Your Business

About this video

Martell gives a five-step process for making big decisions fast when you have no prior experience in that area, prompted by a coaching client whose business he describes as at $10 million-plus in ARR, and by his own decisions such as moving to San Francisco, taking a partner, raising venture capital or pivoting. Step one is Define the Problem, citing Charles Kettering’s line that a problem well-defined is a problem half solved — for example, a request for help with Facebook ads may really be about traffic, lead generation, or a weak offer or funnel. Step two is Research the Solution Space: time-box deep research into books, podcasts and blog posts, and use Google Images to find visual frameworks for the problem. Step three is Connect with Mentors — people who have already been where you are going; he recounts mentor Ken Nickerson advising him to move from Canada to Silicon Valley, after which, he says, he raised $1.6 million for his company Clarity from San Francisco investors. Step four is Verify with Peers who are on the same journey and one or two years ahead, because mentors may have done it many years ago and advisors may never have been founders; he gives his peer Keith as his sounding board on sales. Step five is Decide and Adjust in JFDI style: most decisions can be unwound within months, while indecision damages team morale and slows strategy more than a wrong decision. He closes offering his Precision Scorecard for measuring weekly activity against monthly, quarterly and yearly projections.

Key takeaways

• Define the specific problem first — advice on the wrong problem, such as tactics when the real issue is the offer or funnel, will not help
• Research the full solution space in a time-boxed deep dive across books, podcasts and blogs, using Google Images to surface frameworks
• Ask mentors who have already reached the place you are going for context on how big the decision is and what factors matter
• Calibrate mentor and advisor input with peers on the same journey who are slightly ahead of you before committing
• Decide and adjust: commit JFDI-style, since most decisions can be reversed in a few months but prolonged indecision hurts morale and execution

Episode details: published December 23, 2019 · 10:11 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dan Martell’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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