How to take the leap of faith and make (difficult) business decisions

Recently, skydiver Luke Atkins made history by being the first person to plummet 25,000 feet from an

aeroplane — without a parachute.

Atkins had only a camera, GPS, and a net to guide him to safety during his two-minute

freefall.

It’s a pretty scary position to find yourself in, and while most of us probably don’t face life or death situations in our everyday work,

we’re probably all familiar with the sense of anxiety you feel when on the brink of a big

business decision.

As business leaders, difficult decisions often require a leap of faith.

Whether it’s investing time and money into a new business venture, or dramatically rearranging your business structure, the

uncertainty of being faced with big decisions can sometimes feel like you’re about to jump out of a plane without a

parachute.

So what steps must you take before you decide whether to make that

leap of faith?

This is an important step, but it is only the first in a long journey…

Listen to your gut instincts

Listening to your gut instincts is very different to trusting

them.

However, there is a lot of power in listening to your gut instinct, and understanding how it fits

in with your journey.

If you have a strong inclination towards making a certain change, ask yourself the following

questions:

How would making this change fit in with my overall desired

outcome for my business?

What resources will I need to implement this change?

What is the alternative?

If your gut feeling aligns with your answers to these questions – you might be on to

something.

Consider the following examples…

Analyse Data

In 2010 Steve Jobs famously predicted the success of the tablet when data at

the time suggested the PC would continue to dominate.

In 1998, Motorola CEO Gregory Brown lost the company $8 billion when he ignored reports indicating the success of the mobile phone and instead, heavily invested in Iridium satellite phone technology, which

was already essentially obsolete.

Data is a powerful tool, but it becomes even more so when combined with

intuition.

It’s easy to get caught up in an idea, but remember that data is a crucial factor of decision making – that’s why we collect

it.

Similarly, relying on data alone isn’t always enough. When faced with a

difficult decision, take time to inform yourself in more ways than one.

Your team is the bigger picture

You’re never facing a decision alone…

your team is not only your network of support, but your door to the

bigger picture.

Seek advice. When we seek advice, we seek confidence in others.

Simply ask your team “what do you think?”.

If gathering data is an important step in making a leap of faith, then gathering the

opinions should be too.

This will help you to make a better decision.

Negate the NegativesLuke Atkins might not have had a parachute when he jumped 25,000 feet, but he did have a net.

When faced with a decision to make, you should thoroughly consider all the possible negatives and come up with an action plan about what

you can do to minimise them.

Have you ever taken a big leap of faith?

@SafarazAli Safaraz Ali