When a business starts eating its owner, the owner responds in one of two ways.
The first type maps. Spreadsheets ten years deep, projections for every scenario, more analysis than any decision could need. It feels like control. It's a comfort blanket made of numbers.
The second type starts things. New service line, new marketing push, new software, go, go, go, with nothing tying it together. It feels like momentum. It's motion standing in for progress.
I've been both, sometimes in the same week.
The two responses are the same move underneath: doing more of what you're already good at, so you don't have to do the thing that's actually hard. Trusting the right people with the right decisions, and building the structure that makes the trust safe.
The mapper doesn't need another spreadsheet. The starter doesn't need another project. Both need decisions to have homes other than their own head, and numbers simple enough that the whole leadership team can read them on one page.
Which are you? Reply with mapper or starter, and I'll tell you the first move for each. They're different, and both are smaller than you'd think.
David
David Schofield · Purpose In Action
Here, I explore history, mythology, and the deeper forces shaping our world — and how men and families can prepare for, and adapt to, these times of great change.
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