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decisions, decisions
by Erinn Morgan
Decisions are a part of daily life, but some of the decisions faced in running a business can be weightier than others. This month we ask ECPs: What is the best business decision you've ever made? If you have a story to share, or would like to see a subject covered, please E-mail us at editor@eyecarebusiness.com or send a fax to 215-643-1705.
"I think the best business decision I ever made was to go into business here. The other best decision was to form a team 15 years ago that included ODs and MDs to practice within my stores. It's a total package with the one-hour lab, the optometry, and the ophthalmology—we cover all the bases."
—Wayne Davis, president, Davis Optical Centers,
four locations in the Reno/Sparks, Nev., area
"The best decision I ever made was relocating from an office that had stairs to an office that had a storefront, street-level location. The business doubled and tripled since the move, even though we stayed in the same city. People started coming to us who didn't even know we were there, and it's only a four-square-mile city. It really has made a huge difference."
—Sid Savitt, OD, Wickliffe, Ohio
"We recently brought on a couple of new lines, and we are also working with different labs, so we have more product offerings now. We used to be mostly high-end, and we have added more moderate merchandise. Now we have something for everybody. We also break down our prices on packages and we are not nailed to one brand, so we can pretty much compete with anybody on price. You can't get stuck in a rut in this business, not any more. At least you won't lose that person walking in the door because you don't have a frame that they want."
—Richard Terrett, manager,
Hearst Opticians,
Fort Worth, Texas
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decision-making pitfalls |
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The June 27 issue of Fortune magazine
was devoted to the fine art of decision-making, including potential pitfalls,
defined and deactivated with smart action. Pitfall: Analysis paralysis. A less-than-ideal action, swiftly executed, stands a chance of success, whereas no action stands no chance. Solution: The Marine Corps battles this syndrome with the "70 percent solution." If you have 70 percent of the information, have done 70 percent of the analysis, and feel 70 percent confident, then move. Pitfall: Sunk-cost syndrome. It's always painful to destroy something we've built, whether it's a machine, organization, or idea. Solution: "My advice to young men," Henry Ford wrote in the 1920s, "is to be ready to revise any system, scrap any methods, abandon any theory if the success of the job demands it." Pitfall: Yes-man echoes. People can't line up behind you if they don't know where you stand. Solution: Take a stand, especially if you are the boss. "I don't want any yes-men around me," movie mogul Samuel Goldwyn once said. "I want them to tell me the truth, even if it costs them their jobs." Pitfall: Anxiety overload. Low levels of anxiety are productive; high levels of anxiety are counter-productive. Solution: Navy pilots steady themselves by studying the clock. Other gauges may spin wildly, but the clock does not. Devise something that works for you. Pitfall: A wily adversary. How do you figure out your competitors? Solution: Since nobody's better at spotting holes in a plan than an opponent, assign a person (or a group) to think like your competitor and expose flaws that, identified early, are less likely to be fatal. Pitfall: To be? Or not to be? Got a decision you just can't make? Solution: When all else fails, go with the gut. Our natural preferences sometimes express themselves in non-rational ways. |
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