The job of a leader is to make good decisions, particularly when the economy is soft, as it is at the moment. In the franchise relationship the franchisor is the leader. While this tip is especially dedicated to senior franchisor executives, anyone facing an important decision will find it useful.
Not all decisions are equal. An important decision has three characteristics:
It cannot be easily reversed.
It will relate to boosting prosperity or keeping the business safe.
It is likely to significantly impact on others.
Important decisions are usually also complex which is why the following process is so useful. These steps are backed by good psychological research. Practice them and you’ll immediately be a better franchisor.
These habits will greatly improve the quality of your decisions and your ability to intuitively identify more subtle threats and opportunities.
A final tip. Someone once said to me, “Never make a decision when you’re too - too mad, too sad, too glad, too anything!” I think this is great advice because a common source of poor decision making is impatience. Just like a good wine, important decisions are sometime best allowed to sit for a time.
Until next time,
Greg Nathan
P.S. Last week our CEO, Karli Furmage, sent a Bulletin with a link to our Franchisee Crisis Kit. Thanks for your feedback on this. Our thoughts remain with those who have been affected by floods or fires.
Since 1990, thousands of franchise executives around the world have enjoyed receiving a regular email tip from FRI’s Founder, Greg Nathan.
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