Perhaps it’s from my twenty-plus years of selling life insurance and related products. Or maybe its source is deep within my being. Either way, I have great admiration for a person who can say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in a reasonable amount of time and move on.

It was a constant source of frustration and irritation when a prospect would not pull the proverbial trigger even after the need had been proven; the ability to pay established; and the desire to solve the problem acknowledged.When asked, however, if we could go ahead with the plan there were frequently three replies:

"I want to think about it."

"We’ll get back to you."

"I’ll run this by my accountant and see what she says."

When those objections were legitimate, I had nothing but admiration for the person. However, when they were merely a coward’s way of saying ‘no,’ it drove me crazy.

That is probably the reason I’m a big fan of people who can react with confidence and an appropriate sense of urgency when the situation calls for it.

I once witnessed a wonderful example of terrific decision-making that only four people out of a hundred or so noticed–three referees and me. The incident occurred thirty-five years ago at a junior high football game in Fort Dodge.

A muscular fullback dove through the right side of the line attempting to gain a couple of yards striving for a first-down. It was going to be a close call so the head referee, John Marrs, called for the chains to be brought in from the sidelines.

A problem soon developed, however. Neither of the two men running the chains had remembered to mark a spot on the chain nearest a chalk line. This is supposed to be done so that when they carried the sticks to the middle of the field they could be placed on the exact same spot on a chalk line for an accurate measurement.

Marrs looked at his co-officials and all three realized they had a problem. He glanced at both coaches and observed that neither had noticed the oversight. John then jammed the front pole about one-half inch behind the football and made an appropriate signal while shouting, "First down!" The entire event took only seconds.

It was decision-making at its finest. He was in an untenable situation in which one or both coaches would have gone ballistic had they been really paying attention to the error. Rather than make an issue out of it, John exercised an ‘executive decision’ to make the best of a bad situation by acting as though the error had not happened and moved on with his life.

I could not tell you for a million dollars which team won that day. On the other hand, I have never forgotten that decision-making masterpiece when he drove the front stake into the ground and proceeded with the action. I smiled from ear to ear and tipped my cap to his ingenuity. No one was harmed and a problem had been solved in the process.

Another example: I once had to ask a breakout presenter with only two hours notice if she would be willing to make a main platform presentation to six hundred attendees when the scheduled speaker was unable to do so. Elaine said ‘yes’ within seconds and earned a large check in addition to the standing ovation she received from an appreciative audience.

Does this mean you as an entrepreneur should be carelessly irrational in making your decisions?

Absolutely not.

Rather, it means to have the courage of your convictions and arrive at a thoughtful decision within a reasonable period of time. It means to trust your instincts. It means to drive that front stake into the ground and move forward if that’s the best choice to make at the time.

And when you do–celebrate. Proudly shout out the appropriate equivalent of, "First down!"

Then move on with your head held high.

Bill Sheridan—‘Sheridan Writes:’ Bio under Guest Authors

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