WWID

I don’t know how many of you remember the “What Would Jesus Do” bracelets, but as someone who grew up in the South, trust me, rubber WWJD bracelets were everywhere. No matter how you feel about that particular advice I know that one of the most important questions that someone trying to grow a business can ask themselves is “What Would I Do?” Sounds simple enough, but every leader identifies with that moment when the questions are big and doubt makes trusting yourself feel impossible.

The stress of “getting it right,” whether you are starting, growing, or shepherding a business, is overwhelming. That pressure is everywhere, and the unknown costs of mistakes loom large, keeping you up all night like monsters hiding in your childhood closet.

There is an entire library’s worth of books written to tell you what to do next. There are even whole books written about individual decisions depending on what stage of the business you are in. How overwhelming is that? I’m not saying books and consultants can’t help, far from it. A good counselor helps you cut through the noise, but they do not force a choice and move on to the next project. Advice and counsel are good things, otherwise, why would I be doing this at all? But one thing none of these books will tell you is that you are the one who has to live with and implement the choices you make.

So inaction is not an option. If you’re reading this, we agree on that much. What is a leader to do? Whose advice should you follow? Well, the first step is for you to look at the metaphorical rubber bracelet and ask yourself, “What Would I Do?”

If you’re running your own business, it is because you are passionate about what you do and, at some point, have received some pretty positive feedback about your ability to do it. Remember that. If you were hired by a board to run a business, I’m willing to bet that you have a trail of successes behind you. Remember that.

In a sea of advice it is easy to be paralyzed by choice. And all of those choices may be reasonable. That is part of the problem. But you have to implement the systems you choose (software, project management, org structure), and you have to work with the people you hire. No decision you make will ever be perfect. So it’s important to choose the systems that will be easiest to iterate. Those are always going to be the ones you feel most comfortable with. The most important thing is to make choices and to make sure they are clear ones, for you and the entire organization.

When clients bring me in for project work, I am not there to force any particular method or solution onto them. I am there to help them sort the noise, choose an approach that fits their people, and then turn “What Would I Do” into a concrete way of working that everyone can follow.

The point is that at the end of the day, you are the one who has to run the business, and you are the only one who knows it the way you do. Let your gut be your guide, make clear choices, and never let chasing the perfect become an excuse to avoid doing the good. If you want help sorting the options and backing your own judgment with a workable plan, that is exactly the work I do.

“Isn’t that just common sense?”

“Isn’t that just common sense?”

I hear that line a lot after walking a founder through a fix. Last week, a CEO smiled and said it again. The snarky answer in my head: If it’s so common… But here’s what I actually said:

It only feels like common sense after you have words for it.

Plenty of good consultants will admit most of this reads like common sense. Alan Weiss even branded it “Common Sense Consulting.” I agree, with a twist. The answers can feel forehead-slapping, but these aren’t common answers because these aren’t common situations. It isn’t common to start or run a business.

Plenty of smart people run into the same patterns as their companies grow - handoffs get fuzzy, decisions stretch, quality slips. The issues are predictable; the experience is personal. Inside the business, you’re juggling customers, payroll, promises you’ve already made, and the pride of work you’ve poured yourself into. That mix blurs what’s in front of you.

And because you care, you expect to power through. Learning you’re human is hard, especially when you’re already being intentional, thoughtful, and giving it your all.

The real value of an outside perspective is that we aren’t in your battles. We don’t have to make choices based on your personal relationships or your sunk costs. We hold the flashlight still - you’re running; we anchor the beam. We take “just work harder” and turn it into “try this instead.”

One business owner I recently spoke to said, “Any time I spend with a consultant is time working on the business, not in the business.”

In life - parenting, relationships, work, and hobbies - it’s tough to separate trying your hardest from doing your best. Hardest is effort. Best is results. That may sound like common sense. Good. The trick isn’t to know it; it’s to see it on time and do something about it. Outside eyes help clarify it quickly and hold you accountable for the next step.