More Answers... (6/8/25 Newsletter): Making Decisions

The "More Answers..." Newsletter

Hi Everyone,

Here's your Sunday Evening "More Answers..." to get a friendly boost fromme to setup your workweek!

Remember to sign up for the newsletter for bonus material!! (https://www.askchrista.com/newsletter/) 

Nearly 80 Questions in SIX WEEKS!!!! (Uh-oh... no turning back!!)

I have 57 Ask Christa! questions in queue, and I'm overwhelmed-- not in a "Gasp! How will I ever answer 57 questions!" kind of way, but a "Gasp!Nearly 80 people have trusted me to answer their questions since April 20th!" kind of way.

I am very grateful for this show and for you as part of my community. The upstart of it wasn't an easy decision because I'm a big committer after I make decisions like this. It took over 200 people over 20 months to ask, usually during or toward the wrap up of an advising or casual coaching session.

This past week I fought the typical feelings of doubt we all do with big decisions, especially when it's related to where we'll invest our time.

And that's what this newsletter is going to focus on: why it can be challenging to act on a decision then commit to it.

Decision Analysis Paralysis is REAL...

I'm a deeply mission-driven person who wants to give a lot of what I have to offer to those in need of it. While I'm grateful for the fractional advisory workI have, it's not filling up my days or the hours of each day.

Like hundreds of thousands of people in the United States, it has been a challenge for me to find full time-- or even steady contract-- work during this unprecedented time. Like so many, the first hammer dropped for me in mid-February.

But we're also living at a time when businesses are becoming paralyzed about where they will invest-- and I don't mean whether they will pick up a contract with me.

I mean where they will invest so that their business can withstand the storms when they cannot predict the storms-- internal investments are the most important decisions a business can make.

The Scarcity of "Only One Decision"...

Unlike other times when the market predicted economic softening, businesses are in new territory when making strategic decisions. Overall, they feel they are sailing smooth waters, then a decision is made that brings in big storm clouds, and they brace for a raging storm.

They lighten the boatload to make the boat more buoyant, they spend time and energy battening the hatches, they string up the sails, the mindset shifts. It's hard to stay focused on a sailing journey when you see a raging storm in the distance.

Then there are only a few sprinkles for a day or two, some choppy waters, but certainly waters they can withstand, and a new decision is made that clears the sky.

Whew! It's smooth sailing again... but remember: they had offloaded some resources to make the boat more buoyant, so they're managing with less, AND they now have to spend time an energy resetting the sails after losing a couple days of sailing time, which slowed down their journey.

How is Sailing Related to This Newsletter?

This isn't a political post per se, although obviously the metaphor is about how the politics of the day are impacting businesses around the world.

What has impacted me and is impacting others I know (aside from the abrupt halt of federal contracts and employment), is this: when faced with a sailing situation I've described: losing energy, days, and resources for the sake of bracing for a big storm that only partially comes, you lose options for how you'll continue your journey.

With fewer resources and a more tired team, you need to make changes and shifts to your journey-- you must account for the experience you just encountered, which means you also have to examine and reset your plan for the remainder of your journey.

Mid-Year Business Decisions Are Often About Tradeoffs...

The metaphor of resetting your plan at the mid-year mark (mid-journey) is necessary for small and mid-sized companies closing out the first half of their year, or Q1 and Q2 for those managing a calendar year, and setting up for the second half of the year.

Several businesses I know are grappling with reduced options, and I'm certain they are a proxy for what other small- and mid-sized companies are considering:

--> What ONE change / NEW investment will we make to make us better positioned to withstand what we just went through, and what will we have to give up in order to make that change or investment?

• Will they upskill their executive team to prepare them for managing a crisis? This was on the list of goals, but they've had to reduce their non-revenue and non-operational goals as they reset budgets.

• Is it to overhaul their strategic program efforts so they can become more efficient? Maybe, but this would be a new investment to "risk proof" the business. Do they really need to do that? What would they have to give up in order to move this new investment into place?

• Is it to strengthen their culture and employee development /engagement so they have a strong bench and prepared workforce to weather the potential storms? (you get the gist...)

Decisions Don't Have to Be About Tradeoffs

I dream of everyone living in an "AND" world instead of an "OR" world-- a place where you can have more than just. one. thing. at. a. time.

Unfortunately, most learn throughout their lives that the way to make a decision (and commit to it) is only through the process of deduction or elimination.

Culturally, they also learn that having TWO things at the same time is somehow wasteful or greedy-- except... it isn't, at least, not all the time. Probably not even most of the time.

Re: Budgets, resetting a budget goes much better when an organization re-evaluates the entire budget and refocuses their resources based on what's already been accomplished. Most times companies can reset without a tradeoff.

It's the psychological noise that comes about with disruption that typically creates the "analysis paralysis" for making new decisions and committing.

BOOSTER FOR YOUR WEEK!!!

Here are some resources to help you with your decision-making!

Oracle? Really? (yes, really... it includes a section on ethical decision making, too)

Clancey, J. (2025, February 17). How to Make Better Business Decisions: A Guide for Great Decision-Making. Oracle NetSuite. https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/business-strategy/making-business-decisions.shtml 

HSI focuses on risk management and compliance through their software; Ihave no affiliation, but I thought this article captured key aspects related to decision-making (especially during a risk situation). Some of it is prescriptive and oversimplifies, but overall, it's solid:

8 Tips to improve Decision-Making Skills. (2024, August 22). HSI. https://hsi.com/blog/8-tips-to-improve-decision-making-skills 

HBR, of course-- but remember, your objective SHOULDN'T be to make a QUICK decision, it should be to make one within the timeframe needed so others can appropriately take action. What I see a lot of times is a drag-on about the big decisions, and that's what this article focuses on when they say "quick." (note: I believe HBR offers 3 free articles per month; they have a free subscription and a paid one-- please consider what works best for you):

How to make great decisions, quickly. (2022, March 22). https://hbr.org/2022/03/how-to-make-great-decisions-quickly  

(and remember-- if you have a business challenges or workplace issue, Ask Christa!)

See you next week!!!

With kindness,
Christa

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