“Ready, Aim, Fire.”
Put those words in any other order and they sound like mockery. But they shouldn’t.
👉 “Ready, Fire, Aim!” is someone who makes hasty decisions without thinking.
Or is it?
👉 “Ready, Aim, Aim, Aim, Aim, Fire!” is someone who suffers from analysis paralysis.
Or is it?
How much aiming should you do before pulling the trigger?
The answer depends on four things:
1️⃣ Scarcity of ammunition – If you only have one cannonball, calibrate your aim several times with bullets before making your one shot. But if you have unlimited laser tag shots, fire as much as you want.
2️⃣ Value of precision – If you’re watering your garden, it won’t hurt to cover the weeds also. But if you’re spraying RoundUp, take better aim to avoid your flowers.
3️⃣ Accessibility of feedback – Guided missiles and firefighters with hoses can respond to feedback and continuously adjust their aim even after the shot is fired. But the child launching a water balloon from a slingshot doesn’t have the same luxury.
4️⃣ Cost of delay – Are you losing cash or goodwill while you wait to make a decision? Is there a first-to-market advantage? Is someone else executing a plan to take over your customers or poach your employees? Is rumor filling a void left by your silence? Does your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity have an expiration date?
If you find your team disagreeing on when to launch, see where you’re over- or under-estimating one of those four factors.
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