I felt paralysed when making decisions and it nearly ruined my business
2022 has started off with news of the ‘Great Resignation’. A Microsoft global survey found that 41% of 30,000 workers surveyed are planning to leave their jobs in the next six months. Figures also show that the amount of people in the US leaving their jobs was at a record high in January according to the New York Times.
Many of those people will look to set up their own businesses. 2018/2019 figures show that over 627,000 businesses were started. However 20% of those will fail in the first year and 60% will go bust within three years. One of the reasons for an SME to fail is the inability of the CEO or founder to make decisions which enable the company to move forward. As the business grows it becomes increasingly harder to make decisions without feeling overwhelmed. I felt this acutely about five years into the running of my mortgage brokerage business, CLS Money.
When I worked in the city, despite holding a senior position in the business I didn’t have to make decisions which affected the growth of the company. Any decisions I did make I had the support of my colleagues and superiors. I went onto found CLS with a laptop at my kitchen table in 2011. Within a couple of years I had a seat in an estate agents and my first member of staff. In the first year I made £50,000, in the second year £100,000 and it followed that trajectory. I doubled each year.
In 2017 I had reached an annual turnover of around 1 million, but it then remained static after seeing fairly steady growth. I had 10 staff and I knew that CLS needed to grow but I didn’t know how to do it. I knew I needed better premises and more staff and that’s when I started to experience a lack of confidence in my decision making. At those times my mind would become foggy and I’d find it difficult to see clearly what my options were. As many entrepreneurs and business leaders will attain too, you start a business because you are good at what you do. However, that doesn’t mean that you are adept at every single part of the business. I had to quickly learn skills such as marketing and bookkeeping. As the business grew so too did the amount of decisions I was required to make. I found myself trying to make the quickest and easiest decision just to be able to move forward but often they weren’t the right decisions. I realised that I needed help so I got in touch with a business coach. I did it because I knew I needed a sounding board who was entirely objective. Business coach Peter Boolkah didn’t tell me what decisions to make but he did listen and guide me. Through that coaching process the fog started to lift and I was able to see a clear path forward. Decisions become easier to make.
By 2018 I had managed to get my first high street shop front. My experience of working with a business coach is a bit like having a personal trainer. Goals are more clearly defined and you reach them faster. When it comes to fitness, reaching your goals faster won’t make you money, but for a business wasting time not making decisions can cost you money. A McKinsey and Co report highlighted the amount of money that can be wasted by managers wasting time on ineffective decision making. They found that the equivalent of $250 million in wages for a typical Fortune 500 company annually could be potentially lost each year for 530,000 days of wasted managers’ time.
Ultimately I found the confidence and ability to start making big business decisions by myself again with the help of a sounding board. Decision making is key to the growth of a company. Find someone who is independent of the business and will listen. The solutions to the problems are always within. You just need to find a way of drawing them out and actioning them in a clear ordered manner. I’ve once again doubled my turnover despite the pandemic. I’m building a new office to house my growing staff and I’m on target to hit a turnover of 4 million pounds. Undoubtedly my relationship with my business coach, Peter Boolkah is a big part of that.
