Ready, Aim, Fire! Hit Your Target Every Time

I once worked with a wonderful man, who was very knowledgeable about his professional field of expertise. Often, I was amazed by the depth of his understanding of issues and the quality of his analysis. He could play with Pros and Cons the way a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) plays comfortably with debits and credits. But he had a significant performance problem; he could not “pull the trigger” when it came time to make a decision. He was forever perfecting his aim. He was always getting ready. Eventually, this man moved into a position where he did not have to be a decision-maker.

Be willing to make decisions. That’s the most important quality in a leader. Don’t fall victim to the ready-aim-aim–aim syndrome. You must be willing to fire.”
– Harry S. Truman, 33rd US President

On the other hand, on more than one occasion, while working as a hospital CEO and as a hospital group CEO, I had a senior leader come into my office to discuss a great idea. After listening to their pitch, I shared that I liked the idea and we should run with it. Sometimes this approach had great results and sometimes it did not. Why? Because in some cases where I endorsed an idea, an action, the party “Got Ready, Took Aim, and Correctly Fired” and in some cases they did not.

I learned on the healthcare business that there is “A Right Action, to be done in a Right Way, at the Right Time, for a Right Reason, by the Right Person, for the Right Person, at the Right Cost.” And, it was all expressed as “Get Ready, Aim, and then Fire!”

“Getting Ready” was all about planning, and that was a process. We learned the rules, tools, and controls. We were placed in a context. We knew what we could do and when we could do it.“Aiming” was something we did in a before, during, and after step process. Before we ever approached “live fire” we “snapped-in.” 

The 1-10-100 Rule, which is applied in a broad range of activities, says that with respect to Planning and Implementation (as I am applying it here), one dollar spent in planning (or one unit of effort) potentially saves ten times the cost in Rework during implementation. That same level of resource investment in planning will potentially save one hundred times the resource expenditure in the post-implementation rework of a flawed implementation. We can literally – through effective planning – pay a little now to avoid paying a lot more later.

Tell me:
1) What you want to do
2) Why it matters (What difference it will make)
3) How you plan to do it (What the Process Steps are)
4) Who you plan to do it to and why they would support your action
5) Who you plan to do it with and what’s in it for them
6) When you plan to start the action
7) When you plan to finish the action and how you will know you are done
8) Where the work will be done during the process
9) Where the work will be done after the start-up process is complete
10) What the initiative will cost to start-up (time, material, people, money)
11) What it will cost annually to maintain
12) What it will generate in Net Revenue (if applicable)
13) How will we know when we’ve “Won” (accomplished the Intended Result)

If a presenter can answer these questions, I will likely understand what they are committed to doing, its potential for success, and its value. No less important, I will understand their preparation and consideration (due diligence). This suggests their commitment to the outcome or Intended Result (IR).