When I served as board chair for Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland, we were in the beginning stages of a $16 million capital campaign to build our STEM leadership center. We then found ourselves in the COVID pandemic and with a significant decision: Do we continue forward? Do we permanently stop? Do we wait and see what happens and then decide?
Saying no or taking a wait-and-see approach would have been acceptable and likely a “safer” choice given the circumstances. Moving forward came with significant unknowns.
After much debate, we ultimately chose to continue forward. I knew that if we completely stopped, or even just temporarily hit pause, the likelihood of keeping momentum was slim. I knew that we had executive leadership, business partners and a donor community that would help us to succeed. It turned out we were right. In 2024, we unveiled our Dream Big space, a community gem that includes a STEM center, maker space and upgraded environmental center.
That singular decision to decide became our advantage. Decisiveness drove momentum; it signaled confidence and direction. Without that decision point, I’m confident the dream would still be a blueprint gathering dust somewhere in a closet.
While the scenarios are different in your organization, the opportunity is the same. When you consider your company’s vision for the future, with that comes the investment of time, money, resources and reputation. What sometimes isn’t accounted for is the sheer number and level of decisions that are part of it.
There are three types of decisions:
- Yes. This is a decisive action that creates next steps.
- No. This is a decisive action that frees up space for other initiatives.
- Wait and see. This is indecision. It produces missed opportunities because it erodes both space and momentum. It can also become an unintended cultural consequence, as it begins to define the organization’s pace and priorities.
How can today’s leaders think and act differently to avoid the curse of “wait and see?”
Create clarity about the ideal outcome and the best alternative to the ideal outcome. Two possible paths to success can alleviate decision-making bottlenecks by reducing decision risk.
Consider the supply-chain effect of any decision. Most teams consider the intended outcomes, but not always the unintended. A decision in one area of the business will influence others, and what we’re not thinking of can have the greatest impact.
Understand the thought processes and emotions of those participating in the decision. Decision-making becomes vulnerable when leaders underestimate how people interpret risk and change.
Discern when to work toward consensus versus agreement. Strong leaders are upfront and consistent on this, and they communicate when they are seeking alignment and when they are seeking more immediate progress.
Explicitly assign ownership to key elements of the decision. Ownership that is explicitly assigned and measured eliminates ambiguity.
Accept that a decision may change if the inputs change. Rigid and reactive are the two extremes; think instead of being thoughtfully responsive when the inputs change.
Begin with identifying one decision you’ve placed in “wait and see.” Apply these practices to it, clarify the outcome, assign ownership and move it forward. Momentum rarely appears on its own, but leaders can intentionally create it. ●
Amy Franko is CEO and LinkedIn Top Sales Voice for Amy Franko Associates
