Several years ago, I remember the Bob Schlegel the CEO of Pavestone telling me that one of the hardest things for him to learn was execution. He said that he would plan out his every move and then he would not be able to do it because he was afraid of something.
I think most people in business have this problem. In my personal communications everyday with people, I find that a good majority are just wasting time. Most of them have great ideas, they plan everything out but they don’t do anything beyond that.
I have wondered about the psychology behind this. What makes hundreds of people spend money and time to learn about something only never to do it? its possible part of the old collage days are still sticking by. In college you are taught to study and research but very few teach to get out there and do something. The ones that do are a true gem.
I’m sure it has to do with what others say as well. I remember telling people what I was doing early on. If I had listened to them say I could not do it, I wouldn’t have. I heard someone once say that if you take advice from broke people then you will be broke as well. The methodology behind that statement is that if they really knew what they were talking about then they wouldn’t be broke themselves.
All things considered, I really believe FEAR is the biggest factor when deciding how and when to execute. Always ask: “What’s the worst that can happen?” and then follow up your answer with: “Can I live with that?”. Once you are comfortable with the worst case scenario you are playing to win and not to lose.