Principle – 9

A common challenge for business people is to keep the long term interests of the business in mind while immersed in the minute-to-minute pressures of the business.
It takes a kind of “double vision” to keep both in mind at the same time.
The best business managers and entrepreneurs are able to keep their double vision focused sharply in both directions.
Every little operational decision is made with an eye to its impact on the long term, and every long term decision is informed by knowledge of the day-to-day operation of the business.
It’s not just a useful skill – it’s essential for the development of the business if it’s going to achieve its Strategic Intent.
It’s hard to think about draining theswamp when the alligators are snapping at you.
It’s hard to change the tyre when the car is speeding along at eighty kilometres per hour.
But if the swamp needs draining or the tyre needs changing, you’ve got to get the job done regardless of the alligators or the speed.
Double vision keeps your focus where it needs to be, even when it needs to be in two different places.
Long-term and short-term aren’t the only kinds of double vision you need to develop.
There’s also the double vision of the strategic, big picture direction of the business and the operational details of the business – you have to keep the strategy in mind even as you make the hundreds of little decisions demanded of you.
When you’re dealing with employees, the double vision is that employees are both human beings who need understanding and compassion, and at the same time they’re productive assets that need to be deployed in the business where they can be most effective.
When you’re marketing your products and services, you have to keep the customer’s point of view in mind while at the same time balance the needs of your business.
And when you’re working in and on your business, you also need to keep the rest of your life in mind to maintain a healthy balance.
Which leads us to the last but not least of our Top Ten Principles…