“The greatest deception men suffer
is from their own opinion.”
Leonardo da Vinci
1452-1519
14 Famous Pivots
“A man plans; God laughs”; this old saying reminds us that reality can easily upset even the most thoughtful plans. In the commercial realm, many people start businesses that focus on a given product and/or market only to find they misjudged a market, that a competitor is too formidable or that an even better idea presents itself, demanding a different course.
This short article from Forbes profiles several mid-course corrections that made some very famous businesses very successful because they chose to depart from “Plan A.” The article is a little dated (2013), but its lessons are not. What can you learn from “14 Famous Business Pivots”
This article from Entrepreneur Magazine is another good read on the topic with some guidance on pivoting tactics: “8 Ways to Pivot to Your Business to Kickstart Growth.”
Collins on Chaos
The past two years might be described in any number of ways, but most would agree that “chaotic” should be high on the list of relevant adjectives. The pandemic and the government’s response, supply chain challenges, the War for Talent, Work from Home and other events have made for the most challenging leadership environment in decades.
Jim Collins of “Good to Great” fame was interviewed by Chief Executive Magazine for his insights on great leaders’ response to chaos. This is Collins at his best and further description by me can only delay you from reading this superb article.
Stop what you’re doing and absorb Mr. Collins’ thoughts on “Thriving in Chaos.”
Debrief Yourself
We’re all familiar with the concept of feedback and debriefing. We give feedback to subordinates regarding their decisions; others give feedback to us. But how often do you evaluate your own decisions?
Daniel Pink (author of “Drive” and “To Sell is Human”) offers a simple technique that requires a “note to self” about your expectations around something you have a stake in and setting a reminder to review the outcome later. A three-minute video by Mr. Pink will show you how it works. A good exercise for you and your team on debriefing yourself.
Econ Recon
“Not Yet”
I like it when the economists I highly respect agree…especially if it’s good news (or at least not bad news). Dr. Brian Wesbury’s recent blog post explains why he thinks there’s “No Recession, Yet.” Brian Beaulieu of ITR Economics offers a Bond Yield Update and overview of other data that suggests “we don’t see that broad based recession, not yet.”
Readers of this newsletter know that ITR Economics is a highly trusted source of economic forecasts for our C-Level Vistage Members. In addition to their highly accurate shorter-term forecasts, ITR principals Brian and Alan Beaulieu have long warned of another “Great Depression” that will occur toward the of this decade; almost a century after the earlier one.
Dr. Alan Beaulieu recently sat down for a 12-minute video interview in which he addressed the following questions about the next “Great Depression.”
Will the 2030’s Great Depression look like the 1930’s Great Depression?
Will it start in the United States?
Will social programs end in the 2030’s?
What are the protected industries to be in, or invest in?
How do I communicate this to my children?
Once it starts, what should we do?
A Note From Scott:
Friends,
Where do you get your advice? Would you value getting agenda-free advice from other successful, non-competing, growth-oriented business leaders?
Going it alone is tough. Vistage members grow 2-3 times faster than their non-member peers, according to D&B. With less stress and greater life balance.
Contact me below to explore if you're a fit for one of the seats in our CEO peer group.
Warm regards,
Scott
