Viper Strategic

Just Say No

Author: Neil Wilkins

Neil learnt his marketing with the likes of Orange, NatWest, BP Castrol and Ordnance Survey and now helps individuals and businesses to communicate more effectively. He trains and mentors marketers on professional Chartered Institute of Marketing qualifications through to post-graduate level.

You've been there before and you know the score. What started out as a great opportunity and something incredibly positive has, over time, become the bane of your life. Deadlines slip, people are losing interest, costs are escalating and all parties cannot see the wood from the trees. But, and here is your problem, you just keep going.

Things can only get better. Stay positive and focused as all the best text books tell you and you'll be fine. Well sometimes it just isn't enough.

One of the key skills in business and marketing management, indeed in life as well, is to be able to draw a line under something, take the hit and simply walk away.

Even if you believe there just might be a chance that things will improve you are likely to reach a point in a project or campaign at which you should just say no.

One of the best approaches to put yourself into a position where this decision doesn't have to be subjective is to create an environment at the outset that gives you check points throughout your project or campaign. Points at which you can assess how you are doing against pre-determined targets. If you are reaching those targets as you hit them then all's well but if not then the reason you have those targets is to trigger the decision making process of 'get out of jail'. 

It's unlikely your 'get out of jail' will be free and this is where often the subjective desire of trying to keep going comes into play and blurs the reality. But you need to remain strong. The targets and milestones are there to help you. Miss them and you need to withdraw, meet them and they allow you to continue.

With human nature's instinct for survival it's unlikely the decision to withdraw will be an easy one. Afterall you started the project with positive aims. But saying no could and should be viewed as a positive rather than a negative outcome for a project even if it didn't achieve the original objectives. Withdrawing from something that could use up precious time and money and still not deliver against your targets can allow you to refocus and spend those resources on getting something else right.

Many companies and indeed the individuals in them are highly risk averse and will continue to battle on regardless. But you are unlikely to see such behaviours in the military where contingency planning and exit routes at all points in a campaign or operations are as important as the positive objectives themselves. In business we are talking about money and reputation. In military terms it's likely we are talking about lives. But the same principles apply.

Planning milestones and gateways through which a project or campaign must pass to allow it to continue, and having clear exit plans will ensure that resources and budget are put to best use in the longer term, even if not on the project in question.

Learning to say no just might open up more opportunities to say yes.

- Posted on Monday 08 Mar 2010 at 11:34 by Neil Wilkins

Tags: planning (33), strategy (27)