The One with the Most Choices Wins

01.27.11

I once saw a bumper sticker saying, "The one with most toys wins." It gave me a smile, but then I started thinking about how that applied to my clients. What gives entrepreneurs an edge? Choices.

Clients tell me some of the things they desire are: flexibility, work/life balance, and perhaps a trophy or two, like a lovely home or coveted automobile. But it's choices that help pave the way to those things. So now my favorite advice is: "The one with the most choices wins."

Most entrepreneurs strike out on their own seeking choices to save them from slogging away at an uninspiring job for 40 years before retiring to find their passion. Having artfully crafted the vision of what they want to do, they come to me to learn how to make that vision profitable.

Choices are what it's all about - when you block out room for choices in your business, you are primed to succeed. Just like in chess, the player who plans multiple strategies can better withstand unforeseen contingencies and holds the strongest position.

Some choices to consider include:

• The choice to do the work you enjoy;


• The choice to work with clients and collaborators who elicit your best work; and


• The choice to occupy a certain geographical area or sector of the marketplace

Time after time I see clients hemming themselves in as if they can't really ask for what they really want. Sometimes getting to the heart of that matter is difficult, particularly for those with typical corporate backgrounds. They are just used to being offered limited choices, being told, "here's what we've got - do you want one lump or two?"

Although these choices can be powerful, it's easy to be overwhelmed with their seemingly limitless possibilities. It can be difficult to sort out what's most important and why. That's something else clients and I work on together: identifying the values and needs you are trying to meet that will enable you to create the life you want. Because in the end, entrepreneurs don't just want a lifestyle, they want to build a sustainable, energizing life.