Why Options Distract Us From Our Main Objective
Aug 3rd, 2009 by David Svet
Keeping your options open is a good thing, right? Have you ever asked a seven year old what they want for dinner? “Ice cream!” Most parents learn pretty quickly to offer a very limited range of acceptable options, “Do you want spaghetti or chicken for dinner?” This works. The kids are happy that they got to make a decision. They get a decent meal. And you didn’t have to go shopping in order to put dinner on the table. So what’s the deal with your business?
Have you counted the number of products and services that you offer lately? While most of you have probably done so, I imagine there are a few of you who would be surprised. In most businesses product and service offerings have a tendency to multiply over time. Occasionally this happens in a less than planned manner (at my friend’s business, NEVER at mine — LOL). You know how it happens. Somebody asked for something once or twice and it became part of the product mix. Someone who used to work here had a pet project that became a service offering and it’s still offered. Those guys offer X so we have to offer X. They all seemed like a good idea at the time, but the truth is they are just a distraction.
Options slow down the decision making process, often to a point of paralysis. Yes, unlimited opportunity is paralyzing. When I was a kid, my dog taught me about this. If I were to knock over the candy jar, jellybeans would scatter all over the floor and the dog would come running. In a spastic frenzy she would lurch from one jellybean to the next failing to pick any of them up in her excitement. I quickly learned that if I remained calm and focused on the objective, I could pick up all of the candy without letting the dog have any. I didn’t try to restrain the dog, or distract the dog, or call for help. I simply picked up the candy as quickly as possible. I learned to focus on the objective and not waste limited resources on the options. My poor dog never did figure it out and with 3 kids she had lots of opportunities.
Options distract us from the main objective. Whether we are buying, selling, giving, or getting, options get in the way. It takes resources to provide options. Ultimately a choice is made and the alternatives go unused rendering all the resources that went into them a loss for that transaction. Imagine what your bottom line would look like if you eliminated all of the pet products, seldom requested services, and “me too” offerings? Imagine how much easier it would be to market your business? Imagine how much simpler your life would become? Hey, you’ve got options!
