What if your slowest decisions are silently killing your business?
In this eye-opening episode, organizational change expert Jurriaan Kamer reveals why decision-making speed can make or break your company. Drawing lessons from Formula One racing teams, Kamer shares practical frameworks for accelerating decisions without increasing risk. Discover the "waterline principle" for empowering your team, learn the three types of business decisions you face, and uncover why treating every choice like a permanent tattoo is holding you back. Plus, get actionable strategies for building decision-making systems that scale with your business.
Think of decisions like choosing between a hat, a haircut, or a tattoo. Hats are easily changed, haircuts grow back, but tattoos are permanent. Yet most founders treat every decision like a tattoo, paralyzing their progress with unnecessary analysis. The key is building systems that help your team understand which decisions need deep consideration and which they can make independently.
The "waterline principle," borrowed from Gore-Tex's founders, provides a powerful framework. Picture your business as a ship – some problems explode above the waterline (uncomfortable but survivable), while others blow holes below (sinking the whole operation). By clearly defining your waterline, whether it's a dollar amount or customer impact threshold, you empower your team to act swiftly on smaller decisions while escalating truly critical choices.
Want to accelerate decision-making? Stop being a traffic cop and start designing better roads. Create clear frameworks, document guidelines, and make them visible. Focus on decisions that maximize learning and future flexibility. Remember, in business as in racing, victory often goes not to the team with the perfect strategy, but to the one willing to act while others hesitate.
Watch the Full Episode on Fast Decision Making with expert Jurriaan Kamer below:
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