Try this phrase to speed action; Unless I hear differently

Consensus is a good thing isn’t it? We want to get everyone on board and aligned don’t we? So we need to get everyone’s input and approval before we move forward with a new initiative, right? Wrong. If we wait until we have everyone’s feedback then we move at the speed of the slowest animal in the herd. One of the big problems with making innovation happen is the number of meetings and approvals that are needed before we can move forward with anything radical or different. Generally the bigger the company the worse the problem but sometimes small organisations can be tied up with difficult approval processes. If this is the case then there is a powerful solution that can be delivered with one telling phrase; ‘Unless I hear differently.’  In can be used in all forms of communication.

Instead of asking for everyone’s input on a proposed new course of action, lay out your best plan in an email and add ‘unless I hear differently by close of play tomorrow I will go ahead with this.’ If someone has strong feelings they will voice them, otherwise you move ahead with the initiative. If you start using this approach and encourage others to do so then it will lead to a bias for action rather than discussion. Of course some big decisions still need discussion. But if your organisation sometimes suffers from ‘paralysis by analysis’ then try cutting through the procrastination with the magic phrase.

There are more details and examples on the website unlessiheardifferently.com

Paul Sloane