A Business Tool for Increased Clarity: The Q

The “Q” is a decision-making tool that helps its user to clarify situations, sort out problems and build effective strategies. The focus here is to have enough active thinking within a limited time on a number of aspects of any particular situation to gain clarity and be able to productively move forward.

Specifically, the “Q” stands for Quantify, Qualify, Quick. The biggest common threat to small business is time.  There seems to be too much to do and not enough time to do it all. Any tool that will really help, then, needs to be simple and easy to use . . . quickly.

A "Q" has 4 quadrants, or sections to it. Let’s assume that you want to do a “Q” on each of 5 potential referral sources, in order to clarify how to gain increased referrals from them over the next year.

It has been said that 90% of the effective completion of any project lies in its formulation. The other 10% lies in its execution. If this is true, then the mental efforts of formulation will bring you a long distance towards your goal with each person. (With the “Q”, you can get 90% of the job done with conceptualization . . . just think of the possibilities!)

Section 1: Where Are You Now?

If 90% of a project's completion lies in its formulation, then 55% to 60% of effective formulation lies in getting clear on where you are now. This section is critical, yet most often over-looked (or under-utilized) based on the assumption that "I already know where I am".

In section 1, please list everything that is relevant about where you are now with this person.

This includes:
- How long you have known them and how the relationship has evolved
- Where the relationship is at currently (in detail)
- Any factors and details about them that might impact the desired result

Safety Tip

Break this section down into 2 subsections: What you know; and what you are not sure of. The clearer you get on what you are not sure of, the more access you are likely to find to effective action later.

Section 2: Where Are You Going?

In section 2 please list, again in as much detail as possible, your desired outcome(s). List as many aspects of the desired results as you can think of. The clearer you are about the results that you want (and I mean more detail than "he sells 4 units of product for me", or "she refers 3 clients"), the clearer you can get about the gap between Sections 1 and 2.

Section 3: How might you get there?

Section 3 is an edit-free brainstorming section on different possible alternatives to get from section 1 (where you are now) to section 2 (where you want to go). List whatever comes to mind, and be sure not to edit out any ideas.

Remember, it is quite often the silly or bizarre ideas that lead to the good ones, so you need to have enough silly and bizarre ideas down there as well as the "gems". Take as much time on this section as you can, building it up until you feel like you have given yourself lots of resources to choose from.

Section 4: S.M.A.R.T. Actions

In section 4, you list the first 3 to 5 actions you plan on taking to move this initiative forward. Instead of dealing with a whole bunch of things, by identifying the first 3 to 5, you will get yourself into appropriate action (the desired state) and leave yourself flexibility to adjust, depending upon the results of the first few steps.

Each of the actions wants to satisfy the acronym SMART

S.M.A.R.T. stands for:
Specific - The more specific your action, the better
Measurable - You have to be able to measure it
Attainable - If it is not attainable, then there is no point in attempting it
Realistic - not only attainable, it needs to make sense in light of what else you are doing
Timely - it needs a deadline in time. Remember, a commitment without a deadline . . . is a slogan.

So there you go, the “Q”. For each of your top 5 potential customers, develop a “Q”.  Start with one and see where it leads.

More Safety Tips

Where people often get stuck is in either not spending enough time clarifying the various dimensions of “where I am now” (both known and uncertain areas), or in jumping to conclusions about “how”.  By spending a little time with “where you are now”, both known and uncertain, and then “where you are going”, you may find that you can get more out of your mind and down on paper.  This frees up your brain to think creatively, which will help make section 3 go more smoothly.

Whether you use the “Q” to build strategies, or to solve a problem, you may find this a simple, yet effective tool to help gain clarity and move you into productive action.