Career Decision Risks

Choose speed over perfection.   I've always emphasised organisational speed, an underrated virtue.   Striving for perfection can seem admirable - a mark of elevated standards and thorough consideration. But it restricts pace, which I frequently find exasperating.   Speed is not just a competitive edge but essential. Delaying decisions to pursue the “perfect” outcome can result in missed opportunities, whereas making swift decisions allows you to adapt, learn, and stay ahead. Speed doesn’t mean skipping due diligence—it means executing efficiently within constraints. It’s about creating systems that allow rapid, informed decisions, not endless debates.   But seek speed appropriately - never sacrificing safety, integrity, or compliance. Thoroughness is critical in decisions where safety or irreversible outcomes are at stake. Speed wins hands down in areas where agility and iteration add value—like product launches or market entries.  So, why do I think speed is critical?   Momentum matters; it enhances confidence: A wise choice made today encourages advancement. Hoping for the unattainable “perfect” choice frequently results in inaction and disappointment. In industries like telecom, tech and medtech, where I’ve spent years, speed isn’t optional—it’s survival. Disruptors move fast; incumbents must match their pace or risk irrelevance. Mistakes facilitate learning: moving at pace enables faster comprehension. Imperfect decisions can offer important lessons that perfection postpones. Every decision generates data—good or bad. The faster you act, the quicker you collect insights that fuel the next iteration. Flexibility drives creativity: When flawless outcomes aren’t the primary objective, teams are more inclined to explore, revise, and develop daring, big solutions.   Decentralised decision-making enhances this impact. When teams closest to the problem own the solution, they act faster and produce more innovative results. This agility outperforms top-down management. Yet, here's the irony: selecting speed doesn't imply forsaking careful consideration. It's about recognising when 80% suffices for taking action. The real skill of leadership is found in this equilibrium. The bottom line: The cost of waiting for perfection isn’t just time—it’s the opportunities you let slip by as the world moves on. When it becomes part of the organisational DNA, speed fosters urgency, accountability, and a competitive edge. Culture eats strategy for breakfast, and speed is the engine behind the execution. Many of the most significant breakthroughs arose not from flawless strategies but from people and groups ready to take bold actions which continuously iterate and swiftly adapt. Personally, this approach has never let me down in leadership. If I had waited for perfection, I wouldn’t have had the privilege of learning from bold moves—or the occasional misstep that taught me even more.

I’m watching Maryland’s new $1M initiative to turn displaced federal workers into teachers with cautious curiosity. On one hand, it's a smart response to two problems:federal job loss and a nationwide teacher shortage. But here’s where I pause... Teaching isn’t just a job you pivot into. It’s a profession built on training, pedagogy, classroom management, child psychology, and years of experience. We don’t turn laid-off engineers into surgeons after a few online modules. So why are we so quick to assume teaching can be done well without the same deep, professional preparation? Yes, federal workers bring so many valuable skills. But teaching is an art and science. And current teachers—trained, licensed, and experienced—are burning out under the weight of being constantly undervalued and underpaid. Shouldn't we be investing in helping and supporting initiatives for current teachers? We need real solutions to the teacher shortage. But we also need to stop treating teaching like a plug-and-play role anyone can walk into. If we don’t protect the craft of teaching, we risk losing the teachers who actually chose it. #TeacherShortage #EducationPolicy #RespectTeachers

Hesitation kills more startups than failure. Here is what I have learned: → Quick, imperfect decisions beat perfect, slow ones → Micro-cuts prolong the pain → Analysis paralysis drains resources → Market opportunities don't wait I learned this in 2013 when my startup was bleeding: → An investor pulled out after signing → Key enterprise customer didn't renew → Team morale was at rock bottom But the real enemy wasn't market conditions. It was my hesitation to make hard decisions. The reality is: → Speed compounds advantages → Slow moves drain runway → Markets reward decisive action → Competition punishes indecision Great founders understand: → Move fast on critical decisions → Concentrate resources where they matter → Keep teams aligned on core mission → Stay nimble, not perfect The path isn't about having all the answers. It's about moving decisively when it matters most. Your competition isn't waiting. Neither should you. Share your toughest quick business call? 👇 Image by Pejman Milani

“I want to change careers. But I don’t want to leave my current job before ensuring I can land my target role.” I've heard this dilemma from mid-career professionals too many times to count. It’s understandable – most people don’t want to risk losing what they have, for something they aren’t sure they can achieve. The reason people don't take such risks is uncertainty. Because the less we know about something, the more hesitant we are to do it. So, here's what I tell people in such cases. There are 3 simple yet effective ways to tackle uncertainty, especially during career change: 1. Small steps > Herculean efforts - Taking consistent micro-steps towards your goal is always better than working on the end goal right away - Eg, if you want to switch to data analytics, take a short course or speak with analytics experts before refreshing your resume and applying to 100s of roles - If you want to start a startup, build an MVP before launching a full-fledged business 2. Calculated risk > Leap of faith - If there’s a low chance of landing your target role, consider finding a role that's midway between your current and target role - Eg, if you want to switch from HR to product management, first find an HR role at a startup (ideally HRtech) and transition to a PM role afterward - This way, you make two smaller pivots that are easier versus one large pivot that’s harder 3. Hedging your bets > Hoping for the best - Stay put in your current role if you have the bandwidth to work on your transition on weeknights and weekends - Make sure you have sufficient savings for the transition period while you are in between jobs - It’s also wise to have a backup plan to find another more achievable role or return to your previous career, if needed ------------------------- Uncertainty is part of all career transitions. The above strategies can help improve your chances of making a successful shift, while keeping your options open in case things don’t work out. What steps have helped you navigate turbulence in your career?   #careerchange #careerswitch #planning

There’s no such thing as the right time. There’s just your call. Every CEO has waited too long. Too long to hire. Too long to fire. Too long to launch, pivot, raise, kill, say it, change it, stop it, or admit it. We call it “timing.” But 90% of the time, that’s just code for fear. You’re not waiting for the right time. You’re stalling because you know the call is yours, and it’s going to cost you. 🧠 Perfect timing is a bedtime story for founders There’s no calendar invite that says, “This is the week.” There’s no whisper from the market saying, “Now it’s safe.” What there is: • Incomplete data • Asymmetric risk • Conflicting opinions • Emotional overhead • And 37 Slack threads full of half-conviction (yes, i counted them) Real urgency doesn’t feel good. It feels unprepared. Which is exactly when you’re supposed to act. 🤡 What delay sounds like in disguise • “Let’s wait for the next board meeting.” • “We’ll decide after we finish the OKRs.” • “They’ve been here a long time.” • “Let’s see how the quarter plays out.” • “I just want to be fair.” Fairness is good. But fairness without courage is how you end up with a bloated team, a stale strategy, and a slowly eroding culture. 🧪 The research: speed beats certainty McKinsey’s research on decision velocity shows that companies that decide faster and iterate in motion outperform those that delay in search of perfect clarity, by up to 20% in revenue growth and 30% in innovation metrics. In short: momentum beats hesitation. Even when it’s messy. 🛠 What I do when I catch myself waiting for “the right time” I ask: “If this were urgent tomorrow, what would I wish I had done today?” Then I do it. Not always perfectly. But always deliberately. Because the “right time” never arrives. It’s declared, by you. ⚔️ Leadership is about calling it Your job isn’t to wait for consensus. It’s to move before it’s comfortable. There’s no such thing as the right time. There’s just your call. And every time you hesitate out of fear, the cost goes up. So go first. Take the shot. Then lead the recovery, if there’s one to make. #Leadership #Management #CEO #DecisionMaking #ExecutiveLeadership #BusinessStrategy

🙅♀️Never quit... your job. ✅ Get fired or laid off. I spoke with over a dozen employment attorneys about the dark underbellies of firing practices so you don't have to. What I've learned: 🤫 Quitting leaves you with the least amount of leverage. It makes it incredibly difficult for you to get unemployment benefits. You lose out on severance, extended health coverage, immigration benefits (especially if leaving the job puts you on a 60-day visa clock). Worse, if you experienced unfair treatment, were discriminated based on your protected class, or were retaliated for whistleblowing, quitting makes your legal case 10x harder. 🤫 Employers at toxic workplaces love it when you quit. In fact, they may "quiet fire" you or make the work environment hostile enough so you feel you're better off resigning. Don't fall into the trap. 🤫 If you have been being mistreated at work: ❌ Do NOT talk to the people who mistreated you, or their adjacents. More often than not, you have friendly coworkers, not coworker friends. ✅ Do talk to a career coach or a trusted mentor outside of work on how to strategize your next steps and how to take care of your emotional & financial health. ✅ Document everything in writing. Leave a paper trail when speaking with HR, especially if they ask you to "talk on the phone". ✅ Talk to an employment attorney who's seen how the firing firestorm plays out hundreds of times. ❌ Do NOT say anything during exit interviews. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. 🤫 You learn a lot about love by talking to divorcees & divorced attorneys. The same goes for work. It never hurts to go in with your eyes wide open and know what your best options are when things go south. 👇👇👇 If you’re an academic navigating the labyrinth of industry and wondering what your best course of action is, let me help. Apply to my Career Clear program today: https://lnkd.in/gVYwtG-M 👆👆👆 👍 & repost to help a friend today 💚 Follow Kaidi Wu, Ph.D. for more career advice! #careeradvice #phdcareers #academia #discrimination #mentalhealth #unemployment #severance #firing #layoff

Why most side hustles fail before they even begin: People underestimate the most critical phase—transitioning from a job to hunting to eat. It’s the hardest leap in entrepreneurship. Here’s how I made the jump—and how you can too: 1. The truth about the leap: Most people think the hardest part is launching. It’s not. The hardest part is rewiring your brain from: → Security to uncertainty → Someone else's rules to your discipline → Predictable paychecks to unpredictable income The leap isn’t about logistics—it’s about identity. 2. Here’s why most fail: They quit before they’re ready or dilute their potential. → Quit too early? You’re in survival mode. No time, no money, no energy. → Wait too long? Your job sucks up your best hours and creativity. You need momentum before you leap—but most side hustlers don’t build it right. 3. What worked for me: I jumped with a plan—and 3 critical rules: ↳ Rule 1: Start building skills while you’re still employed. Don’t wait to “figure it out” after you quit. Build momentum on nights & weekends. For me, that meant honing my writing, networking with founders, and studying marketing. ↳ Rule 2: Treat your job like your first investor. I didn’t quit until my side hustle was paying at least half my salary. Your 9–5 is fuel: → Pay down debt → Save 3–6 months of expenses → Invest in tools, courses, or coaching Don’t quit emotionally—quit strategically. ↳ Rule 3: Build relationships before you need them. Your network will make or break you when you go full-time. I started connecting with other founders, clients, and mentors long before I was “ready.” By the time I quit, I already had people to learn from, work with, and lean on. Entrepreneurship isn’t solo—it’s social. 4. The first year was harder than I expected. Even with momentum, I faced: → Unpredictable income → Imposter syndrome → Self-doubt But here’s the thing: If you build the right habits before you leap, you’re prepared to survive the storm. The goal isn’t to avoid risk—it’s to reduce unnecessary risk. Here’s how you can start today: If you’re working a 9–5 but dream of building something of your own: → Pick a skill that solves problems for a specific audience. Start offering your service—even for free—to build proof and confidence. Save aggressively and track your progress. Connect with people who’ve already done it. Momentum is the bridge between side hustle and full-time freedom. Remember: You don’t need a perfect plan, but you do need a strategic one. The leap is scary, yes—but staying stuck is scarier. If you’re building your way out right now, keep going. The freedom on the other side is worth every ounce of uncertainty. What’s the hardest part of transitioning for you right now? Let’s talk about it. シ Are you leveraging LinkedIn to build your business? Find out if your brand is unignorable: The UNIGNORABILITY Assessment 📹 filippo.galluzzi ♻️ Smash that repost button! ♻️ 🔔 Follow for the daily goodness ✔️

I fired someone I genuinely liked. They were smart. Talented. But they couldn't do the one thing that mattered: Make. A. Decision. Every choice became a committee meeting. Every option needed more data. Every decision could wait until tomorrow. Meanwhile, our competition moved at light speed. The conversation that changed my leadership happened 14 years ago. My mentor watched me agonize over a hiring decision for 3 weeks. "Carolyn," she said, "your indecision is a decision. You're deciding to stay stuck." That hit like a brick. The math: → 3 weeks of indecision on that hire → $52K in lost productivity → 3 great candidates went elsewhere → Team morale tanked from overwork All because I was afraid to make the "wrong" choice. Since then, here's what I've learned about leaders who can't pull the trigger: They're not protecting the team. They're protecting themselves. "I need more input" = I'm afraid to be wrong "Let's discuss this further" = I'm afraid of conflict   "We should consider all options" = I'm afraid of responsibility The hidden cost of slow decisions: 1. Your best people lose faith High performers need leaders who move. When you stall, they start looking for leaders who don't. 2. Problems compound in the shadows That small issue you're "monitoring"? It's metastasizing while you deliberate. 3. Your culture becomes risk-averse Teams mirror their leaders. Your hesitation becomes organizational paralysis. Here's the decision framework I use now: The 40-70 Rule → Once you have 40-70% of the information, decide. → Less than 40%? You're gambling. → More than 70%? You're stalling. The Reversibility Test → Reversible decision? Make it in hours, not weeks. → Irreversible? Take days, not months. → Most decisions are more reversible than you think. The Regret Minimization Filter → "In 10 years, will I regret moving too fast or too slow?" → The answer is almost always too slow. What changed when I started deciding faster: Bad decisions? Sure, made plenty. But here's the thing: We fixed bad decisions faster than competitors made good ones. Speed compounds: → Fast decisions = fast learning → Fast learning = better decisions → Better decisions = competitive advantage My team went from asking "What should we do?" to "Here's what I'm doing unless you object." That shift changed everything. You know what needs to be done. You're just hoping more data will make it easier. It won't. The decision doesn't get easier. You just get braver. ♻️ Repost if someone needs to read this (thank you!). Follow Carolyn Healey for more leadership, AI and marketing truths.

“Perfection Is the Biggest Enemy of Progress” We live in a world that often glorifies perfection—flawless presentations, error-free execution, and polished outcomes. But here’s the reality: perfection is an illusion, and chasing it can stall progress. In fact, perfection is often the biggest enemy of momentum and innovation. Why Perfection Holds Us Back Perfection feels safe because it gives us the illusion of control. We think, “If I make this perfect, no one can criticize it.” But the cost is high: delayed decisions, missed opportunities, and sometimes, projects that never launch. Consider this—how many times have you seen initiatives stuck in endless review cycles because someone wanted “just one more tweak”? How many ideas never saw daylight because they weren’t “ready yet”? In today’s fast-paced environment, waiting for perfect often means falling behind. Progress, on the other hand, is about momentum. It’s about learning, adapting, and improving as you go. Why Progress Matters More Progress is iterative. It’s about taking action, gathering feedback, and refining along the way. Every step forward teaches you something new. Every launch, even if imperfect, opens doors for improvement. Perfection, however, breeds fear—fear of mistakes, fear of judgment, fear of failure. And fear kills creativity. When teams obsess over flawless execution, they stop experimenting. They stop innovating. They play safe. But innovation thrives in environments where progress is valued over perfection. Organizations that prioritize progress create cultures of agility and resilience. They empower teams to act, learn, and adapt quickly. This mindset doesn’t mean ignoring quality—it means understanding that speed and learning are critical drivers of success. The Leadership Perspective Leaders who embrace progress over perfection set the tone for their teams. They encourage calculated risks, celebrate learning, and reward initiative. They understand that the first version of anything is rarely perfect—and that’s okay. What matters is moving forward, not standing still. When leaders demand perfection, they unintentionally create bottlenecks. Decisions slow down. Creativity suffers. People hesitate to share ideas because they fear criticism. But when leaders champion progress, they unlock innovation and accelerate growth. The Takeaway Next time you find yourself stuck chasing perfection, ask: “Will this delay help or hurt progress? ”If it hurts, move forward. Launch. Learn. Improve. Progress is what drives growth, innovation, and success. What’s your take? Have you ever lost time chasing perfection? How do you balance quality and speed? #Leadership #GrowthMindset #Innovation #ProgressOverPerfection #CareerDevelopment