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complex problems, I make better deci- sions when I take a break from the is- sue. I’ve found that running clears my head and allows me the space to think, while playing solitaire on my iPad, with its linear structure of columns and suits, helps me organize my thoughts. Find an activity that helps you think clearly. “Keep track of the major decisions you make along with a short explanation of your rationale for that decision. That will come in handy if your decision is later questioned or your firm is revisiting the same issue.” ❚ ❚ Set a deadline. I recently led an ex- ercise for an MBA class where I gave them an hour to develop a marketing plan for a given product. Nearly every student told me they wished they had more time, yet they all finished within the allotted time. How much more time would have been enough to decide on a better plan? If I had allotted three hours, it would have taken them three hours to make a decision. ❚ ❚ Write it down. One of my mentors confided in me that he could not re- member the details of many of the de- cisions he made while he was in charge of a $400 million organization. That’s a little frightening! Fortunately, he had a great executive assistant who kept track of those things for him. Keep track of the major decisions you make along with a short explanation of your rationale for that decision. That will come in handy if your decision is later questioned or your firm is revisit- ing the same issue. Decision making can be stressful if you allow it to take over your life. With a few simple techniques, you can minimize the stress involved in a range of decisions. Simplify the issue, spend some time away from it, set a deadline for your decision, make the decision, and move on! Indecision is a decision and it can be very painful for those who are depending on you. BILL MURPHEY is Zweig Group’s director of education. Contact him at bmurphey@ zweiggroup.com.

project. If you couldn’t persuade him in three slides, then your logic was faulty. I was allowed as many back-up slides as needed to support my analysis and recommendation, but he did not want to see more than three slides. That ap- proach made it easier for him to digest the information and ask the questions that were important to him. He trusted me to look at every angle of a project, but he wanted it presented in a format tailored to the way he processed infor- mation. ❚ ❚ Break decisions into bite-sized chunks. Back to my CEO friend, Frankie. Years earlier, he had made a brilliant decision and married a won- derful woman who understood how he made decisions. Sensing Frankie’s dinner meltdown, Lola took over and broke the menu into bite-sized chunks for him. She offered him a simple yes/ no choice. “Frankie, would you like a Caesar salad? No? I know you enjoy a good steak. Would you like a ribeye cooked medium-rare?” Her approach allowed Frankie to continue processing the more complex decisions, while she guided him through the simple ones. ❚ ❚ Keep it simple. Is anyone in today’s connected environment really going to read your 60-page white paper on the pros and cons of granite versus marble? Oftentimes, a one- or two-page paper is all that’s needed to convince someone about the benefits of one over the oth- er. A one-page paper is much harder to write than a 60-page paper, but they’re usually more powerful. How long are your proposals to your potential clients? Cover the critical information, but keep your proposals brief, to the point, and without the extra buzzwords. That will help them make a decision without having to wade through extraneous blabber. ❚ ❚ Sleep on it. Studies have shown the old adage “sleep on it” has merit. For simple decisions, such as chicken or beef, either answer is correct, so don’t waste time making a decision that won’t really matter tomorrow. For the “Don’t waste time making a decision that won’t really matter tomorrow. For the complex problems, I make better decisions when I take a break from the issue.”

A NEW SEMINAR FOR A GROWING FIRMS Solid financial management is crucial to the success of any company, and firms in the AEC industry are no exception. This course aims to provide an overview of business financial management specifically tailored to our industry to help firm leaders make informed decisions. Topics covered include interpreting financial statements, key performance metrics, benchmarking and predictive cash flow management, and how strategic decisions drive the value of the firm. B etter F inancial M anagement is a one-day seminar that was specifically developed to help design and technical professionals become more comfortable dealing with financial management and accounting. This course helps attendees become better stewards of the company’s resources and to better understand how to leverage resources and maximize profit. Attendees learn: ❚ ❚ Basic principles of accounting and why they matter ❚ ❚ To understand the difference in cash and accrual accounting ❚ ❚ How to read and interpret an income statement and balance sheet ❚ ❚ How strategic cash flow tips for cash management ❚ ❚ How to use benchmarking data to guide firm-wide results ❚ ❚ To understand the key performance metrics essential to your firm ❚ ❚ To understand backlog, pipeline, and cash flow reporting Who should attend: Attending the Better Financial Management seminar will help design and technical professionals, principals, managers, architects, engineers, planners, scientists, surveyors, designers who need a better understanding of the financial factors affecting architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting firms. Continuing education: Attendees of Better Financial Management can earn 4.5 CEUs. Zweig Group is registered with the AIA for continuing professional education credits. All attendees receive a certificate of attendance indicating the number of credit hours approved by the AIA.

THE ZWEIG LETTER February 15, 2016, ISSUE 1139

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