Work-life, and quite honestly our life in general, all comes down to one thing: managing risk. There are so many risks—money risks, delivery risks, and customer risks. Don’t get distracted by all the risks. Focus on the risks that are most likely and would have the highest impact. Start there. Once you see a risk, you can decide how to deal with it. The pneumonic A.A.C.T. is a reminder that you have four choices when managing risks: you can accept the risk and live with it, you can avoid it by taking a different path, you can control the risk by putting boundaries around it or you can transfer it somewhere else. Strong leaders can quickly see risks and develop strategies to manage those risks.
Have you ever presented an idea and had it shot down? Chances are it’s because of risks that others saw but you haven’t addressed. Want to improve your win rate? Think through the risks upfront.