How do I “figure it out?”

Do you ever feel like you’re a captain on a ship adrift at sea? You have a clear destination, a well-equipped fully stocked ship, and a crew of people to help you on your journey, but now it’s up to you to figure out how to get there. As managers we are sometimes left to just “figure it out.”

Our supervisor entrusts us to use our training and knowledge to keep the ship afloat and headed to the destination, but sometimes getting there is difficult. What are the steps we need to take to be able to navigate the tough waters on our journey to operational success?

1. You can’t do this alone. You need a team that you can trust and especially a second in command. This person should align with your goals and they should be there when you cannot be.
   • We are all people and seafarers may be married to the sea but we have lives outside of our professions.
   • A concrete example would be, who can you call at 5:30 in the morning to go in to the store when your car breaks down and you’re supposed to be opening the store?
     • That person should be compensated above other employees because of their dedication and sense of responsibility.
2. You need a preparers mindset. Truly, there is a lot of winging it (trust us, we’ve been there) but you need to lay down foundation ahead of times for those moments where you must “figure it out”
   • Always make sure your team has the tools they need to succeed. Whether that’s product, training, or a well balanced scheduled.
   • Have a plan B. We will do everything we can to make plan A work but sometimes it doesn’t.
     • Plan B can be making sure you have more staff than you need. It can be knowing when business dies down so you can adjust labor. It can be knowing your resources (where can I get this product if it’s not available? How will I tell my staff to handle this with customers?).
3. Make your best educated decision and be prepared to provide the reasoning.
   1. 1. • If you’re put in a situation where you’re expected to “figure it out” all you can do is use your knowledge and experience to guide you.
           • Sometimes you make bad calls. Accepting responsibility and owning the results are a part of being a mature manager. You also need to learn from mistakes.