Are You Flying Blind in Your Business?

I really think there are a lot of similarities between flying a plane and running a business.  It’s all about monitoring what the instruments and gauges are telling you.

Statistics show that almost 70 percent of all fatal weather-related general aviation accidents were due to Visual Flight Rules (VFR) only pilots  flying into Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC); by far one of the most deadly types of accidents. These are pilots authorized and trained to fly under clear conditions who fly into clouds or low visibility conditions and then bad stuff happens.

The above statistic is one of the primary reasons I pursued an Instrument Rating once I started flying. Spatial disorientation at 200 plus mph is not a good thing. Not only that, but the confidence that comes with the additional training and knowledge, along with the ability to fly on days that have low ceilings or rain, were all the more reasons.

If you look at the conventional cockpit of an airplane you will see six primary flight instruments. These have been arranged in a certain, standard layout commonly referred to as the ‘six pack’.  Of course the new glass cockpits look different, but the functions are the same.

When flying in IMC you can’t look out the windshield to see if you are right side up; headed in the right direction; or about to hit something. Instead, you constantly monitor or “scan” these instruments to make sure you are keeping your airspeed up (stalls and spins are bad), your wings are level and you are at the proper altitude (hitting stuff on the ground is career limiting) and the proper attitude (nose level or slightly up or down if climbing or descending). What’s really interesting is that your body will often be confused (spatial disorientation) and tell you something else. That’s when you have to trust your instruments, your training and be disciplined in making minor corrections to keep everything looking right. Sometimes if you haven’t been paying attention, you look up and see things are all out of whack and you begin to over correct and then it’s a fight to get back on track. I speak from experience.

In today’s business climate most of us are flying in IMC. The soup is thick, the turbulence is rough, there are obstacles waiting to grab us and we just don’t know when we’ll pop out into the clear. But like the instrument rated pilot, we need key instruments guiding us through it.

Dave and I are amazed at the number of businesses we encounter that either don’t have key performance indicators, don’t use them if they do, or instead of a “six pack” they have a “sixty pack”.  Looking at nothing is bad – while trying to look at too much can be equally dibilitating. In either case, they may not know what direction they are headed.  Or they don’t realize the trouble they are in because they haven’t been “scanning” the instruments in a disciplined manner and making corrections all along. Now they are just yanking on the yoke, trying to get back to level flight, hoping they don’t tear the wings off in the process.

So… what instruments are you relying on in piloting your business? Are they accurate and effective? Well maintained? Do you have the discipline to stay the course? Have you been making adjustments and corrections all along? Or are you experiencing spatial disorientation? Fighting the yoke? In a spiral?  Flying an airplane without understanding what the instrumentation is telling you can be disasterous …. don’t do it in managing your business either.