The 3-Layer Decision Check — A Simple Framework for Getting Unstuck Fast | Ep 3

Most business owners are solving the wrong problem. They come to Meagan
stuck on a decision — and within 10 minutes it becomes clear: that's not the
decision. There's a bigger one underneath it. In this episode, Meagan shares
the 3-Layer Decision Check — the exact framework she uses with every client
to find what's actually going on.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Welcome back to Amplify and Act. I'm Megan Van Worth, and today I'm giving you a simple three-part framework I use for every client to find out what decision they're actually trying to make. Because most of the time it's not the one they think it is. Now, this is our third episode of our getting unstuck series. The first episode was around you naming a decision that you've been walking past and looking at it in the eye. The second episode was around you putting a number to what that decision has been costing you by stirring on it and not making a decision to do it or to move on. And in today, I'm going to be talking through the framework that actually gets you unstuck. You have a decision, you've identified what the cost is of that decision, the amount of time you spent doing or not doing things. And today I'll give you the framework to get unstuck on that decision. So by the end of this episode, you'll have a tool that you can use to take action. Now, I encourage you to dive in with me and please reach out if you have any questions. Now, most business owners are solving the wrong problem. They describe what they're stuck on, and it's almost always a symptom. The real decision is one layer, sometimes two layers deeper. Now there's a pattern that exists here. You're not stuck because you don't know what to do. You're stuck because you're working on the wrong problem. Now I've set up the following framework. I call the three-layer decision check that takes about 10 minutes and it changes absolutely everything. It allows you to break your decision or your idea down into more detail for you to actually uncover your next steps. Is this something I'm going to do or not do? And then identify what's next after that. So I'm going to walk you through all three of those layers, and I'm going to use a real-world example so you can follow along with your own decision. So as we start this exercise and we start this conversation, I want you to keep your own decision in mind and use each of these layering frameworks to dig in deeper. Now, the three-layer decision check is the exact framework I use to start every single client engagement. Most people spend their energy at layer one, but the decision lives at layer three. Now let's walk through an example decision together. Now let's use this throughout all three layers, but I encourage you to use your own decision in mind as we go through each of the layer components, the layer topics. The first layer is the surface decision. So what do you what decision do you think you're making? The one you would say out loud in a sentence. For me in this example, it is I need to decide whether to hire someone or not. That is a very high-level decision, and there is not a lot of context there, right? I wish I had more time, right? Could be another decision. Or I need to make more time. Okay, these are all really good ones. But again, for today, we're gonna talk through I need to decide if I'm gonna hire someone. Now, this is where 90% of owners spend their time and energy on this layer one surface decision. It feels like it's the real problem, but it's almost never the real problem. Now the second layer is what would have to be true for that decision to even matter? It's uncovering the assumptions underneath the decision itself. So it's around assumptions. Layer two is assumptions. What would have to be true for that decision to even matter? This is where untested assumptions live. Things that live in our mind that are saying, this is why you need to hire someone, right? Or this is why you need more time, because there's additional things you want to do. And this is where we keep pulling back the layer of the onion for you as a business owner to make decisions more effectively. And you can use this exercise in so many different ways for so many different decisions, but let's just start with one. Ready? So things we treat as facts will never actually get verified. So if I think my decision to hire someone is a fact, I know I need to hire someone, I just have to do it. But let's uncover the assumptions that are tied to that. And these are untested assumptions. So an example tied to my hiring decision may be: well, I have to be at capacity to be able to hire someone. And me being at capacity means I am doing as much as I can, and I still have many things I need to do. So I have to be maxed out to hire someone, right? And then as a business owner, you can dig into what that means. But that is an untested assumption that you may have to hire someone. But should you really have to be maxed out before you hire someone? That sounds that sounds really hard, doesn't it? Maybe I have to trust the right person before I hire someone. But sometimes don't we have to build trust and we have to find someone and and give them a shot and bring them under our arms and work together as a team? So you can see how there's untested assumptions and assumptions, kind of flipping the assumption to as an untested assumption, unless you really know. And then another good one is around money. So am I going to be able to afford hiring someone? Have you proven or not for your business if you can if you can afford to hire someone or not? Think about the cost. Maybe you only hire someone for five hours a week to start versus 10 or 20, right? Sometimes starting small can really make things happen. So these are the assumptions that we have in our heads on why or why or why not we can do things. And it's really important to highlight that. So layer two again was the assumptions underneath the decision that you might be getting stuck on, or that you may not be working through, or even more importantly, you may not be identifying. So again, grab that pen and paper, keep these even in your mind. What are those untested assumptions that could be blockers for you making a decision or not? And then the third layer, which is really, really important, is what you're actually afraid of by making that decision. So what are you actually afraid of happen if you get this wrong? And it's almost always where the real decision lives. So layer three is rarely about the business decision, it's usually about the honest conversation that you, the owner, you haven't had with yourself yet. Now, most people never get to layer three. They never take a minute to identify what they're afraid of. Is it spending the money and not getting a return? Is it the risk of not knowing what's going to happen? And this is where people keep circling. Now, layer three is almost always an honest conversation you haven't had with yourself yet. And in all three layers of my hiring example, showing how the decision transforms, layer one, am I gonna hire or not hire? Layer two, we break it down. Am I actually at capacity? Do I actually have the right role to find? Do I know what they're gonna do? And can I afford it? In layer three, am I afraid of being responsible for someone else? Am I afraid of getting it wrong? Once you see layer three, the surface decision almost always becomes obvious. That is the whole framework. That is the three-layer decision framework. Now it's fascinating on how you may be reflecting on this simple framework. It allows us to really face our own judgments and assumptions. Um, and also it allows us to realize that some decisions are really easier to make than others, and that once we take a few extra minutes, maybe one, to prioritize some of our most more important decisions than others, and then two, starting at the top, pick one and say, what do I how do I need to break this down to feel more comfortable in making a decision? It becomes more and more evident as you identify those those assumptions, those untested assumptions. Maybe you haven't done the research, maybe you know that you can afford 10 hours a week and you know what that person will do. That gives you the confidence to make the decision for your business. You will save that cost. This is where it comes full circle of our getting unstuck series here. It's pretty um incredible to just take a few minutes with this three-layer decision check. Now, the real talk here is about honesty. Um, you want you to be honest with yourself, and this is not complex, it's a simple breakdown for your own. And I want you to know this can be uncomfortable, and I want you to know this is advice that I believe in and that I know that can certainly help from you. This is all from my personal experience, and this is not theory, and this is something that I'm really passionate to share with you. And I hope you can take these little bits of information and again start with one decision. Peel back, use the one, two, three layer method to identify is this a decision that you can move a little more quickly on? Do you need to dig in a little deeper? Let's identify those untested assumptions and let's identify what you're afraid of. So, what makes this framework really um uncomfortable? It's layer three really requires honesty with yourself. It's not more information, it's not any more research, really, it's more honesty with what makes sense for you in the business. Now, most decisions aren't missing information, they're missing courage to name the real fear. Now, in my 15 years of running businesses, I've never met an owner who didn't already know what they needed to do at layer three. The thing nobody says is that getting to layer three isn't a weakness, it is the fastest path forward that you have. And the decision isn't complicated. It's honest. And those are not the same thing. Take the decision from episode one. Run it through all three of those layers right now. Layer one, what are you thinking about that you want to decide on? What did you think that you were deciding in itself? Now, layer two. What would have to be true for that to matter? And if we bring in layer three, what are you actually afraid of? Write down your layer three answer. If you're not in a car, if you're in front of a computer or sitting at home or in your office. Take a minute to write that down. And you don't have to solve this today, but naming it is the move. All right. I want to thank you for being here. I hope this information was helpful for you. Until next time, amplify your thinking and act on it. I'm Megan Van Wort, and next week we're going to start a new series, and we're tackling one of the most common problems established to owners. And the owners bring me all the time. It is around too many decisions. They all feel equally urgent, and none of them are moving. And I have a simple tool to share with you for that. And it's called the lead domino, and it will change everything. Until then, see you then, and have a great rest of your week.