Making decisions is perhaps the most important skill an entrepreneur can possess. To move from a vague idea to a structured project, Frank Kern uses a specific "Decision-Making Worksheet" to ensure every move aligns with long-term success.
Before looking at the decision itself, you must ground yourself in your ultimate destination.
Clarify Your 20-Year Goal: Define exactly where you want to be two decades from now. For Frank, this is building a sustainable $100M company with a minimum 35% profit margin.
Define Your Purpose: Identify the "why" behind your business. Frank's purpose is to have a measurably positive impact on the global economy by changing how consumers view marketers.
Identify the Decision at Hand: State clearly what you are considering. (Example: Launching a flagship program to cold media via a webinar funnel).
The "Alignment" Gut Check: Ask yourself: Will this move me significantly closer to my 20-year goal? If the answer is no, stop there.
If the decision aligns with your goals, you must define what "winning" looks like.
Four Indicators of Success: List four specific results that prove the decision was right. Frank's examples include attracting qualified prospects and achieving a 3x ROI on ad spend.
Set a Hard Deadline: Determine by when these success criteria must be met to turn the decision into a tracked project.
Analyze the impact of the decision across two different timelines:
Short-Term Benefits: Immediate wins, such as gathering data, building goodwill, or turning a quick profit.
Long-Term Benefits: Lasting impacts, such as business scalability, permanent list growth, and transforming the lives of clients.
It is easy to get caught up in the "happy world" of benefits; this phase demands total honesty about potential downsides.
Calculate the Cost: What is the actual financial investment required for the test?
Identify What Can Go Wrong: List every fear, from suffering core business distraction to losing the entire test budget or "looking dumb."
The Risk vs. Reward Comparison: Compare your "long-term benefits" against "what can go wrong." Ask: Is the potential long-term gain worth the risk of these downsides?
If you decide the risk is worth it, commit immediately by identifying the three next steps you can take to get the project started today.
