Lending Perspectives: The value of a well-timed, financially sound or mission-driven ‘no’
A good strategy means you don’t have to say yes to every opportunity.
In the last year, a quote by Warren Buffett gained significant visibility in the field of business strategy. The Oracle of Omaha reportedly said, “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
To me, this was no surprise. After all, when I was working on my MBA at the University of Central Florida in 1996, Dr. Jeff Harrison, who taught the capstone course on strategic planning, started off the first class by stating, “The great thing about having a well-developed strategic plan is that it allows you to say no.”
I remember Jeff very well and his words even better; what he said was a revelation to me. To my long-suffering peers at Ent, this partially explains why I am such a pain in the butt and question virtually everything, especially when someone says something like, “We have to do this.”
Thinking back on my career, I’ve said no to a lot of things. Sometimes, the opportunity didn’t make sense, or I just couldn’t understand it. One of my former CEO’s here at Ent, Charles Emmer, liked to say about commercial lending, “If you can’t explain a loan in a one-page summary, you don’t understand the credit.” If you can’t reasonably understand a potential opportunity, maybe it’s a sign to lead with no.
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