One and two way doors

Waiting until you’re 100% certain before acting each time will leave you inert. It’s too slow. How then, do you know when you know enough to act?

Andre Eikmeier
Nov 4 · 2 min read

When you’re trying to do something new, to grow, to change things, you often have to move fast. Agile, sometimes reactive, not without a plan, but you’re definitely not playing safe. You’re in territory you haven’t ventured before. You’re pioneering.

Waiting until you’re 100% certain before acting each time will leave you inert. It’s too slow. But you can’t just leap ahead and bounce around without consideration either.

How then, to know when you know enough to act? 80%?

I was introduced to the concept of one and two way doors, and I found it enormously simplifying, and I’d like to share it with you, in the hope that it helps you with the decisions you have to make. Or moreso, helps you act upon the decisions you have to make.

Think of every decision like a doorway.

A doorway is either two-way, like a saloon, or it’s one-way, as in once you’re through, there’s no coming back.

If a decision is a two-way door, then don’t agonise, just trust your gut, listen to your heart, and walk on through. If things don’t work out, then no problem, just turn around and come on back.

It’s only the one-way doors you want to think more carefully about. Model, project, consider all the outcomes before venturing through, because once you’re through, there’s no coming back. Sure, you can adapt, but this is likely going to have a big impact.

Turns out, there aren’t actually so many one-way door decisions.

See you on the other side.

Andre Eikmeier

To put on an old record and cook food for people I love, with a good wine — this makes me happy. And thegoodempire.com — this is my purpose.

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