The Honey Badger Knows How to Focus. Do You?

If you remember from last week, we talked about testing assumptions instead of guessing. A bias for action. Now, once you’re ready to act … what do you do?
As I mentioned a few weeks ago, the honey badger loves honeybee larvae. And the only place to find that is what’s known as the brood chamber. Now, without getting into a deep dive on honeybees and hive architecture … we can safely assume that the brood chamber is not dangling off the outer edge of the hive. It is quite deep.
If pushing my face deep into a beehive was required before I got a milkshake, you better believe I’m going to think long and hard about it first. I might also try to get rid of all the bees before committing to the task, or I’ll think about how to get out once I’ve enjoyed my shake. Might even consider whether another place might have better flavors, or sweet things to mix in … or anything with less hassle.
A honey badger, on the other hand, does none of those things. It knows what it wants, briefly assesses the risk, and then executes.
It doesn’t act randomly. It is focused on its one goal. It finds the quickest way to get to the brood chamber, and it acts.
It doesn’t get distracted. Point of note:
I stopped typing here, because thinking about getting distracted reminded me that I had to call the electrical company that installed the wrong charger at my house. And then I followed up with the dealer that’s got my car right now for an update. But I digress.
Not only does the honey badger not get distracted, it has one problem to solve right now … and one problem only.
Getting honeybee larvae. It’s hungry. Nothing else matters.
What is your business’s equivalent of this necessary focus?
We’ve all heard about the concept of being the weakest link in the chain. The long pole in the tent for those of you who prefer a camping analogy. The one limiting factor. That doesn’t mean there aren’t other poles in your tent or links in your chain. It’s a chain, of course there are other links … but they’re not breaking right now. This one is.
What is the most important problem for you to solve right now in your business?
Is it getting qualified leads?
Maybe you are the approval bottleneck and every decision runs through you.
So the question you need to consider before tackling the next 8-10 tasks that show up:
What is the one thing that, if fixed, would make everything easier? Not perfect, just easier.
What is the single most impactful problem you can solve right now?
The best part here, is that to some extent you don’t even need to be right.
You take your bias to action, you take your guess (also known as a hypothesis) about what problem provides the most leverage if you fixed it, and you test it.
I am not the guy who talks up the strangers next to him. Absolutely not. And yet, I found myself talking to the guy next to me on the chairlift a few weeks back, and he asked me what single piece of advice I could give him as a business owner in the next 30 seconds before we got off the lift.
And all I could come up with was this: Focus.
Focus in all areas of your business will serve you incredibly well.
Don’t work harder. Don’t try to accomplish everything all at once.
Focus.
Run a test.
Was this actually the weakest link? If yes? Great!
If not, congratulations! You learned something and probably fixed something important anyway.
For the attorney managing six active cases, three business development commitments, and a team that waits for his approval on everything … every problem feels like the weakest link. For the financial advisor whose AUM has plateaued while she tries to build a marketing strategy, stay current on compliance, and personally handle every client review … it’s the same situation. Everything is urgent therefore nothing is. There is no prioritization. The honey badger doesn't try to raid every hive at once while also searching for water and roaming the plains. It picks one. So do you.
Stay focused.
Go find the next hive.
Be a honey badger. Go get you that milkshake.
Hit reply or reach out and tell me what the one thing is that, if fixed, would make everything else easier.