This piece was first published by the Fast Company Executive Board. You can view the original here.
As CEO of 1% for the Planet, I spend much of my time talking with business leaders who are putting serious thought into how their businesses can contribute to a thriving future for people and the planet.
These leaders genuinely care about the impact their businesses have on the planet and communities, and they want to do the right thing. Often, they already understand that these commitments go beyond charity—that they are investments with meaningful ROI for their business, too.
And yet, over the last year, I’ve noticed a concerning trend among these leaders: Paralysis.
They are unsure how to proceed, worried about doing the wrong thing, and hoping there’s a “perfect” path.
They say, “We’ll keep doing more research” or “We want to see how things shake out.”
Given the political and economic uncertainty of the past year, this hesitation is understandable. When the world feels unstable and budgets are tight, planning can feel nearly impossible.
But choosing inaction carries its own risks: Risks to your company’s resilience and long-term viability. Risks to your employees’ whole-hearted commitment. And, ultimately, risks to the future of our planet.
THERE IS NO PERFECT SOLUTION. ONLY ACTION.
We live in an age of endless information. It’s a useful but overwhelming moment. The comically frustrating routine of trying to choose something to watch (or to buy, or to attend …) with my husband comes to mind, and I’m sure many of you can relate. With thousands of options at our fingertips, how can we ever choose?
This analysis paralysis is even harder to overcome when it comes to decisions that really matter, like which environmental commitments to bake into your business model.
Today’s impact landscape offers more paths than ever: third-party certifications, supply chain investments, internal sustainability initiatives, and many others. Faced with so many choices, companies can get stuck in an endless loop of research and evaluation that ultimately gets them—and the planet—nowhere.
This quest for perfection is a trap. The only way forward is by taking imperfect action.
Wait, imperfect action? Yes—the point is to act. Once you get moving, it’s much easier to keep moving. At one level, this is pure physics: An object in motion stays in motion. At another, it’s just good leadership. Momentum generates clarity, confidence, and opportunity. Plus, action will teach you more than any amount of analysis ever can.
DON’T LET FEAR HOLD YOU BACK
Fear is the underlying driver of paralysis. It’s what fuels that endless analysis loop. This can be the fear of imperfection, of doing the wrong thing, or of being criticized or judged.
But while fear serves an important purpose (to protect us), it’s not always right.
Times like this call for courageous leadership. That doesn’t mean acting recklessly or without thought. It means being clear-eyed enough to recognize when fear is calling the shots, interrogating where that fear comes from, and knowing when to push through it.
This is where your company’s values matter most. If your values are only window dressing that you display when the stakes are low, this is a moment of truth. This is when your real values are most needed to bolster the clarity and courage you need to take that imperfect action. This is when your values can offer direction amid uncertainty. Rather than waiting to find the “right” answer, leaders can choose directional action aligned with what they care about.
PICK SOMETHING YOU CARE ABOUT AND COMMIT
The companies that will lead in this era are the ones that stay clear on their values and keep acting on them, especially when the world feels noisy. Because chances are that the uncertainty and noise will continue.
My advice to leaders and their teams right now is simple:
- Engage in real talk with yourself and your leadership team. Are you clear about what your values are? If so, amazing—follow those. If not, make it your first imperfect action to discern and align the values that motivate your decisions.
- Start and stay consistent. Choose one or two commitments you will deliver regardless of what the wider world throws your way.
- Lean into community, like business networks and associations with peers navigating similar work and challenges. Get out of your silo and into community, and you’ll quickly see that, not only are you not alone, but we’re “stronger together,” which is one of our core values.
- Be resolute. It’s how I want to show up for what I care about, and it’s what the world needs from leaders right now. The world is complex; it’s not going to simplify or slow down, so our work is to act, imperfectly, and create the slipstreams that pull us through.
DO SOMETHING
This approach works. While paralysis has gripped many companies still on the fence, something very different has been happening among those already acting: steadfast resolution. Thousands of businesses in the 1% for the Planet network remained committed despite headwinds, leading us to certify more giving to the planet in 2025 than in any year in our organization’s history.
The bottom line? The thriving future we want will not just happen to us. We are on the hook to bring it to life through imperfect action, together.
Before you read on!
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This July, we are hoping to bring on 50 new sustaining donors to our movement.
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