Something to consider as you plan for 2020

A perk of being a high school football team mom? I get to observe teen boys in their natural habitat (without being TOO embarrassing) while handing out Gatorade and cheeseburgers. 🍔

It's also a great way to get to know parents. Another team mom and I compare notes about selling professional services (she's in legal) while doing our team hospitality gig. Industries that sell expertise share a lot of the same challenges (and upside) if they can modernize.

At the banquet Friday night, she used a term I'd never heard when talking about her new team. She said they'd usually relied upon "anecdata" and were stressed as she pushed for detailed analytics.

Anec-what? Anecdata = Anecdote + Data

Am I the only one who hasn't been using this term? I love it. Apologies in advance to my clients who are going to hear this term a lot in upcoming strategy sessions.

It's defined as "information that is presented as if it is based on serious research, but is in fact based on what someone thinks is true." You'll find an expanded definition here. 

Your recommendations for 2020 are based on....what? Anecdata? 

Even when you have data available, it's REALLY hard to prevent the last lost deal, client or candidate from influencing your thinking. A lot of industry experience is an "anecdata trap" and something teams should be on the lookout for and curious about. Nothing wrong with anecdotal information, as long as everyone knows it's what we're relying upon.

Maybe one way to think of this is that Phase I of your planning includes anecdata and Phase II seeks to validate what we (and our team) believe is true with as much data as possible. 

The stakes are high and you don't have unlimited resources. Let me know if this influences how you'll make decisions for 2020.

A final thought. It's also very therapeutic to yell "hit somebody" at a football game....don't judge me before trying it.  🏈