How To Avoid Costly Mistakes In Business (Before They Happen)

Almost all the trouble you’ll run into as an entrepreneur comes from making decisions without total clarity. You commit to projects before you’re fully sold on them. You hire people before defining exactly what success in the role looks like. You say yes to things that end up costing you time, energy, and money.

To avoid this, Dan Sullivan created The Impact Filter—a simple yet powerful thinking tool that helps entrepreneurs get clear on their goals, weigh their options, and confidently move forward before taking action.

Dan himself uses The Impact Filter daily—sometimes up to five times a day. Why? Because clear thinking leads to winning moves.

It’s one of the most effective tools for making decisions, aligning teams, and ensuring that every move you make has the highest chance of success.

Here are five ways you can start using The Impact Filter today.

1. Clarify Your Vision For Any New Project Or Meeting

One of the biggest reasons projects fail is that no one is clear on what success actually looks like. Meetings go off track, new initiatives stall, and progress is slow because the destination was never fully defined.

Before jumping into anything—whether it’s a product launch, a service offering, or an important meeting—use The Impact Filter to clarify:

• What you want to accomplish
• Why it matters
• What the ideal outcome looks like

By taking 30 minutes to think this through, you’ll eliminate wasted time and set yourself up for a successful outcome.

2. Hire The Right People, The Right Way

Hiring is a major leverage point in any business, but it’s also one of the biggest risks. The problem? Most entrepreneurs hire based on need, not clarity.

With The Impact Filter, you can filter for two things before making a hiring decision:

• The role itself – What does success in this position look like? What impact should this person have?
• The right person – Beyond skills, what kind of thinker, collaborator, and culture fit do you need?

If you can’t get clear on both, you shouldn’t hire yet. A bad hire can cost you months of lost time, resources, and energy—so don’t make one without first filtering for success.

3. Make Decisions With Total Confidence

Saying yes to something always means saying no to something else. But most entrepreneurs don’t weigh these trade-offs properly.

The next time you’re stuck on a decision, use The Impact Filter to play out both scenarios:

• What happens if I say yes? – What does success look like? What are the risks? What are the rewards?
• What happens if I say no? – What does it free up? What opportunities do I keep open?

By looking at both potential outcomes, you’ll instantly gain clarity on whether the decision is worth your time and effort—or if you should move on.

4. Improve Your Relationships With Better Communication

Miscommunication leads to frustration. Whether it’s a business partner, a client, or even a personal relationship, not being clear on expectations can create unnecessary tension.

Use The Impact Filter before any important conversation to:

• Define what you really want out of the conversation.
• Consider the other person’s perspective and what matters to them.
• Communicate your vision clearly so everyone is on the same page.

The more intentional you are about how you communicate, the better your relationships—and your results—will be.

5. Delegate With Clarity And Alignment

Many entrepreneurs struggle with delegation. But the real issue isn’t letting go—it’s failing to clearly define what needs to happen.

Dan Sullivan’s rule? If you can’t sell yourself on why something is important, you won’t be able to sell your team on it either.

Instead of micromanaging tasks, use The Impact Filter to:

• Clearly define the why behind a project.
• Set expectations for what success looks like.
• Give your team the clarity they need to take ownership.

When your team knows exactly what the end result should be, they can figure out the best way to get there—without your having to do all the work.

Make every move count.

Entrepreneurs don’t have time to waste on confusion, second-guessing, or cleaning up avoidable mistakes.

That’s why The Impact Filter is Dan Sullivan’s favorite tool—because it forces you to think ahead, define success, and make intentional choices before you invest time and energy into something.