Most businesses fail not because they ignore best practices, but because they follow them too religiously. Here's why copying what works for others might be the worst strategy for your business.
Every consultant loves to talk about “best practices.” They’re safe, defensible, and easy to sell. After all, if everyone else is doing it, how can you argue?
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: best practices are, by definition, average practices. They’re what works for most people, in most situations, most of the time. And if you’re aiming for average results, they’re perfect.
The problem starts when you assume your situation is “most situations.” It rarely is.
The Best Practice Trap
Best practices emerge from pattern recognition across many organizations. They represent the common denominator of success. But your business isn’t a common denominator—it has unique constraints, opportunities, and contexts that make blind adherence to any universal rule questionable at best, dangerous at worst.
Consider the classic example: “Post on social media daily to maintain engagement.” That’s a best practice. It’s also terrible advice if your audience values quality over quantity, if you lack the resources to produce daily content worth reading, or if your business model doesn’t depend on social media engagement at all.
When to Ignore the Crowd
The most successful implementations I’ve seen share a common thread: they started by questioning whether the standard approach actually made sense for their specific situation. They asked “why” before asking “how.”
Here’s a framework: before adopting any best practice, ask yourself three questions:
- Context match: Does the context where this practice succeeded actually resemble mine?
- Constraint alignment: Do I have the same resources, limitations, and freedoms as those who benefit from this practice?
- Goal compatibility: Am I actually trying to achieve the same outcome, or have I just assumed I should be?
If you can’t answer “yes” to all three, you’re probably better off designing your own approach.
The Strategic Alternative
Instead of starting with what others do, start with what you’re trying to achieve. Work backwards from your specific goals, considering your unique constraints and advantages. Sometimes you’ll land on something that looks like a best practice. Often, you won’t.
And that’s exactly the point.
The businesses that win aren’t the ones that execute best practices flawlessly. They’re the ones that understand their situation deeply enough to know when to follow the crowd and when to chart their own course.
So the next time someone tells you about a best practice, don’t ask “how do I implement this?” Ask “why would this work for me?” The answer might surprise you.
This is the kind of strategic questioning that drives real implementation success. If you’re tired of cookie-cutter advice and ready for an approach tailored to your actual situation, let’s talk.
