You only live once but if you do it right, once is enough

I came across this story:
A man created a fake restaurant on TripAdvisor. He collected glowing reviews. It climbed to become the #1 restaurant in its city.

The twist.

It didn’t exist, until for one day, he set up a “cafe” in his backyard, serving frozen food to curious diners who left with rave reviews.

Funny? Absolutely.
Clever? No doubt.
But it also makes me think.

As leaders, we could often operate on perception:

• A great pitch on an initiative.
• An amazing review.
• A trending idea.
• Market leader label.

Perception without rigorous due diligence can be misleading. Before making decisions on investments, partnerships, hiring, expansions we should challenge ourselves on the facts.

Have we validated the data, not just the story ? Are we reacting to buzz… or acting on truth ?

This isn’t just about avoiding mistakes but about building what’s real, sustainable, credible, and impactful. In the long run, reality always catches up to perception.

Do the due diligence. Ask the hard questions. Make decisions backed by data.
Let the backyard cafes stay in viral stories, not in your strategic plans.