How To Make a Plan and Deal With Changes Along The Way
Most entrepreneurial organizations I work with resist having a plan. Whereas, the government, academic and healthcare organizations I work with tend to over plan.
It feels like both sets of organizations are never quite getting what they need from planning.
“Fly by the seat of your pants” planning style doesn’t find the destination, and “management by objectives” can focus too much on the end goal and miss the journey along the way.
My take on business planning is that the plan or goal should be like setting a destination in your GPS. It gives you context and a general direction to help you reach your destination and prioritize efforts, but at the same time gives you the flexibility to adjust as needed according to driving conditions.
When I don’t use my GPS I often get lost or get caught in traffic that I hadn’t anticipated, however, if I overly rely on the plan, I am too focused on the destination and miss the journey along the way.
Both strategic planning and goal setting need to be more like typing in a destination in a GPS. Firstly it needs to be simple and clear. Don’t overcomplicate the destination. And if it is your first time planning or setting goals, then don’t use an address just type in the city.
Then align resources and timing accordingly and give yourself a buffer for construction and roadblocks. Accidents happen and construction is everywhere. You will ultimately be faced with a roadblock, closure or unexpected fender bender. And when this happens simply reroute.
And who knows what new insights may appear along the detour.
Key Takeaways:
- Get your monthly or quarterly objectives figured out first before you start planning for 3-5 years. Most organizations do the opposite and wonder why they never gain traction.
- Start with the big rocks and not pebbles. That is, enter in the city name and not the particular address. Overly articulated goals don’t allow wiggle room.
- Reroute monthly in your monthly one-on-one or team meeting. Take stock of where you are and see if the path is still the right path. And if it isn’t change it.
