"Plan A is always my first choice . . . you know, the one where everything works out to be happily ever-after. But more often than not, I find myself dealing with the upside-down, inside-out version where nothing goes as it should. Do I sink or do I swim? . . . The choice is all mine. It's at this point that the true test of my character comes in. Life really is all about how you handle plan B." [From a fun T-shirt that I own.]
Plan B
People make too big of a deal over plan B. Seriously! Plans should be flexible . . . what is most important is the mission! A change in plans isn't a change in mission--plan B is merely a different avenue of approach.
One thing that I always try to keep in mind is that my plan A may not be what is best for me. It may accomplish the mission, but at what cost?
I have a strategic plan for my life and my career--yes, it's true (I am THAT anal). And yes, I weigh every decision according to this plan. Yet at the same time, I realize that I may not have all of the information, and my original plan may not be the best plan to accomplish the mission . . .
Do I sink or do I swim?
That is a silly question--of course I swim! I look at life this way: if we create a plan or a map for our lives and everything goes precisely according to the plan, how boring would that be? Where are the challenges in that?
I love the twists and turns in life--they usually bring heightened success!
Dialing it in
What am I talking about here? One example could be my own change from the Army's MI branch to Finance. Attending Finance BOLC and becoming a Finance Officer was my plan B. I won't share all of the details of my personal strategic plan, but the goal in that segment of my plan had already been met, so the change wasn't truly significant. However, initially choosing MI was important to my end-state. My background is actually in finance, so this change made sense . . . but MI still holds my interest!
My point is that it's important to not only have a plan, but to fully understand the steps in the plan and the desired end-state . . . otherwise you may get so caught up in the details that you lose sight of the end-state which is the ultimate goal!
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
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