I am a firm believer that planning is essential in many walks of life, although there certainly are times when spontaneity can lead to a heightened sense of enjoyment, such as taking a stroll through a new town when on holiday, or stoppig for a meal at a restaurant you’ve never been to. Having a plan helps things run more smoothly… and then again there are times when we can do all the planning we like only for life to throw us a challenge, requiring us to flex these plans in order to achieve success.
I was recently involved in running of the summer fair at my daughter’s school. It was a long and gruelling day, which involved arriving early, setting up, running the bar / cafe stall, and then putting everything away again at the end of the day. The days leading up to this event and the day itself threw up a number of opportunities for all of this to be brought into focus…
With a keen eye on the weather forecast for the day, it became clear to the organisers that the weather on the day had to potential to disrupt the smooth running of the event, which is usually held outdoors. What were the options? Carry on as planned, but risk significantly lower attendance; re-jig plans and put as much as possible of the event indoors; or cancel altogether. Option 2 was chosen and with this decision, all the previous plans were set aside, and off kicked a whole lot of re-planning to hopefully ensure a smooth-running event. How did the it go? Well, it’s fair to say given the changes it went very well, in fact better than expected. It was a lot of work but it was the right choice and resulted in a successful outcome… have a plan, but be flexible.
Then, several times during the event I was struck by the importance of having a plan to make things run more smoothly – whether that is in the setting up, the running of the day, or the clean up afterwards. I am sure we can all recal times when something has not gone as smoothly as we’d hoped and it turns out that if someone had just thought things through a bit more then everyone would’ve had so much better of an experience.
Needless to say, having a plan doesn’t guarantee success, but it can certainly make life a lot easier – whether it is layout of the bar stock, or co-ordinating a team of volunteers to erect or take down a gazebo, having a plan helps everything run more smoothly. I have often watched on as others have attempted to erect a gazebo, it can be a painful experience, but not as much as watching someone trying to take it down… At this most recent event we managed to both put up and take down several gazebos in terrible weather without any hitches. This was down to someone knowing what to do, and leading the others with clear and simple instructions, someone who’s clearly done this many times before!
I am putting together a new coaching programme to launch later this summer. Developing this will take some planning, and I am sure a great deal of flexibility. Keep a look out for it! In the meantime, if you’d like to arrange a conversation about coaching, please reach out. Happy planning!
Patrick Hickman 