When you have a plan and an obstacle gets in the way do you see it as a sign to change direction?

When I asked my group of independent business owners this question these are some of the answers I got:

• • I am a very stubborn person in some ways, which means I tend to keep trying to push my way through obstacles, sometimes longer than I should and/or to the detriment of my own well-being
  • Life has taught me that some obstacles cannot be overcome so I have to live with it. ‘I did the best I could with what I knew at the time’, which is a bit of resilience but also I have to watch myself over checking – I sometimes struggle with trusting others on finding ways to overcome obstacles.
  • I naturally tend to over-plan – anticipating different options and ways of flexing in case the preferred option gets compromised – which is helpful if an issue does come up, but unnecessarily mentally exhausting when most of the time it’s not needed. (It does mean that I’m great at compiling risk registers and contingency planning though!)
  • I am a slowly recovering over planner. Sometimes it feels like my work is littered with obstacles like a minefield. Slowing down is helping work out which obstacles to pay attention to.
  • Also a slowly recovering over planner! Two things are helping me:
    1. ‘5 mins’ approach. When I get overwhelmed with thinking about all the things I need to do to get started I do some thing “just for 5 minutes” and that turns into 10, 20, 30 or however long it needs.
    2. I also think about car headlights: am I trying to see the road before it’s illuminated? I could spend hours on schedules (the long road in the dark!) which are helpful to a point, but sometimes the light I can see on the road for the moment is good enough.

Is your goal clear enough?

Planning is all about working out how to achieve a goal. Plans rarely go smoothly – there are too many things over which we have no control – but if your goal is clear, you will find a way over, under, round, or through the obstacles that crop up. You may need to take a diversion but the plan should always bring you back to the right track and ultimately, to achieve your goal.

If you need help with setting goals, overcoming obstacles or staying on track, get in touch and we’ll work something out!