Life Lesson #56:
Make a plan, then know when to change it.
You always need a plan, right? Goals, organization, a definite direction to go in. Without a plan you can find yourself running in circles.
But what if when you execute that plan it doesn’t work? Do you close your eyes, forge ahead, hoping for a different outcome eventually?
They say that’s the definition of insanity.
Or do you re-group, tweak, change direction all together?
We should do the later.
I know we don’t always.
For me it’s often because I’m afraid a change in plans will be perceived as a failure. However, being inflexible can lead to real failure.
I knew my freshman year in college that my chosen career path of journalism wasn’t for me. Sure I could write well, but I hated the going-out-into-the-field-and-getting-the-story part of journalism. I thought about changing my major, but I wasn’t about to be one of those wishy-washy undeclared students. Besides, I’d told everyone I knew since I was in the sixth grade that I was going to be a news reporter.
Two unhappy internships and two miserable newspaper jobs later, I finally got smart and shifted gears. But what grief I might have saved myself if I’d done that years before as a college freshman.
Having a plan is smart. Changing the plan when it doesn’t work is wise.
Changing plans. Hmmm. Happens to me all the time. In fact, I would love to change my job. I say job because I only consider something a career if you intend on staying on that path for a long time. I despise accounting. Hate it. Don’t care if I ever see another ledger paper again. I only majored in it because my dad wanted me to. A change is gonna come.
I totally agree. There is intelligence in flexibilty!