Ready. Fire. Aim.
My recent post with the Simple 5 Point Plan for Success stirred up some action in the comments, so I thought I would address them here. The biggest question is over the subject of planning. I thought I would take a little time and give my thoughts on the subject.
Generally, I think planning is Iraq. Or, if you prefer, Vietnam. In other words, a quagmire. It is the tar baby. There is always something more you can plan, another detail to cover.
In the real world, however, you can plan to the nth degree, have all contingencies planned out and then something will happen you have not planned on and there goes your plan.
Over time, plans cause anxiety. Not at first, mind you. At first, plans give you peace, because you have some degree of control over the plan (NOT, you will note, over the event, but over the plan. These are two very different things). However, Murphy is alive and well, so things will go wrong. Inevitably, things will go wrong that you have not planned to go wrong. Hello, anxiety.
Often, planning is an avoidance activity. It is a reason to not get in the game. I know people who have been working on their business plan for years.
I think a much better plan is what I call [tag]Ready-Fire-Aim[/tag]. It is the way artillery fire works. You pick a general target ( such as: I will start a blog for small business people and those who wish to be), Engage the target (Start the blog) and then course correct along the way (You see the topics that get more hits, you learn from other bloggers, you do more of what works).
The advantages to this are several.
- Dealflow: You can take on many more projects this way. If, in a given year, I start 10 projects and 6 of them fail (about my average, over time) and you start 1 project, plan it all out, do all the research, do everything by the book and it works, I am still ahead by 3 projects.
- Inertia: Success tends to move toward motion. If you want to get something done, give it to a busy man.
- $$ conservation: You tend to learn very quickly what is working and what is not, so you know where to put your hard earned dollars.
- Instant Feedback: The criteria is simple: does this move me toward the target or away from the target?
Hey, if you are an employee, by all means plan your ass off. Hell, you can milk all sort of hours, get a larger budget, maybe even get a bonus based on your power-point presentation.
If, however, your income is results based, I think Ready-Aim-Fire is a better way.
NB: Obviously, there are times that you need a full blown plan. However, I find that a more flexible solution is often called for. This has worked for me. Try it- you might like it.
[tags]Success, plans, planning, self-employment[/tags]
Love it! I’ve had several businesses where I’ve had a full blown plan, but mostly to think it all out before I invest my hard earned $$$. Then I go for it, tweaking my ideas, brainstorming on paper, (a plan?) and sometimes just walking a lot to get further inspiration. I’ve also found it is easier to launch ‘projects’ rather than try to get a business off the ground, and much less intimidating.
Could not agree more. Try working at a large multinational……planning often seems to take up ur whole year. Nowadays I start the venture and put a plan together if I need some money from the bank! A friend once asked me what my 5-year life plan was. He was a bit shocked when I said I didn’t have one. I then explained that I saw no point because 1) i was not living in the soviet union and 2) whatever plan I have will necessarily change according to circumstances.
@ Michelle - Projects rule! I love the new blog , by the way. It looks great!
@Adam - I have a bad recurring dream where I wake up and am in charge of marketing for a huge multi-national firm. No thank you.
Perhaps in the moment of thought that makes up the “Ready” component a brief plan is conceived.
Did you know that a projectile fired at 80 degrees or 10 degrees with the same force lands in the same place? So you can put all your effort into a high flying result but land at the same spot as a quick low shot! (See Map 3 of Maps for Modern Magellans)
You actually have a loop here;
Step 1: Ready
Step 2: Fire
Step 3: Aim
Step 4: If target is hit, Fire again, if not Aim again.
Clear and to the point.
@ Roger- Yes, there is a loop, as I implied in my original post at http://www.hughhollowell.net/blog/personal-freedom/simple-5-point-formula-for-success/
Feedback (and responding to it) is critical.
Planning should always be flexible. Make sure that you always have an alternative plan of action just in case (and it does most of the time) your initial plan doesn’t work out.
[...] to the small business market. It was a wonderful idea, but I was not really ready. In typical ready-fire-aim fashion, I jumped the gun and got some great early links, but I just had too many things going on, [...]
[...] the less likely they are going to pan out as you envision them (It was here that I learned my Ready. Fire. Aim technique). Because of this, the Marines adopted the Commander’s Intent [...]