I’ve already noticed an interesting side effect of the Real Plan – huge amounts of work are being compressed into very short timescales. So short in fact that what I thought would be a year of work is being knocked down like fairground ducks. Of course that’s not true for external factors that we can only influence and not control (e.g. The Big G), but foundation work has become a no-brainer.
I read an article on entrepreneur.com this morning about “2010 is the year for planning”. Interestingly it speaks about a backlash against the backlash against business planning. Having lived in Boulder, CO for some of the boom (tech) years I remember anti-planning sentiments well. It was basically a function of the bum ideas, bum execution and greed of the age. So perhaps planning returns during periods of frugality and caution.
Crucially the act of working to the Plan forces us to stop merely existing as our business grows around us and return to being the driving force behind the growth. As an entrepreneur this is all quite liberating – the thrill is in the startup big-bang, the creation of something from nothing to the point where you create value and people give you money. The Plan recreates that environment in a way by setting impossible-possible goals, lining up threats as enemies to be eliminated and waving big fat dollar signs in your face.
All hail the Plan!
