Why plans fail

I was quite surprised to read Seth Godin, who I normally admire, saying that plans almost always fail.
I don’t agree with this. Bad plans fail. Plans that are not updated fail and plans that have no clear objective fail.

Plans that work

However, well thought out plans do work, very often. The trouble is that most people don’t bother to plan carefully and think that they will just be able to muddle through.
Then they get used to what it’s like to muddle through and so muddling through becomes the norm.
When you allow that to happen you have lowered your standards. So now, you don’t even think about planning effectively, you just accept the status quo.

"You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine."

-- John C. Maxwell

What planning means

Planning effectively means taking time to think a task through, to identify what needs to be done when, and what could go wrong. It means you need to review your plan regularly and keep your eyes open for indications that you need to modify your plan.

It means, as John Maxwell says, changing something in your life daily. All you need to do is think about things before you start them. Just give yourself a few minutes. Ask:

• Why am I doing this?
• What do I need to achieve?
• What would be the most effective way to do it?

That will get you started. Then build the habit. As you start to see a return on your investment, you can build your skill, which in turn will give you more time.

The pay off`

Planning really pays off. It is the corner stone of time management.

A client of mine who is a project manager recently had a performance review. His manager said: “I don’t know how you get so much done.” 

This is a sad reflection on the manager. The individual is good at planning. He does not rush into any project or new situation; he gathers the information, organises it and works out his plan very carefully. Then he keeps monitoring it all.

When there are problems he usually has a contingency plan. He has many contingency plans. Most of them never need to be used.

The result you get from planning

The result is he is able to achieve twice what most of his colleagues do. He is not superhuman. He just puts his effort in where it gives the most benefit. It may not be as glamorous as charging in and saving the day, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, but it is much cheaper and less stressful.
In fact most people are working far harder than they need to do just because they don’t plan. Make sure you’re not one of them.

Get more help here.

http://www.vinehouse.co.uk/TimeManagementTips.htm