Are You a Planner or a Doer?

Great post and good discussion. For me Ready Fire Aim was one of the better business books I have ever read. It did push me to fire. I was ok on my planning, but I thought my product had to be perfect without flaws before I ever started to sell it.

I thought you might enjoy it. Your statement that many may be held back by fear reminds me of a book I read about 10 years ago called. "The Fear of Success." The premise was essentionally that we are all used to failure and we have over time learned to how to cope quite nicely with it. But success - thats another story. Since it eludes us so often, we aren't familiar with this animal, so we fear it's impact. I guess it's not the devil we know.

We all seek success, but as they say - "be careful what you wish for."

Hi, Ed,

I did read this when you first posted it. Great article! Your piece really speaks to getting our glazed eyes off of the vision board and actually working the vision.

I think many are held back by fear and perfectionism, the old analysis paralysis syndrome. While the "ready, fire, aim" approach is not always the wisest, sometimes it's best to set the target and go for it. Only when we know we'll actually miss our shot can we re-measure and reset our aim.

At least that's what's worked for me and kept my business in motion. I might still be testing the theory but at least my business plan isn't collecting dust.

Thanks for the post!

Judy

I think the problem is how you define a plan. "Taking your business to the next level" is not a plan, it's just a wish. A plan is step by step instructions on how you are going make your wish/goal a reality. With a good plan it is easy to become a "Doer".

Emphasis on PUSH. Get 'er done.

Ed

A great and interesting "powerpush" for a new start in a new year

Marketing is the one factor that plays an important role in the growth of the organization. Now a days online marketing is the easiest way to advertise our company or our product. So when we plan a business we should take care of the marketing strategies.

If you ever met a planner and I'm sure you have, they can drive you nuts. Great intentions - no follow up. A complete waste of time. And the icing on the cake, they blame their lack of initiative on everything but themselves. "success eludes them for some reason". Doh!

Initial planning is good, but it takes dedication and grind to succeed! BE A DO-ER.

BTW>>>Great article.

Terrific comment Freya. I have a client who learned the hard way that planning without execution demoralizes the staff. The feel lost and exposed. It feels as though the company is not moving forward. Recently I've helped them get moving and the employee response alone has been VERY rewarding. Everyone feels like something is happening within the company and management is trying to make it better FOR ALL.

Love the windscreen analogy - you paint a real picture.

Yup totally agree! "Doing" will get the job "done"!!
You can plan all you like but only in the execution will success come of the planning!
However a word of caution...when making plans, if you have staff on board be VERY sure to communicate those plans and required outcomes very clearly. For a number of reasons but the two main ones are, no one likes to be on a rollercoater ride - no matter what they tell you otherwise! If they can only see "change" with no definate outcome or goals it terrifies them!! It's a little like riding a car with the windscreen painted black and someone occationally shouting directions through the sunroof! A very scarey prospect! Also you need to get team "buy in" to the change or the movement...(Ok I hate that phrase as much as the next man but you know what I mean!) if the team don't know what the plan is, then they can't buy into and help make it a reality for you!
Just what I've learnt in the last 18 month the "hard way"!! ;-)

Catherine, Mike-

I talked about this article to a client of mine today and he felt he fell into the planner model simply because of time constraints. But he gets most of his plans completed, so I felt he was a Doer. Your comment on smaller windows and Mike's on a more realistic goal can produce more Doers. Planners who want to be Doers should not be so hard on themselves and give their plans a chance to work.

Patience is the key and will-power is the engine here.

Ed

Ed,

Great post. Everyone starts the year with good intentions (My wife works for Weight Watchers. January is their busiest month of the year.) But without specific, measurable goals and objectives, intentions are nothing more than dreams that most likely will never come true.

If your goal is to lose 50 pounds, you're no more likely to succeed than if your goal is to "take your business to the next level." If your goal is to lose one pound per week by decreasing your food intake by 3,500 calories or increasing your activity an equivalent amount or some combination of the two, you're much more likely to succeed.

Businesses need similar short-term measurable objectives if they're going to succeed. In fact, without such measurable goals, the business is likely to go to "the previous level" if not fail completely.

Great post Ed. I'm wondering if many people create ambitious plans for their business year - then become too overwhelmed to do anything. Breaking yearly goals down into monthly, or weekly ones does make it seem easier.