LEADERSHIP & PLANNING: HOW TO FOCUS THE FUTURE AND ORGANIZE FOR TODAY

bring your admiral and pirate to work
“The best laid plans of mice and men” The skepticism of Robert Burns about planning is justified because in the “shift-age”, events seldom unfold the way we predict them.
Long range planning is at best a waste of time . Visioning by contrast, has become essential to the process of creating plans that work. Planning is like being a naval Admiral. It is serious and control oriented—demanding commitment and performance. Visioning by contrast, feels more like being a pirate. It’s about innovation, imagination, and the generation of energy. The odds of success increase when your process uses both visioning and planning. Visioning engages the wonder, creativity, and flexibility of the child (your pirate)the five year old that still resides within you—albeit buried under layer upon layer of “shoulds and how tos”. Planning by contrast, applies the analytical skills of an admirals disciplined mind. Your 5 year old self (the Pirate) generates energy…your adult self (the Admiral) maintains discipline
How visioning and planning work together:
Imagine yourself in an open field wanting to reach a distant mountain range. The child in you sees them as magical and mysterious. To the more realistic adult, they appear a long way off and formidable. You look through a set of binoculars and notice a clump of trees five miles away but in the general direction of the mountains. Because the trees are close, you notice pitfalls and traps and can plan effectively to meet the obstacles. You execute with enthusiasm because you are moving towards those wondrous mountains and you are confident, because there is an attainable short term goal (the trees). Both your Admiral and Pirate are fully involved. Once the trees are reached, the Pirate stares longingly at the mountains (vision) while the Admiral refocuses the binoculars. Because your position has changed, obstacles beyond your initial scan are now in plain view.
Because visioning steers towards an inspiring possibility it fosters the will to win and a desire to belong. Planning introduces discipline, establishes commitment to reaching specific steps along the way, and introduces consequence.
This post is sponsored by The Baton Management System