You Gotta Have a PLAN? or How to get a Mountain

20 Jan You Gotta Have a PLAN? or How to get a Mountain

The title might imply that I don’t have one. Well, this article is about how I thought I had one and then someone asked me what it was. My response was, “umm”

Do you have a plan, a five year plan, one year maybe? Perhaps just for the week? You do, wow, that’s pretty awesome. I plan everyday, I write down what I am going to do. I even plan months ahead of time and sometimes even for the year. You know, the conventions I want to go to, what cool things I would like to make. When I am going to pick up those materials and the like, but that’s not THE PLAN.

THE PLAN is what this inquisitive person wanted to know about. What they wanted to know was along the lines of , “where are you right now, where are you going, and where do you want to be in five years?” Also, for good measure, “How are you going to get there?”

You can see why I said, “Umm”

Thats right, they wanted to know the adulting PLAN. Now I am a big fan of adulting, it’s often thought of as something that should be eschewed. When you think about it though, adulting is the thing that gets us what we want, but my “adulting” rant is for another time. This is my “planning” rant.

THE PLAN was there, I swear it was. I could see it in my head but I couldn’t articulate it. Why couldn’t this person see my PLAN? What’s wrong with them? Nothing as it happens because a PLAN in the head is not worth two in the bush, in fact it isn’t really worth much.

Where do I want to be in 5 years? What am I doing? How do I get there? I had no idea. Sure, I have to pick up some shield material next week, obviously I’m meeting the Mayor on Wednesday, it’s in my calender, but where is all this taking me?

You see, you have to know what your mountain is.

At this point I will credit one Peter M Ball for this genius article, Focus on the Mountain, Not the Map

Go read it , now. Back? Good.

You didn’t read it? OK , no problem. Basically he says, keep your eye on the big goal, look up every now and then to make sure you are on track. Seriously, go read it.

The article presumes that you have a mountain. It’s written from the perspective of being a writer, which, provides the mountain by default, but I didn’t even have a mountain, fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!

How can I keep my eye on the mountain if I don’t have one? How do I get one.

That is THE PLAN.

So that’s what I did, with the help of my very inquisitive and ever so helpful friend. I sharpened my Vision and wrote down my Mission and then I planned my PLAN! I’m still buzzing from it.

Would you like to hear it? You know I’m going to tell you anyway, right?

Vision

• We design and create beautiful, unique items and bring dreams alive. Producing products that provide a deep and meaningful representation of identity. Renowned for the highest quality craftsmanship, smoothly and calmly delivering the object of your desire.

Mission

• 5 year mission to create a range of products, services and a business plan that delivers the TYPE 40 vision

Goals – 5 years

• Reputation – We have a reputation for creating great items that are sought after and highly desireable.
• Portfolio – We will have a range ofr 5 – 10 flag ship items which are highly visible and astounding to look at , touch and hold.
• Services – We will be providing the “wow” factor to other organisations and their visions.

It’s a bit clunky it but that’s OK. It’s my PLAN and it resonates strongly with me. That’s what counts.

What it has done for me is give me a very solid sense of self around why I do what I do. It has also helped me focus in on the types of things I want to be doing. The very nature of what I do is rich in opportunity and it is hard not to just grab at them all. Having a strong vision to refer back to helps me choose. It helps me keep my eye on the mountain. See , I told you that article was worth reading.

My mission gives me some very solid goals to aim for and the ability to break them down further into tasks I need to concentrate on to get there. It’s like magic.

Have a think about what you are doing, it might be work, life, relationship or even your hobby. Do you know where you want it to go? Do you know why?

So, do you have a PLAN?