It’s a great feeling when things go as planned, isn’t it? The perfect roadmap, the seamless execution, the predictable outcome. The satisfaction of hitting the bullseye.
And when things don’t go as planned? Well, it’s just not a bullseye.
But what if the very act of meticulously planning is the force that prevents you from ever hitting the mark?
It was the product of a fixed mindset—a static, predictive way of thinking that works in the predictable environment of a spreadsheet, but fails in a dynamic reality.
Back in 2018, when I sold my business and started traveling full-time on a sailboat with my family, I thought I had it all figured out. As a former public educator and a business owner, I was a creature of spreadsheets. I thought in terms of strategic plans, goals, timelines, and accountability.
So, I did what came naturally: I created a spreadsheet with all the destinations I wanted to hit on the East Coast, the approximate time to get to each, and how long we’d stay. I shared this beautiful, color-coded plan with a friend who we met up with in Florida. He had been traveling full-time on his boat for a year.
When he saw my meticulous spreadsheet, he literally laughed out loud.
Your ability to adapt rapidly to feedback is a competitive advantage. It’s not about mindlessly executing; it’s about changing speed and direction as needed.
At the time, I assumed he simply didn’t understand the value of my background in planning and goal-setting. I was so convinced of my expertise that I was nonchalant about his reaction. It only took a few months of traveling with him to realize that I was completely wrong, and he was absolutely right.
My spreadsheet was not a roadmap; it was an anchor.
It was the product of a fixed mindset—a static, predictive way of thinking that works in the predictable environment of a spreadsheet, but fails in the dynamic reality of an open ocean.
On a sailboat, you don’t plan.
You adapt.
The only thing that truly matters is velocity, and it’s a concept my spreadsheet couldn’t even begin to capture.
What is Velocity?
Velocity, particularly in a dynamic environment, is the speed at which you can adapt. It’s the ability to rapidly reassess changing variables and adjust your course in real time.
A Lesson for a Fluid World
This isn’t just a lesson for sailors. It’s the most powerful lesson for any leader, entrepreneur, or individual facing a complex, fluid world. Over-planning, while it provides a sense of security and control, is the very force that prevents you from achieving true velocity. It creates a mindset of rigidity, a reluctance to abandon what’s “on the map” even when the map no longer makes sense.
- It’s the difference between a school leader who mindlessly executes an outdated strategic plan because it was set in stone, and a leader who can pivot and adapt to the real-time needs of their students and staff.
- It’s the difference between a business owner who gets bogged down in a 50-page business plan, and one who can rapidly react to market feedback and change direction and speed.
A plan is just a direction. But without the speed of adaptation, you lose out against the one resource that limits everything we do: time.
Your ability to adapt rapidly to feedback is a competitive advantage. It’s not about mindlessly executing; it’s about changing speed and direction as needed.
The real power is in moving forward with both purpose and pace. Let your plan be a guide, but let your actions be a testament to your ability to adapt.
…just food for thought.
Note: *Sell the business: Actually, I planned an exit strategy that allowed freedom from actively running the business and passive income without the legal chore of ownership transfer. But that was too wordy for the paragraph, hence this note.