CREATE A PLAN B: And work as if you don't have one

​By Eliana Barriga
Publisher and Managing Editor for The Retail Observer

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Eliana Barriga

fallback - Wiktionary:
strategy; an alternative which can be used if something goes wrong with the main plan; a recourse if you will, can be imperative to survival.

You know – life happens with or without us. It gets in the way and at any time can throw us a curveball in the form of the unexpected. This is when we need to fall back and assess the situation.

In life, it's always good to know where the escape routes are in case of emergency. Every time we get on an airplane, we’re told where the exits are. Sadly, when we go to a stadium for a sporting event, concert, or even a movie theater nowadays, we have a heightened awareness of our surroundings and we take mental note of the exits. We don't plan on using them, but the information is filed for easy access in the back of our mind. We are prepared to act, if the need arises.

There are times when nothing in life goes smoothly, and it is during these times that we are often not able to access our best thinking in the moment. How often do we use our precious brainpower to think about all the ways something won’t work before we’ve given it a fair chance? Planning in advance for the weaknesses of our businesses and analyzing themostcommonbreakingpointscanhelpusnavigateinchallengingtimes. Swapping plans doesn’t signal failure but indicates a tactical change; we’re simply proving we’ve got the smarts and decision-making skill set that are crucial to every area of our lives and business. A fallback plan gives us the ability to keep moving forward on the path to success.

With Plan B in place, we can access a mind shift that allows us to fall back when the “stuff” hits the fan. In this moment, let yourself ponder the thought: “There is no backup plan”. This exercise will put you in a proactive mental frame: “We've got to make things happen”. You’re more apt to work stronger and longer when your Plan A has to work because there’s no option. Total commitment without a safety net will inspire you to work harder than you ever dreamed.

Plan B isn’t about planning to fail, it’s about planning your road to success during the difficult times. We can sleep better at night with a backup plan in place – the beauty of Plan B is that it frees us to work our Plan A with total abandon and strategically maneuver through the storms of life.

Here’s to successful strategic planning!
Eliana Barriga
eliana@retailobserver.com

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