I love a good plan

I love a good plan. I’m an engineer who chose to go into project management, so even my plans have plans…and those plans have backup plans. But there’s a funny thing that sometimes happens with those backup plans; sometimes I decide that they are better than the original plan and then I run with them instead.

When I talk to audiences about how to Reimagine Your Work, I encourage the creation of a strategic plan for their careers. I suggest that each person creates a 3-5 year goal and then a plan to get there and then I tell them to give themselves grace when they never achieve the “end” of the plan. I tell them this because along the way, they will learn new things, have new experiences, and maybe even decide to change the goal. All of this is okay. This is a natural part of executing a plan. I try to reinforce that planning is where the magic happens in the world of career development, not the plan itself. It is in dreaming, the preparation, and the journey that we discover where we should be heading.

When I got laid off in 2022, I had a plan a simple plan to “get another job,” but I also created a back-up plan when I formed Engineering Leadership Solutions LLC “just in case.” Within 60 days, I knew that the back-up plan was positioned to be “the plan” and in the 3 years that have followed, I know it was the right decision.

If I hadn’t been willing to pivot my plans, I wouldn’t have my name on the cover of 3 best-selling books, wouldn’t have had the chance to influence the culture in organizations around the country who thought they were just hiring a project manager, and I certainly wouldn’t have been in a position to apply for a role as Professor of the Practice at Georgia Tech (my dream job).

When you create a plan for your career, you are the one in charge and you get to decide which path to take. If you feel like your plan is working well, then keep it up, but if your current plan isn’t serving you, this is your reminder to start building a new one.