Poor Planning Prevents Performance

You can’t finish if you don’t start.

Effective planning is difficult. Spend too much time planning and you may never get off the starting line. Alternatively, racing off immediately could result in you wiping out at the first corner.

You need to know enough to start; twists, turns, road conditions, hazards need to be taken into account. Conversely, you need to accept that these variables may change while you’re on the road and have contingencies to adjust to them. All these elements pre and post start planning are critical to success of a race and of your project.

The most important part of any project is the START DATE.

A race car driver doesn’t start a race when ready, they go ready or not. The start time is fixed. Your project should have the same thing. Postponing the START DATE because the plan’s not ready is a project that is doomed to fail. You’re not in the race if you’re not on the line. You can’t win if you’re not in the race.

Your START DATE will tell you that planning is done. Whether it’s pristine or pitiful, that’s what you got, GO!

Whatever template, software, dry-erase board you use to plan and execute a project. the START DATE needs to be in the top-left, in BOLD, RED text. Once set, it’s impossible to change (if you’re using a dry-erase board write it with a Sharpie).

All of your initial planning must be done by that time. It’s nonnegotiable. The race starts when the race starts. Any adjustments after that date need to be made without stopping the project. You will speed up, slow down and take some bad turns but you’re in the race.

Start on time, or you’ve already lost.