You Don’t Need to Follow Your Plan Exactly to Succeed
Photo by Resume Genius on Unsplash
TL/DR:
If your system is helping you get important things done, it’s not wrong
Plans should support you, not trap you
You don’t need to follow your schedule exactly to be productive
Flexibility is part of effective time management
“Structured Fluidity” means adapting without guilt
The Whole Shebang:
A couple weeks ago, my friend Sasha messaged me.
“Do you have 10 minutes to talk about productivity?”
(Do I have 10 minutes to talk about productivity? You better believe I do! The answer to that question is always going to be yes, but I digress.)
In any case, Sasha then proceeded to explain her workflow and that she was concerned that she wasn’t doing it “right”.
My first question:
“Is it working for you?”
Her answer came swiftly:
“Yes”
Here’s the thing: Whatever you’re doing, if it’s working for you, it’s not wrong.
It’s right for you, right for right now.
Will it stay right forever?
Maybe, but likely not.
Our systems typically require a little shifting as our lives change.
But there’s no universal “right way” to be productive.
Only when it’s NOT working for you does it become “wrong”.
And not wrong for everyone, not wrong forever, just wrong for you right now.
Humans aren’t static beings.
We change. We grow. Sometimes we even regress for a bit.
And our circumstances also change.
Wanna know what she was concerned about? What she thought might be “wrong”?
It’s that, while she was making plan for what she wanted to do, even taking the time to time block her intentions, she wasn’t following those plans exactly.
She wasn’t doing the things during the exact time blocks she’d laid out.
But, crucially, by the end of the week, she was getting done the vast majority of the work she’d planned to do.
It just wasn’t happening exactly at the moment that she’d pre-planned.
And this is not a situation unique to Sasha.
Many of my clients, those who, by all accounts have learned to be ruthlessly realistic in their plans and are accomplishing what they set out to do, etc., are frustrated with themselves if they can’t (or rather, don’t) execute their plans exactly, in the blocks they’ve set out for themselves.
But this, IMHO, is not a problem.
You didn’t “fail” because you didn’t, or couldn’t, follow the plan exactly.
If you feel good about the decisions you’ve made with your time, the tradeoffs, and you know that the stuff you did was more important than the stuff you didn’t do, you’re winning. You’re doing it “right”.
And, in fact, if you follow a plan exactly, without accounting for new information that should, by all accounts, change the plan, well, that just doesn’t make sense.
The plan is a tool to support you, not to imprison you.
What Sasha was doing? I call this concept “Structured Fluidity”. It’s a totally valid way to work. (And I do it too!)
Look, do I time block the hell out of my workdays? (With adequate buffer, of course!)
Absolutely!
Because it helps me to be ruthlessly realistic about the time I have available, and what I can accomplish during that period.
Do I stick to the exact time-blocks every single day?
Almost never.
It’s 10:16 am as I write this, and I’ve already adjusted my plan for the day. (And I started at 9am.)
Sometimes, your energy is misaligned with what you’ve assigned yourself.
Sometimes, you’re feeling excited about something else you’ve planned for later this week, and you just want to do it NOW, to ride that motivation while you’ve got it.
Sometimes things take longer than you think. (And rarely, but yes, sometimes, less time than you think.)
Sometimes (er, often), a surprise meeting gets added to your calendar and you need to make some shift. (Another reason why buffer is so important.)
The fact that you’ve planned doesn’t make you clairvoyant.
Humans are more complex than that.
Life throws curveballs on the daily
But, if, in general, over the course of a day, a week, a month, etc., you’re getting the important stuff done, while still having time for yourself and your family, you’re doing it “right”.
Even if it’s not in the exact way the “experts” espouse.
Do you have an odd-ball way of doing things that works for you?
Tell me about it!
When you’re ready, here are 3 ways we can work together:
Enroll in the Time Well Spent course
Bite-sized, shame-free steps to take control of your time, and your life. Built for real people with big lives, big jobs, or both. Learn more, or enroll here.
Get 1:1 Coaching
High-touch coaching for people managers, leaders, executives and founders who need a trusted partner to streamline priorities, manage the overwhelm, and focus on what moves the needle most. Schedule a call to explore if this is the right fit for you.
Explore Team Workshops/Training
Customized workshops and trainings to help your team improve productivity without burnout and create a culture where people (actually) thrive. Schedule a call to explore if this is the right fit for you.
