Opportunity does not waste time with those who are unprepared
That statement from Idowu Koyenikan, organizational consultant and author of Wealth for All: Living a Life of Success at the Edge of Your Ability, it challenges me. It is challenging because I believe every new day presents a new opportunity. I also believe that there is opportunity in all adversity and every hardship. Therefore, if I am to believe what I believe, it suggests that I must be prepared for the unknown, like what lies within a new day, adversity, and hardship.
Is that what Koyenikan is suggesting?
I contend, not completely. Opportunity lies in wait, ready to be captured by those who acknowledge it by wholeheartedly and intentionally stepping into it. It’s not the opportunity that wastes time with unpreparedness; we do.
“Talent alone won’t make you a success. Neither will being in the right place at the right time, unless you are ready. The most important question is: ‘Are you ready?” – Johnny Carson
I say all of this to set up what lies ahead. We are coming into one of the busiest times of the year in retail – fourth quarter selling. For most organizations, this period of time represents the biggest chunk of the business they will do in their year. Not only is it a profitable time of year, it is a highly chaotic time of year. The organizations that thrive during this time of year, spend time, energy, effort, and even enthusiasm in preparing for the whirlwind. They plan for the disruption.
What is at the heart of preparation?
To paraphrase and adapt a George Washington quote about the preparation for war, “A robust preparation of war influences lasting peace.” As hard as that might sound, preparation builds for the future. It cultivates potential opportunities in all possibilities before they come to pass.
One might surmise, we prepare for our success. We prepare for the best outcome. More than that, I think, we get really good when we prepare for the failures. When we prepare for the mishaps, disruptions, obstacles and doubts, we expand our mindset and skillset. It may very be in the hypotheticals and ‘what if’s’, we build our capacity to successfully deal with and work through chaos.
Yes, it is difficult to know the unknown, unexpected and uncertain. Yes, things we decide ahead of time represent only potential contingencies that we won’t really know till we face what we are given. It’s a posture whereby preparation does help to orient our processes and our choices.
What’s the plan?
The central call to action is what I mentioned in my first book, What If; The Improvisational Guide To Management, get proactive to be reactive. Said another way, we map out all the things that make up this time of year – all elements of what do and how we do it – and we put as much as we can into place so that we are better at response. This is about adaptation and flexibility in all of our efforts to react accordingly to the circumstances that we are given.
This can be about preparing our systems. Maybe, producing checklists and escalation trees to handle a variety of actions required and the ubiquitous “if this, then this and what to do when.” It can be getting a handle on staffing and hours, setting clear expectations, defining specific standards and operational efficiencies, identifying real-time, on-the-fly coaching best practices, or ensuring people have what they need to do their best. It is not about planning to be perfect. It’s preparing to make progress, no matter what.
Prepare to fail or failed to prepare, pick a side, it’s that time of year again.
I challenge you with the following questions to consider how you see “preparation”.
- How do you define preparation?
- What’s the purpose of what you do? What’s the motive?
- What’s the current scene and what do you need?
- What do the people around you need and how can you provide that support?
- What has traditionally tripped you up and what are some of the potential tripping points?
- How do you deal with stress and anxiety in the whirlwind?
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