“A good plan implemented today is better than a perfect plan implemented tomorrow.” – George Patton
Four different conversations I’ve had in the past two weeks reminded me of the quote above. There are a lot of leaders out there who just can’t quite pull the trigger on something because they think some piece of their plan is missing. “I just need a little more info”, or “I’m waiting for a few things to clear up”, or “Once we know _____, then we can get started” – this is stuff I hear all the time.
I’ll agree, sometimes you do need more info, and sometimes there are issues to clear up. But more often than not, once you get more info, you’ll find there’s something else you still don’t know. And there will always be more issues to clear up.
At some point, you’ve just got to put yourself out there and go for it. Nobody wants to follow anybody who can’t quite make themselves take the leap. Eventually your organizational energy fades away to nothing. People will assume you have no vision, no ideas, no goals. At some point the good ones will wonder why they should stay – and most of them won’t.
If you want to grow, go make it happen. If you want to revolutionize how you do business, then do it. Yes, there will be issues, and yes, things will come up that will make you adjust your plan. But the only guaranteed way to not accomplish what you want is to not start.
Don’t wait for the perfect time. The only perfect time is now, and it’s already here.
