Where Are You Living?

I recently heard speaker and writer John Maxwell say that each of us “spend our lives either preparing or repairing.” The question I had for myself was “Where are you living?” I finally came to the conclusion that to be successful in any venture we must be continuously doing both. Preparing and repairing are a seemingly never ending cycle.

One of the most important activities in life is preparation. Since we have so many aspects to our lives, preparation seems to just go on and on. I often think of the old Boy Scout motto “Be prepared.” I was only a scout for a short period, but was an Eagle Scout counselor for a couple of years. The time I spent in scouting taught me the importance of preparation.

I can never really think about preparation without thinking of the first time I had a sales appointment with my Prudential Manager, Paul Hutsey. After about thirty or forty minutes of aimless wandering through a disorganized sales interview, we left without the sale. In the car Paul told me “adlibs are for amateurs” reinforcing once again the importance of preparation. I developed an organized sales presentation that could be adjusted to my potential audiences.

No matter how well one prepares most of the time adjustments must be made. Plans seldom work exactly as laid out. So then, the repairing begins. We revise the plan to fit the situation and often revise it several times. Over time, experience makes it so the repairs are smaller and shorter in duration. During the preparation stage we become able to anticipate potential roadblocks and have alternative plans to follow. We often prepare and repair at the same time.

An example of preparing and repairing is the script of plays that a football team has for its first couple of offensive series. If the plays are highly effective early, few adjustments (repairs) are made. If the team struggles with the early plays then more are used and maybe even additional plays added. Repairs are determined by the plans early success levels.

Years ago I heard someone say “poor planning prevents peak performance.” Sometimes poor planning is really just being unable or unwilling to make repairs to the plan as it goes off track. We get so invested in our idea that it is hard to change to an alternative. Subtle adjustments can make a faltering plan achieve our desired results. It’s all in the understanding of the importance of preparing and then repairing!