IS BUSINESS PLANNING ALL IT’S CRACKED UP TO BE?
Tags: Andy Stanley, Business, Google, Leadership, Sergey Brinn, Walt Disney
Clearly, planning is crucial to your organization… but not so much because of what the plan itself yields, but rather because of what the “process” of planning yields. Plans themselves often prove to be ineffective, simply because things change… The economy changes, the market changes, we change, culture changes, and our focus changes. But the “process” of planning keeps us sharp, always evaluating, collaborating and pursuant of creative new approaches to our business or organization.
Conventional “Walt Disney” wisdom of decades past, led many to conclude that you must have a 5, 10, 15, 20 and perhaps a 25 year plan… and that you leave little to chance. That “crystal ball” mindset in today’s culture and economy is simply obsolete. It’s impossible to consistently predict with accuracy what tomorrow holds.
Best selling author, renowned communicator, and senior pastor of a leading church in Alpharetta, Georgia; Andy Stanley, was questioned at a conference about his long-term plans. Andy compared the limitations of planning… with the headlights of his car while driving at night. “The headlights of my car shine and reveal a certain and finite distance ahead of me… I can only see so far. But I can see farther and farther ahead as my car advances forward, one linear foot at a time.”
Paraphrased… Every new day reveals a little more about the need for new business strategies and tactics. Plan for the short-term. Dream for the long-term.
STUMBLING AROUND IS HEALTHY TOO
On the other hand, while it’s healthy to plan, stumbling around a bit is just as healthy in balanced proportions. Sergey Brin; Co-Founder of Google, once stated, “The more you stumble around, the more you’re likely to stumble upon something valuable.”
Did you know that Google requires their senior engineers to spend 20% of their salaried work-week to pursue their own personal projects. These personal projects have nothing to do with their professional responsibilities at Google. They just invent.
The process of planning is crucial, but allot time for your executive, professional and administrative teams to stumble… to grow, to develop, to invent, to make mistakes, to fail forward. This balance promotes growth, and a happier and more fulfilled team… and ultimately a stronger business/organization.
GOOGLE’S HEALTHY DISREGARD FOR THE IMPOSSIBLE
Tags: Business, Google, Larry Page, Leadership, Sergey Brinn, Technology
Co-founding duo of Google; Larry Page and Sergey Brin, cruised onto the stage of an academically elite high school auditorium in Israel to speak to the student body. They were met with the kind of roars and excitement that teenagers usually reserve for rock stars. Larry and Sergey entered the auditorium through a rear door… leaving behind photographers, sunglasses, a pair of hired cars with drivers, and an attractive young woman that was travelling with Sergey.
Dressed casually and pleased at their welcome, they sat down and cracked smiles. They were to speak about what they had done, how they had done it, and what their dreams were for the future. “Do you guys know the story of Google… Do you want me to tell it?” Larry asked. “Yes,” the crowd shouted.
It all began while Sergey and I were Ph.D students, studying Computer Science at Stanford University. We didn’t know exactly what we wanted to do.
I got this crazy idea that I was going to download the entire web onto my computer. I told my advisor that it would only take about a week. After about a year or so… I had some, small portion of it. The students laughed.
So optimism is important, he went on. You have to be a little silly about the goals you’re going to set. You need to have a healthy disregard for the impossible, said Page. That’s a really good phrase. You should try to do things that most people would not!