I’ve got Rhythm! Have you?

Life is awash with rhythms. The sun rises and sets, the tides ebb and flow, the seasons come and go, even if not as consistently of late! My business now enjoys a lovely rhythm too and the beat is set by 90 day cycles. I read a great blog the other day on a site called Asian Efficiency (all about time management and productivity) where they were talking about the 90 day timeframe as ‘the range where ambition and planning actually fall reasonably close together’. I like that.

I’m a big fan of 90 day planning. I do appreciate not everyone is keen on planning particularly when it’s something that takes time to do then is filed away and forgotten about. I get that, even if you don’t create an action plan for each goal and work your plan, there is a huge amount of power in thinking about what you want, where you want to get to, and getting the outcome you want down on paper.

I think planning too much detail too far ahead can be a waste of time. Have a great vision, of course, but three years of fine detail is too much since so much can change in that time. Planning too far ahead can result in overestimating what can be done too. That’s why I love the 90 day planning cycle. Starting with the end of that period in mind you can work back till you have a week’s action plan. It’s amazing how the closer you get to the actions needed, the greater the reality check! Of course you should be pushing the boundaries but too much, as it can become a demoralising wish-list. And no one in your team will buy into that. It reminds me of a great cartoon showing  a line of productivity on a board with a gap in the middle. ‘What happens here’ says the boss. ‘Ah, that’s where a small miracle happens!’ comes the reply.

We all have a really good feel for what we can get done in 90 days – how far we can move towards a big goal, and plan the steps that we need to take to get there. Our longer term plans, even though it’s valuable to have them, can’t be planned right down to concrete steps; the goals are too big, there’s too much to get done, and if we try to plan the detail we just get overwhelmed, which in turn leads to inaction.

Working with 90 day goals: 

• keeps us focussed
• keeps us moving forward, 
• keeps us agile and on our toes; 
• makes us able to tackle challenges and grab opportunities as they come along; adjusting our plans for the next 90 days to accommodate them. 

I’ve found our 90 day cycle has given our business great rhythm. It’s providing focus and energy and also that sense of achievement as we succeed and drive on to the next challenge. I’d love you to give it a go and see if it works for you, as Baloo said to Bagheera ‘Get with the beat Baggi’  and who’s going to argue with a bear! :)

Do one thing: Resolve to try out the 90 day planning cycle. I’d love to hear how you get on.

Thanks for reading. Have a great week!