When it comes to reaching objectives, there are two kinds of people: those who make plans and those who actually reach them. Most of the time, who does one, doesn’t do the other.

That’s a bold and maybe a controversial statement. We need someone to contest it. Let me introduce to you a well-known Romanian character: Mr. Gică Contra!

Gică is a diminutive from George. “Contra” means against. Combined, they mean ” Gică Who Is Always Opposing”. You can – and you will – meet this guy especially during the technical meetings. He is the one who has a problem for each and every solution.

Let’s invite him to temporarily take the floor.

“How can you say that?” explodes Mr. Gică Contra, immediately taking the opportunity. “It’s preposterous! A plan helps you reach your destination. Without one, there is no journey, just an aimless series of movements!”

Actually, no. What does that is the act of continuously planning, finding the next best move in an everchanging context. Adapt and survive.

The words of military generals are an interesting thing. They tend to provide a tried-and-true approach, as they belong to the winning side. The others, usually don’t get quoted the history books:

Plans are nothing. Planning is everything

Dwight Eisenhower

and

A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week

George Patton

It makes sense. The more time you spend planning, the less time you have for the actions you must take in order to achieve your goal.

It took me a while, but I discovered that knowing just the next two actions I need to take, puts me in control. It helps me fight procrastination – what do you do when you are not prepared yet to do something? A plan – and at the same time to avoid “paralysis by analysis”, a toxic situation when you finally have the plan, but no energy to left to see it to fruition.

Going back to my site, the next two things I need to do are:

Normally, setting up the environment should be first, but somehow, I don’t feel so. Perhaps my brain needs to see, from a visual point of view, where it needs to go. I’ll leave it this way.