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The phrase for the week is "Contingency Planning”

When I was growing up in Chicago, I loved to play chess.  What I loved most about the game was trying to predict what moves my opponent might make and what I would do in response.  I’m too impatient for chess now, but I have used those skills throughout my career and am confident it has been the foundation for much of my planning success stories.  I call it contingency planning but the formal term is scenario planning.

It is so much a part of how I approach my personal and professional life, I rarely realize I’ve engaged this tool.  In order for this level of planning to work, you must be committed to the amount of time it takes to sift through all the possible outcomes or scenarios.  Often, a person will only plan for the outcome they want and when things go awry, they are back to square one--researching, planning, etc.  Often there is a mourning period before they are able to regroup to begin again.  Meanwhile, I am quickly moving from plan A to B and maybe even to C without breaking a sweat. 

When considering all the possible outcomes and what your response or action may be, it is equally important to consider all possible perspectives, beliefs and any wildcards, no matter how absurd it may seem at the time.  Remember, the main reason for going through this exercise is to strengthen your decision making and reduce stress.  This forces you to see the bigger picture and what is possible.  What I also love about this process, is that it generates creativity and innovation.  Because the sky is the limit, so are the solutions!

When planning anything, anticipate all possible outcomes and prepare for a variety of scenarios. 

Identify a personal or professional activity or project that is coming up in the next couple of weeks or more and engage contingency planning.

 I use the contingency planning process for all major decisions in my life. 

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