Plan B

Plan B is frequently mentioned in movies but infrequently used in real life.

During the James Bond movie, Casino Royale, Bond's nemesis says "Proceed with Plan B." In the drama War of the Worlds 2, the main character says, "We work fast, but we must make a Plan B." And even in comedy, Will Ferrell says in Blades of Glory, "The honorable thing is to walk away and that is exactly what I'm doing. We'll just move on to Plan B."

What is Plan B? It follows Plan A. But is B something we should avoid, prepare or aspire? I believe that it's actually all three.

The first type of Plan B is a surprise. Plan B is any situation that is very different from the one and only Plan A you had in mind. Pete Wilson writes in his new book titled Plan B, "Do you remember the day you discovered your life wasn't going to turn out quite the way you thought? It happens to everyone sooner or later. Plan A comes to an abrupt stop, and you're not sure if there even is a Plan B."

I experienced this type of surprise in 2006. I was offered the position of executive pastor of a megachurch. After much prayer, discussions with my wife, phone conversations with existing executive pastors, I decided to close my 18 year-old software and consulting company and accept the position.

It took only 90-days for me to realize I had made a bad decision. For several reasons, I resigned.
After a couple weeks had passed, I looked back over the process to assess why Plan A failed. I defined three avoidable mistakes. I share them in hopes they prevent you repeating my poor judgement.

First, I talked more than I listened when I sought advice. I was more enamored telling people I had been offered a job in God's army than hearing trusted advisors tell me how difficult it is to lead from the second chair in any organization, including a megachurch.

Second, I allowed my 10+ year friendship with the senior pastor to blind my judgment. I failed to discern the differences in helping someone versus working for that someone. The context changed the content of our relationship.

Third, because I was overly optimistic how I was going to improve the ministry, I did not prepare for Plan A to fail. Convinced that I had been "called to the ministry", I did not prepare a Plan B backup plan. Lesson learned: Just because a man of God asks me to join the ministry does not always mean God agrees. I returned to my consulting business, but that was Plan B by default.

The most common Plan B is the backup plan. You create Plan B during the same time period you draft the preferred Plan A. Plan B is just-in-case Plan A does not work exactly as intended. Every important Plan A needs at least one Plan B.

Having a Plan B ... or C, D & E ... has multiple benefits. Plan B's give your spouse, project team, peers or boss confidence that you're well prepared.

Plan B's are similar to a GPS. If Plan A is to follow the directions someone gives me on the phone but I get lost, Plan B is to turn on the GPS to locate and direct me to the intended destination.

When I created our family's financial plan several years ago, I created Plan A, B, C, D, E and F. I not only diversified our investments (content) but I also diversified the economic conditions we might experience (context), e.g., inflation, stock market indices, health situations and retirement timing. Each of the plans is a still a guess, but having multiple scenarios allows me to reduce fear and uncertainty while increasing my control of the unknown.

The first type of Plan B is related to failure. The second confronts fear. The third type of Plan B is rooted in faith. Plan B's 1 & 2 are mine. Plan B 3 is God's.

The third type of Plan B is fearless. After we prepare our initial plan and back-up plans, author Pete Wilson recommends asking, "What would I do if I were absolutely confident God is with me?"

If assured you cannot fail, what would you attempt? When you answer this question, your plan possibilities increase and your problems decrease.

Most Plan B's are solely backups if your original plan fails. I now make two Plan B's. One is in case I confront head winds and Plan A fails. The second plan is created if I sense that the wind is at my back and Plan A's goals are too meek.

For example, my associate and I drafted during May 2010 what we felt was a good plan for the coming fiscal year starting October 1st. Our Plan A would increase month-by-month the number of entrepreneurs and small business owners counseled to meet our annual SBA goal of customers served.

During the July 4th holiday I asked "What would we do this coming year if I was absolutely sure we would not fail?" One of the answers that came to mind was to organize a Green Jobs Summit during the first week of January 2011.

When the unemployment numbers showed no improvement in August, I sensed that the wind was going to be at our back if we announced the summit. With so many people out of work, I felt a summit was needed to help people create a job instead of look for one.

It was counterintuitive to hold a big conference the week following the holidays, but I sensed a higher power saying "Go for it". As it turned out, the event was a big success. It helped a lot of people who needed hope. And it resulted in so many new customers for our SBDC, we set a office record for the most number of people counseled in a year.

Conclusion
One of life's most important lessons is to learn how to handle Plan B and create Plan B's before you need them.

Anyone who is forty or older, needs to create a Plan B second career to leap to in case of a layoff. People who sell their time to make a living, need to create a Plan B product that sells while they sleep. Small businesses who rely on one primary product or service need a Plan B niche to grow next year. And single moms need to find a vibrant church whose members can serve as her Plan B when her life hits a rough spot in the road.

Plan A is always our first choice. The plan where everything works out the way we want. But more often than not, we find ourselves dealing with an upside-down, inside-out result where Plan A does not go as it should. Whether it's in the movies or real life, success is determined by how we handle Plan B.

What is your Plan B story?