Estimated reading time: 2 minutes, 20 seconds.
TODAY’S IDEA: The Law of Navigation
— From The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell
John C. Maxwell, an authority in the field of Leadership, explains the Law of Navigation as follows: “Anyone Can Steer the Ship, but It Takes a Leader to Chart the Course.”
What he means by this is simple, albeit not easy. “[Leaders] see the whole trip in their minds before they leave the dock. They have vision for getting to their destination, they understand what it will take to get there, they know who they’ll need on the team to be successful, and they recognize the obstacles long before they appear in the horizon.”
Whether the trip or project is big or small, complex or simple, leaders learn what it will entail and plan accordingly from experience and/or by getting help from experts in the field. They are intentional and purposeful and they go through a planning process to maximize the opportunities to succeed.
When making a thorough assessment, it’s important to look both inward (to draw on experience), and outward (to examine conditions and get ideas and knowledge from other trustworthy sources). Leaders “examine not only measurable factors such as finances, resources and talent, but also intangibles such as timing, morale, momentum, culture, and so on. […] The secret to the Law of Navigation is preparation.”
Maxwell offers the acrostic PLAN AHEAD as a way for us to keep a handy reminder of the strategy to use when charting a course for navigation:
Predetermine a course of action.
Lay out your goals.
Adjust your priorities.
Notify key personnel.
Allow time for acceptance.
Head into action.
Expect problems.
Always point to the successes.
Daily review your plan.
“In the end, it’s no the size of the project that determines its acceptance, support and success. It’s the size of the leader.”
ACTION
TODAY: What trip (project/task/other) do you have ahead of you (or are you in already) where you have to lead people? Think of it and run it by the PLAN AHEAD steps that apply (depending on the stage that you are at). Where and how can you plan for a better outcome? Make a list of the people who can lend a hand or advice to steer you towards a successful outcome, call them if you can to get their advice, or plan to meet with them in a near future.
FUTURE: Practice reflecting on your experiences, both positive and negative, so that you can discover the valuable lessons in them. Do your homework ahead of time before embarking on any journey: find people who have been down that road and talk to them about their experience and get their insights. Also, find out which way you naturally lean towards: are you a can-do-anything optimist or a down-to-earth realist? Then find someone who is your opposite and include that person on your team so that you can have more balance.
Please share your project with me! I’d love to know what you’re working on. Where will you use the PLAN AHEAD steps? Anything I can help with? I’m happy to lend a hand if I can serve as a resource. Let me know and please don’t forget to share this post via email, Facebook or Twitter, if you know someone who can benefit from The Law of Navigation. Thanks!