Is having a Business Plan really that important?

Some great thoughts and advice from the Chesire Cat - Alice in Wonderland - C. S. Lewis

“Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?
The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.
The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

Alice: ...So long as I get somewhere.
The Cheshire Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.”

CS Lewis was a genius author, apologist, wordsmith, and philosopher. His quotes are some of the most requoted of all authors.
His quotes and “One Liners” hit the mark.
I personally love one-liners, as all my clients know, because they say in a sentence what others say in paragraphs.

One-liners uncomplicate thoughts and are straight to the point without a need for an explanation. They are easy to remember and they help us as an internal guide.

When I spend time reading or listening to great authors, past and present, and observe how they use thoughtful quotes and one-liners, I feel like their voice is real and they are talking just with me thoughtfully guiding me through a decision. 

Reportedly C.S. Lewis’s most famous quote is "There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” 

It is one of my favorite quotes because as a Coach I am constantly encouraging people to “Planalife they want to live in!” because our life is linear we can only live forward.

Where we are today is connected to all the decisions we have made in the past! There is no chance of going back to rewrite our history or make a different decision - our life is lived forwards.

There are so many movies and stories of people who would love to go back in time and change just one moment in time, one decision, one event, or take one missed opportunity so they could be in a different outcome from the one they currently have.
They would love a Do-Over. 

All roads don’t lead to Rome, all roads allow us to Roam and many of the pathways we may have followed did not lead us to desired destinations.

Several have led us to remorse, regret and feeling rejected. 

Too many people are afraid that their life has been defined by a best or worst moment.

If it was their best moment they never feel like they could ‘live up to' that moment again.

It was too grandiose, too special, too flukey, too much effort went in, the stars aligned for that just one moment in time, and it could never happen again.

Our trophy moments should be cherished but not exaggerated which too many people do.

Trophies are reminders, not definers. They should encourage and inspire for a better future. They should not hold us back from future success but encourage us or inspire us onto future achievements.

If people feel like they are defined by their worst moments, then they may feel trapped or too ashamed or embarrassed to move forward.

They may feel guilty, like a failure, and captive to a single moment of time when they made a poor choice.

They now live discouraged, disappointed or they have dismantled their dreams and life potential, never feeling worthy again of success.

Happiness or feeling like they deserve good and wonderful things to happen to them again is like an illusion. 

When we live with captivity the focus we develop is called “Coping Mechanisms.” When our “Coping Mechanisms” take over and control our lives whatever we are captive to moves from a “Season of life to a sentence for life”.

Our seasons were never meant to hold us captive. Seasons are meant for change. Winter doesn’t last forever unless we decide to follow it.

So how can we get out of a rut? I often share with my clients, “The difference between a rut and a grave is two feet!

You need to get your two feet out of the rut and back on solid ground otherwise you will go from your rut and into your grave without ever truly living your life and discovering your true potential”. 

Living in ‘The groove and living in the rut’ are two very different things.

When we are tracking through life looking for and searching out good things we often feel like we are in the groove.

One of the key components of this type of life is focus and planning. Whatever gets your focus gets you life.

What are you focusing on?

If we feel like we are down in the basement digging holes then the only way out is up and it is time for change.

Rock bottom can be a good foundation from which to rebuild your life.

“Something changes WHEN something changes.”

Think about these steps to rebuild the life you want to have.

• Describe the change you want to see, can you get a picture of a preferred life?
• Are you ready to move, start, or begin?
• Who might be your best encourager, coach, supporter, mentor, or friend?
• When will you contact them to talk about the change you want to make?
• When will you know you are living the life you desire to have? What will be the marker?

When we “Planalife we want to live in through a Business on Purpose” it is ALWAYS because we plan our lives first.

Then our Business comes into alignment and becomes this vehicle that transports us from today to a desired future.

What are some of the key ingredients for you in your next important steps?

Let go of anything that is holding you back 

• Unforgiveness of self and others. 
• Feeling unworthy of success for whatever reason.
• Lack of preparing and planning for your desired future
• Bad, toxic, or unhelpful habits.
• Being BUSY - Buried  Under  Saying  Yes

Start to dream again

Stop telling yourself what you can’t do and discover what you can do!

Turn your GOALS into tangibles.

With all my clients I use “The 5 A’s”

• Answers
• Adjustments
• Ambitions
• Achievements 
• Aspirations
  

Reignite your imagination and begin to dream again.

As a boy, I was told I would never amount to anything because I was a dreamer, however, I have lived an amazing life!

More than I originally believe I would and it is all because I could dream or imagine things first and then went out and created what I imagined. 

Add to your life Discipline

We all submit to something or someone to control our life.

If our masters are laziness, poor choices, abdication, irresponsibility, bad ethics we cannot expect we will have exceptional outcomes. People who desire to live exceptional lives with exceptions.

Discipline is not a dirty word it is a directional word. Discipline leads us to discover better choices and creates better outcomes.

No discipline seems pleasant at the time of choosing to come under the control or authority of someone or something else.

It seems painful, and uncomfortable and narrows down your choices.

Later on, however, it produces the harvest you desire.

For those who have been trained by discipline, reward is the outcome.

While you feel inadequate and even feeble, to begin with, and sometimes like an imposter, discipline discovers what you are made of and what you are really hoping for.

Next week we will discover more from the journey of discipline and why, "Though it isn’t easy it is essential”

So remember, to “Planalife you want to live in through a Business on Purpose” Discipline will be a major ingredient for success in your life and career.  

Have a great week and I hope you tune in next week to see the rest… Ian