There are those people that can go with the flow, live in the moment, not fear the unknown. That person is not me. I am a planner. I have thought through all of the terrible, life threatening possibilities before stepping out of the house just to go to the store. I am usually so prepared I could battle a fire breathing dragon in a snow storm in July.
But not last night.
Last night I got stung by a bee.
I am allergic.
I did not have an Epi-pen.
In hindsight, it was a stupid oversight.
I wonder if people who fly by the seat of their pants have more fun than I do; but I also wonder how they handle managing people. When it comes to managing people, processes or systems, relying on a plan is imperative. Stuff happens. People call in sick, software goes down, wrenches get thrown into your day-to-day operations. A high level of preparation and a sound ability to respond will be your weapon of choice to slay the dragon of havoc.
Here are my tips to make a strong plan:
- Bee Aware: Know what can happen. Can the system crash? Can the phones go down? Is it possible that 7 people will call in sick Monday after some big game? If you know what can happen you have a better idea what to prepare for.
- Bee Prepared: Have a plan. Write it down. Make sure your staff is trained to respond properly when something goes haywire.
- Bee Ready to Take Action: Make sure your plan is practiced. Think fire drills. Having to come up with a Plan B at crunch time will lead to chaos and your team freaking out!
While not all situations require an emergency response plan, day-to-day disturbances will be less disturbing with a solid strategy in place.
On that note, I’m off to the pharmacy.
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