Recently, the calendar flipped from June to July. 2024 is half over.
For me, July 1st means it is time to reflect on the year to date and assess how things are going. I will check to see if I am still on track to reach all my goals for the year and consider what things I need to accomplish before the end of the year.
Six months is a long time. Things have certainly changed. Some things are no longer possible because no progress has been made in completing a task or reaching a goal.
Some years, I reach July and realize a specific plan or goal needs to be abandoned because it is no longer relevant, useful, or practical. I remember a year I laid out a reasonably detailed marketing plan. I had set various times and dates for doing certain activities to ensure we had enough work because before the year began, it seemed we wouldn’t have the work needed to retain all our coworkers. I had to change direction by July of that year because we were completely swamped with work. (I could claim it was because of my detailed plan, but I don’t.)
I tend to be a little overdriven, so if something is going to be measured, I ensure I am ahead of schedule. So, if I am already 75% of the way toward reaching a goal by July and the actions seem important and valuable, I will increase the goal. I have already shown that I can beat the target by 50%, so I should increase the goal by 50%.
I read a lot, and many books give me ideas. So, when I am halfway through the year, I have typically read about 15-20 books. Those books will have given me about ten new ideas. New ideas mean we need change. I can’t rigidly stick to the plan and finish out the year.
This year, I got myself into an awkward position. I am traveling too much—too many trips and commitments. I want to stay sane while getting to all our offices and projects when needed. Plus, I need to have some openings in my schedule in case something comes up and I need to fit something into my life on short notice. (Keep in mind I judge my sanity, not you, so you skip telling yourself jokes about my sanity.)
Keep in mind that the whole reason I like to be organized is that I can quickly adapt.
During the first half of 2024, I realized I had to dial back some travel unrelated to Willmar Electric to keep my sanity. But in many cases, schedules have already been set, and plans have been made.
So, I had to change. It was a two-step process. Step one was to let some people know I was canceling trips in August and September. Step two was to change some habits about scheduling future things in my life so 2025 wouldn’t involve meeting cancellations.
I even have a system to determine whether I have succeeded at dialing back my travel and pace of life. I checked my daily locations and found I was in my hometown (Lincoln, NE) 42% of the time. When you add time at my home away from home (Scottsdale, AZ), the percentage rises to 70%.
That means I am gone 30% of the time! So, I need to ensure my other travel is maximized. To fulfill my role at Willmar Electric, I need to be on the road for work about 25% of the time.
A 5% margin isn’t big enough. I had boxed myself into a life with no flexibility. It’s time for a mid-course correction. There is no need to wait until the year’s end to make a correction. I’ll just change my plan. After all, I was the person that made them in the first place.