A Story About…Real Life

How do you cope when plans change?

????We know it’s good to have a plan. We know everything has a better chance of happening with a plan behind it. The project at work, the day trip with the kids, the diet and exercise plan….

❓ But what happens when Real Life kicks in? When your boss changes their mind, when the kids get sick, when you accidentally fall into a plate of muffins ?????

It happens to us all, sometimes through no cause of our own, sometimes not! We know that even the best laid plans can be subject to change!

So what can we do?

1. Throw our toys out of the cot and refuse to have anything more to do with the plan
2. Decide the plan is ruined for now but we can come back to it later, Monday, sometime…
3. Look at what we can rescue from the plan and move on

Hopefully you’re thinking “Option No.3 please Sara”. After all we are grown ups and this is the grown up way. Hard when your inner toddler or teenager is kicking off inside!

So here’s how I go about handling a plan change like an adult (hopefully, mostly)

1. Breathe: deep breaths and count to 10 (or whatever number you need to) to let the inner self calm down a bit. The equivalent of the naughty step!
2. Assess: Is it as bad as you thought? What happened? What part did you play? Who else is affected? Do we need Plan A ver.2 or Plan B?
3. Learn: What can you take away from this? How can you help it to go more smoothly next time? What can you do differently?
4. Action: Consciously choose to take positive action. Decide on the new plan and then DO IT! Do not wait, procrastinate, debate anymore. Don’t wait for Monday! Keep moving forward!
5. Let it go: Make like Disney and don’t hold on to anything you can’t change! (Apologies for putting that tune into your head!) Life is too short for guilt, what if’s and worrying about stuff you cant change.

We make plans for a reason. Generally because we want to achieve something. Don’t let Real Life scupper your plans whatever they are. Take time, use your brain and make conscious choices.

When the shit hits the fan, don’t spend any longer than necessary cleaning up. Get it done and move on!

Much more productive than a tantrum!

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