Do you know exactly where you going to be a year from now? How about two years from now?
If you think you know exactly what the future holds for you, you're wrong.
The truth is, you don't know what your work situation will be like in two years, or what your family situation will look like or even what kind of health you'll be in.
Scary isn't it?
If nothing else, the last few years have stripped away our illusions of certainty.
Companies are bought, sold and go under with little notice. Managers move in and out faster than flying tennis balls. And our personal lives are stitched together in a patchwork of fragile connections that can disintegrate in the face of death, disease or divorce.
Now for the good news: You can be productive, happy and successful today, even if you don't know for sure what's going to happen tomorrow.
During times of change, the people who get the most unraveled are the people who don't know how to function without having every detail buttoned up.
Perhaps you know a few: The manager who can't lead until they're 100 percent certain of the strategic plan; the spouse who can't make friends because they might be moving soon; the salesperson who can't talk to customers until they know for sure about the merger.
It's a bit of a paradox. The secret to staying focused (and happy) during times of change is to set clear goals, yet remain flexible about the specifics.
Here are five tips for staying focused on the face of uncertainty:
1. Make peace with ambiguity.
Plans are never going to be fully complete. New information will be revealed, new people will come into the mix, things will move forward and then they'll regress for a while. When you accept this as a given, you're less likely to be thrown off course by it.
2. Stay true to your purpose.
This is particularly important for leaders, i.e. everyone. Help your team, at home or work, stay focused by continually reminding yourselves of your larger purpose. Whether it's raising future world leaders, helping your customers be more successful, or your guests enjoy themselves, staying true to your purpose helps you get clarity. It's like a reset button for your brain. It keeps you focused and productive.
3. Make do with 80 percent.
My Dad always says great leadership is the ability to make good decisions with incomplete information. You're never going to know everything. Our forefathers founded a country on less than complete information. If you wait until you have all the information, you'll never accomplish anything big.
4. Set goals without attachments
Goals are what you want to accomplish. Attachments are when you're emotionally tied to having it play out a certain way. For example, your goal might be to grow your business by a certain amount, or run a successful church auction. Put that on your white board or day planner. But don't be too attached to the details. Stay open to the idea that you may have to make adjustments along the way.
5. Leave space for the fabulous
You know that old expression sometimes God has a bigger plan for you than you had for yourself? Whether you're spiritual or not, we've all experienced situations where the universe sends you an unexpected gift. The future is always going to be unknown. That's what makes it great, or at least interesting.
Lisa Earle McLeod is a sales leadership consultant. Companies like Apple, Kimberly-Clark and Pfizer hire her to help them create passionate, purpose-driven sales forces.
She the author of The Triangle of Truth, which the Washington Post named as a "Top Five Book for Leaders."
She has appeared on The Today Show, and has been featured in Forbes, Fortune and The Wall Street Journal. She provides executive coaching sessions, strategy workshops, and keynote speeches.
More info: www.LisaEarleMcLeod.com
Lisa's Blog - How Smart People Can Get Better At Everything
Copyright 2012 Lisa Earle McLeod. All rights reserved.