By Patrick Driessen"The most successful people are those who are good at plan B." - James Yorke
Adaptability, flexibility, diversity, creativity, self knowledge, relationships, vision and focus are some of the most critical ingredients to succeed your career in these hectic times.
As part of my focus on career coaching, I often ask my team members, coachees, friends and other people I meet: "What's your career Plan B?".
I'll explain what kind of Plan B I'm referring to:
- What is your Plan B if you'd lose your current job tomorrow?
- What is your Plan B if you can no longer continue your career within the same company, the same type of role and the same kind of industry?
- What is your Plan B if you were being asked to sell yourself into an entirely different profession?
- What is your Plan B to take on a role at least 3 levels higher?
- What is your Plan B to increase your income with 5, 10 or even 20 times?
- What is your Plan B if you lose your own income and now your spouse/partner will become responsible for generating an income?
A couple of recent examples in response to some of the Plan B questions I raised:
- One of my coachees was focused on selling himself into a similar senior leadership role within the same organisation he worked for. I asked him: "What if there is no demand for your role in other areas? Are there any other roles/functions you can sell yourself into?" After allowing him to think and when I stretched his thinking even further, he came up with two new leadership role types he was perfectly qualified for! This allowed him to broaden his scope in finding and securing his next leadership career challenge!
- At a recent introduction meeting with one of the preferred executive recruiters my company is working together with, I kindly asked the female recruiter: "What would your Plan B look like, if as of tomorrow you could not be a recruiter anymore and the recruitment business would no longer exist?". In first instance she responded: "I would try to find a similar recruitment role somewhere else." I reminded her that in this Plan B scenario that would not be possible; no more recruitment! I raised some more thinking questions to get her out of her comfort zone. She than cleared her mind and started thinking.... Soon she responded with her draft Plan B: "Based on my other qualifications, skills and experience, I think can make a healthy living by becoming a certified NLP coach, a certified personal trainer, a HR consultant or even a salsa dance teacher!" She really got excited about her new Plan B; it made her grow & glow!
- When meeting various friends for drinks, I asked the wife of one of my friends: "How can you generate an income if your husband would lose his job and could not find another job?" She responded very upset: "How am I supposed to get a job and work full-time, while raising three children, doing the household and a thousand other jobs?" I challenged her by giving her new insights on how to think without limits. Then I raised a couple of other Plan B type questions and agreed to ask her for her Plan B in a week time. Within four days she called me... She sincerely thanked me for stimulating her to create her Plan B. She was super excited! She had created a Plan B which was based on starting her own business from home, based on a business idea she had for a long time. She was so passionate and excited about her plan B, that she already had found a girlfriend who was willing and able to start the business together with her. And....her husband would do the marketing! She assured me that even when her husband would not lose his job, she most likely would go ahead with her Plan B!
Of course I've challenged myself on my own career Plan B's. This is what I've came up with so far: besides offering my skills, experience & services as a senior executive leader in various areas, and selling myself as a certified coach and executive mentor, I think I could sell myself as a business & strategy consultant, a certified fire fighter, a certified paramedic officer, start various new businesses as entrepreneur/investor, become a book author, play drums in a band and someday maybe even sell my own paintings for a good price..... All great ingredients for a number of compelling and flexible Plan B's! The ingredients of my other more ambitious Plan B I'll keep to myself....because that's the main plan I'll be focused on over the next 5 years.
My advise is to create various plans and they should cover all career scenario's: worst case, normal case, best case!
So....What's YOUR Plan B?
Make this a Positive & Fruitful day....unless you have other plans!
Warm regards & success with creating your own Plan B,
© Patrick W. Driessen. All rights reserved.
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