Being Prepared

"Business is an instinctive exercise in foresight."
- Henry Luce

I was recently reading from my handy quote book, What's Next: Creating the Future Now, which was my original inspiration to start this blog, and it wasn't until just now that I decided to write on the second quote of book. As usual, I look to find how these quotes relate to both my professional and personal life, and this one suddenly hit home.

It's easy to relate to this quote professionally, implying that business is a natural element of seeing what's next, and always planning your next move. My initiatives for the last few months have been solely focussed on the foundation of the business and setting us up to be able to grow and expand without running into too many obstacles. Before looking too much further into this, it may be important to note that "business" doesn't imply success in all cases, so naturally, results may vary. It is my belief, however, that this particular quote is implying that successful businesses practice this method. Planning ahead and knowing your next move plays a big role of your potential at success. Naturally, you can't predict everything, so it's important to be able to adapt to the challenges that may come up, but if you're prepared, you stand a much better chance of accomplishing what you set out to do.

But what about personally? Would this same concept apply then? Absolutely! One of my most personally rewarding traits is being prepared. Whether going on trips and having extra supplies in case of unpredictable weather or not being able to find a good place to eat, or something as simple as going to the grocery store and knowing I got everything I needed until the next visit, being prepared provides me confidence that I'm ready for anything. I consider this personally rewarding because not only am I often able to come through for others in times of need, but I also rarely feel like I'm doing without, which makes me feel somewhat personally successful in both cases.

In either scenario, I would argue that planning ahead and being prepared is a key ingredient to being successful. As with most things, however, too much planning can hinder your ability to proceed, so be sure to exercise with caution!