Have a plan, even if it's on the palm of your hand

By Art Gillis

I still can't get Spring Break off my mind, even though I am hard at work now. But I can justify the diversion because of the lessons I keep learning no matter where I am. I spent a lot of time on the beaches of South Florida last week, and after my swimming-for-joy in the blue/green water of the Atlantic, it was a good time to see what was going on. By the way, my wife and I sneaked away because I had a perfect window. If I knew it was Spring Break though, I would have waited. I hate young people because I'm old now. But watching the touch football contests taught me lots of lessons. Here's one. Two vs. Two. They looked like ordinary 20-year-olds, except for one kid. Whenever his "team" had the ball, he would map out a play on the palm of his hand for the "rest of the team." My initial reaction was, "Cut the crap willya, as if a play will make a difference among a 2-guy team in the sand." If it were me, I would have left it at "go long" or "go short" or "cut to the surf" or "cut to those chicks watching us." After about 20 plays, I ate a little crow. The kid's plays scored about 18 times. If I were a corporate recruiter, I would have hired the kid to report for work the day after graduation. He had a plan, he took it seriously, and it worked. And he made sure the rest of his "team" got the credit. The joy he demonstrated after each score was better than watching my Red Sox win the World Series.

Have a plan, no matter how modest it might be, and don't worry if the Harvard Business School wouldn't approve. You'll love the direction it sends you in and the success it can produce.