#77: Not All Growth Is Good

This time of year there’s a lot of talk about plans for the new year.  We should all be deliberate about our growth plans if we can.  That means looking hard at opportunities and plans you’ve made because there are three kinds of growth.  This week I talk about all three.

 

There’s PLANNED GROWTH where you set out what you’re going to do to get to your goals.  Then there’s SERENDIPITOUS GROWTH.  These are the happy accidents and surprises that pop up along the way.  Serendipity is a shortcut.  It’s not being so rigid in what your want that you refuse something better.  Then there’s DISTRACTING GROWTH.  Distracting growth usually looks like a gift at the time but turns out to be a booby trap.  It sucks time away and consumes resources.  It’s the kind of client that pays well but has so many demands on you that you can’t make any headway on growing the business.  Distracting growth is the big new contract that keeps you working 100 hours/week right after you make a goal of spending more time with family.  Distracting growth is the kind that means you need to re-direct your budget to a new hire in a new skill when what you really need is someone for your company team not your client team.

 

In this episode:

The importance of taking a moment to get a plan together for your growth Giving yourself the flexibility to accept serendipitous changes to that plan Making sure your conscious of the danger when an opportunity comes along that moves you AWAY from your goals