Current e-Journal

Catalytic Thinking Exercise:
Planning During Uncertain Times: Which will you choose?

Each of us is creating the future, every minute of every day, whether we do so consciously or not.

That simple statement of fact leads to another simple statement of fact: We are responsible for the future we create.

Think about how we blame the people who came before us, holding them responsible for the messes our world is now facing. Young people routinely blame older generations for leaving them a world that is on fire.

WE are the ancestors that future generations will either praise or blame for the world we leave them.

WE are responsible for that future.

In these uncertain times, that responsibility is more important than ever. When future generations ask what your organization did in this pivotal moment, what will you say? Did your organization do its best to resist tyranny over people and planet? And beyond that, did your team take advantage of the current disruption to blaze a path to a more humane future?

This end-of-year time is planning season for many organizations. That means we can create plans rooted in our responsibility for the future we are creating. Those plans can consciously create what we DO want, in addition to resisting and reacting to what we do NOT want.

And that all starts with this decision:

Will you create a traditional “strategic” plan?
Or will you create a “community impact” plan?

The difference between those two approaches will determine what your plans accomplish for your community.

“Strategic” planning focuses on the actions you’ll take in the short term, in reaction to current circumstances and trends. The purpose of those reactive strategies could be about anything that can be addressed in the short term (typically 1-3 years). That could be about building a new program or about raising more money or getting board training. When you hear people complain that strategic planning doesn’t feel very strategic, that is why.

And that is because traditional strategic planning never asks the only questions that matters in any community benefit effort:

What do we want our community to be like?
And what will we do to make that a reality?

On the other hand, “community impact” planning loudly proclaims its purpose. That name says, “We are going to craft a plan to help our communities be the best they can be.”

We hope this week’s practice exercise helps you decide to try a new approach – to consciously create the future that will be celebrated by generations to come.

Because each of us is absolutely creating the future every day, with every decision we make. And this decision is the big one.