RETAILOBSERVER.COM APRIL 2019
4
Eliana Barriga
eliana@retailobserver.com
Here's to successful strategic planning!
fallback - Wiktionary: An act of falling back. Having a backup plan or contingency
strategy; an alternative which can be used if something goes wrong with the main plan; a
recourse if you will, can be imperative to survival.
Y
ou know – life happens with or without us. It gets in the way and at any time can
throw us a curve ball in the form of the unexpected. This is when we need to fall
back and assess the situation.
In life, it's always good to know where the escape routes are in case of emergency. Every
time we get on an airplane, we're told where the exits are. Sadly, when we go to a stadium
for a sporting event, concert, or even a movie theater nowadays, we have a heightened
awareness of our surroundings and we take mental note of the exits. We don't plan on
using them, but the information is filed for easy access in the back of our mind. We are
prepared to act, if the need arises.
There are times when nothing in life goes smoothly, and it is during these times that we
are often not able to access our best thinking in the moment. How often do we use our
precious brainpower to think about all the ways something won't work before we've given
it a fair chance? Planning in advance for the weaknesses of our businesses and analyzing
the most common breaking points can help us navigate in challenging times. Swapping
plans doesn't signal failure but indicates a tactical change; we're simply proving we've got
the smarts and decision-making skill set that are crucial to every area of our lives and
business. A fallback plan gives us the ability to keep moving forward on the path to success.
With Plan B in place, we can access a mind shift that allows us to fall back when the
"stuff" hits the fan. In this moment, let yourself ponder the thought: "There is no backup
plan". This exercise will put you in a proactive mental frame: "We've got to make things
happen". You're more apt to work stronger and longer when your Plan A has to work
because there's no option. Total commitment without a safety net will inspire you to work
harder than you ever dreamed.
Plan B isn't about planning to fail, it's about planning your road to success during
the difficult times. We can sleep better at night with a backup plan in place – the beauty of
Plan B is that it frees us to work our Plan A with total abandon and strategically maneuver
through the storms of life.
CREATE A
PLAN B
and work as if
you don't have one
Elle's View As I See It
APRIL 2019, VOLUME 30, ISSUE 4
CELEBRATING OUR 30
TH
YEAR
AS THE RETAIL OBSERVER
PUBLISHER/MANAGING EDITOR
E LIANA BARRIGA
DIRECTOR OF SALES AND MARKETING
MOE LASTFOGEL
ART DIRECTOR
TERRY PRICE
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
CHAD EVANS
MARIO JUAREZ
LANCE KIMBALL
ANDY KRIEGE
STEVEN MORRIS
JEFF ROSE
DENNIS SHIELDS
JOHN TSCHOHL
LIBBY WAGNER
RALPH WOLFF
DEADLINE FOR JUNE 2019 ISSUE:
MAY 1, 2019
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