Video lesson
The path from A to B is rarely a straight line. Along the way, you’re likely to encounter any number of setbacks that threaten to upend even the best-laid plans. But the more you’re prepared to roll with the punches, the easier it will be to manage life’s many twists and turns.
Reflection questions
- How do you typically respond when things don’t go according to plan?
- How can you nurture a more flexible attitude?
- What risks do you face that may make achieving your goal more difficult? How do you plan to mitigate those risks?
Exercise: Create a Risks & Mitigations Plan
A Risks & Mitigations Plan can help you anticipate and adapt to potential problems along your journey. Here’s how it works:
Step 1: Identify potential risks — Consider what potential risks could impact your plans. If you’re buying a new house, it could be a spike in interest rates that jacks up your mortgage payments. If you’re launching a new food truck business, it could be new regulations limiting where you can park.
Step 2: Assess the risks — For each risk scenario you’ve identified, think about what the consequence will be if it occurs, how likely it is to occur and how bad the impact will be if it does occur. This will help you prioritize which risks to focus on and dedicate resources toward averting.
Step 3: Determine how to mitigate the risks — What actions can you take to prevent the risk from happening? And if you can’t stop it from happening, what contingency plans can you implement to minimize impacts?
Of course, there will always be curveballs you don’t anticipate. But hopefully this exercise will get you thinking about what potential potholes you may encounter in the road ahead and how to respond when you hit one.
Tools and tips from around the web
6 ways to develop adaptability in the workplace and embrace change
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Improvise, adapt, overcome: Your how-to guide for an ever-changing world
How to Make a Risk Management Plan
7 Steps to Write a Risk Management Plan For Your Next Project (With Free Template!)
Adaptability in the Workplace: Benefits and Importance
Why adaptability is the key skill needed for change
Why We Need to Learn to Let Go and Adapt If We Want to Be Happy
Embrace Flexibility to Create Positive Change
