Sunday, September 11, 2011

Having a PLAN B!!

Greetings Happy People,

If you are organizing an Area, Division, or District Toastmasters Contest, and are worried about how things will go, I have the following story that took place in the Spring of 2006.

Back then, I served as a first-year Area Governor and was getting ready to host my Area level contest.

Two months earlier, I secured a venue to hold my contest. At that time I asked if someone was going to open the doors, they said that they scheduled “Sharon” to open the doors for me that day.

One month before the contest, I asked the same question, they gave the same answer.

As I did my own walkthrough the day before the contest, I asked the same people if “Sharon” was going to open the doors for me tomorrow at 3:00pm. They said no problem.

On the day of my contest, I encountered problems. It was Saturday afternoon. The outside temperature was 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The time was 3:00pm and “Sharon” did not show up to open the doors.

3:00pm became 3:30pm – no “Sharon” in sight.

3:30pm became 4:00pm – still no “Sharon” in sight.

4:00pm became 4:30pm – Sharon STILL has not arrived. At this time 40 people including myself were waiting out in the cold for her to open up the doors. It was at that point I decided to look for a PLAN B.

Fortunately, a friend of mine named Deecie offered her house to have the Area Contest. Making a BIG game time decision, I accepted the offer!!

As I was driving over to Deecie’s house, I was disheartened and disappointed with the people at the venue. I was going to feel hot-headed, but I was too cold to even do that. After all, I did stay outside in 40 degree weather for 90 minutes!!

When I got to Deecie’s house, I saw about 10 people at her place. But before I believe this contest was a complete disaster, 30 more people showed up!! These were the same people that waited in the cold with me at the other place.

Talk about your miraculous moment!!

Despite what was thrown at us, we STILL had a successful contest that day!!

This story is an example on how something can STILL turn out good, despite the odds.

How was the miracle pulled off? I had a PLAN B!! Imagine if I thought things in a one-track mind. I would have experienced disastrous results!!

It is always good to have a backup plan when things go awry. One of my favorite things to say is the following:

"If PLAN A doesn’t work, go for PLAN B up your sleeve. If PLAN B doesn’t work, go for PLAN C in your back pocket, If PLAN C doesn’t work, go for PLAN D in your shoe."

People with different game plans are more likely to get results done. No matter the situation, they always find a way to make things successful. They always find a way to get to their goals.

So if YOU are ready to get to where you want to go, make sure you have backup plans for your journey. It will come in handy in the long run!!

That is all I have for now. Thank you for your time and attention.

Sincerely,

Jesse I-I-I

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