Giving up is failure. Pivoting is not. Quitting is failure. Pivoting is creating a new plan.

If I had a nickel for every time I screamed “”pivot!” in my head right now, I would be living large!

For my “Friends” fans out there…do you remember that scene when Ross was trying to get the couch up the stairs screaming “PIVOT!”  I see that in my head almost every day.

Every business owner, entrepreneur and working mom I know is batting the same thing right now.  All of our plans are out the window.  Our usual way of life has been yanked from us.  I am staring ahead into June with a sense of panic forming.  Summer camps? Cancelled.  Neighborhood pool?  No clue if it is opening.  Endless days of summer with nothing to do and nowhere to go.  However, somehow I need to keep my business moving forward and my daughter entertained and engaged in something.  What I had planned for June is no longer possible.

PIVOT!

Now here is the tricky part.  You need to recognize and understand that pivot is NOT failure.  Pivot is simply acknowledging that plan A is not going to happen and it is time to adjust.  

When this pandemic started, I had to cancel the launch of my best selling program.  My favorite program.  Cancelling this launch had a massive ripple effect in my entire business.  It meant all of my planned content was no longer relevant, my revenue goals would not be met, and I needed to replace all of that work with something that did not exist yet.

My goals were the same…but the plan I put in place was no longer the right one.  My initial thought was one of failure.  I felt defeated. 

I had two choices. Give up….or pivot.  Giving up is failure.  Pivoting is not giving up.  Quitting is failure.  Pivoting is creating a new plan.  So, I created a new plan.  It has been bumpy…it isn’t as organized as I like, and some days are better than others.  

If you set goals for yourself for 2020 and you feel like they are slipping away, ask yourself this question:  Have your goals changed?  I’m not asking you to look at the plan…just the goal.  Has your goal really changed?  Chances are it hasn’t.  What HAS changed…or needs to change…is the path to get you there.

Embrace the pivot!  Use it as a reason to try new things.  Don’t overthink it.  If this Type-A, overplanner can adjust and learn to “wing it” a little, so can you!