I tend towards a try it, do it, fix it mentality. My wife says my mode is ready-fire-aim. One of my business colleagues used to quote General George Patton who S. said . . .
“A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.”
And another of my favorites, this one attributed to Sam Ewing, says . . .
“On the plains of hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, at the dawn of decision, sat down to wait, and waiting died.”
Is this right? Should we plunge into things quickly? With reckless abandon? Should we go big or go home? Or should we focus on steady plodding?
The obvious answer is . . . it depends.
In war, in business, and in most anything involving competition, speed and surprise are key. In areas of personal discipline and growth, leaping out (or leaping in) seldom gets us where we want to go. If we go on a mad, foodless fast to lose weight, the pounds will come right back as soon as we resume eating as we have in the past. Far better to make small changes to what and how much we eat and keep at it. Creep out. Don’t leap out.
Regi Campbell, author of this blog, has written for Discipleship·org a eBook called Fill Your Seats, which is available for free digital download in your favorite format here.
Some business startups must leap out. If there’s a plant to be built or a substantial investment required for infrastructure or information technology, then it’s a leap out proposition for sure. But if a business isn’t capital intensive and can grow on the personal knowledge and skill of the entrepreneur, then creeping out is a whole lot smarter than raising (or borrowing) a bunch of money to go for it all at once.
If you think you’d like to learn guitar, buy a used one (or at least something inexpensive) to get started. Then reward yourself with a nicer one when you know you like playing and can actually play a few tunes. That’s creeping out.
The most significant source of stress is the lack of time. Trying to do things in a hurry creates stress. I can find no evidence of Jesus ever being in a hurry. It seems he was content to invest in twelve guys (and focus on three in an even more intense way) to affect the biggest movement the world has ever seen. I think Jesus invented creep out, don’t leap out!
Scripture: The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. (Proverbs 21:5)
Written by Regi Campbell, originally posted on Radical Mentoring’s blog here. Used by permission.
Regi Campbell grew up in a small-town church. He’s belonged to congregations in multiple cities and gotten to know a quite a few pastors and churches. For the past twenty-three years, he’s been a part of one of America’s largest churches, Andy Stanley’s North Point Community Church serving as an Elder twice and in other leadership roles. His first three books—About My Father’s Business, Mentor Like Jesus, and What Radical Husbands Do—speak to business people, mature men, and husbands respectively. Campbell now speaks to Senior Pastors, Staff Pastors, and leaders in the local church, sharing what he’s learned about creating interest in discipleship and disciple making.
Regi is the Founder and Chairman of Radical Mentoring, a nonprofit focused on equipping and encouraging churches to build disciples and disciple makers through intentional men’s small group mentoring. Regi believes the future of the local church is intimately connected to the development of strong Jesus-following lay leaders who will lead their wives, children, businesses, neighborhoods, and churches with God at the center.
Photo by Bruno Nascimento on Unsplash