There is a law of project management and business development that states that there will be four crises during the course of any project. This extends to most endeavors whether they are marketing projects, sales cycles with prospects, the relationship between sales and marketing, building a business, or even a marriage.
Stocking’s corollary to this law is that you will be responsible for at least one of those crises. You can’t get along with your new boss, so in a fit, you decide to quit. You didn’t get the resources for your project that you were promised, so you give up on the project, not directly, but in your heart. Your budget get’s spent on sales and not marketing or visa versa. You couldn’t get financing for your new company, and you blame your CFO. Whatever it is that disappoints you or doesn’t meet your expectations, you will be the cause of the crisis. You will be the problem.
Why? There are lot’s of reasons; we are human, we have pride, egos, anger, seek control, respond to fear in irrational but very human ways. But it doesn’t matter. Trying to figure this out would be like trying to figure out why you weren’t potty trained properly. The real question is what are you going to do about it? Do you really want to burn down the house because you don’t like the color of the walls? Is the color that bad?
The difference in the success of many projects, campaigns or relationships, is resilience and persistence. The ability to step back, take stock and find another solution and keep on going. Because if the goal, or the project, or the people were worthy to start with, then they are worthy of another chance. Accomplishing great and important things is hard.
I am reminded of this when the foreman of a group of Chilean miners trapped underground without much hope of ever being rescued, organizes his men into work crews to keep them busy, uses lights to simulate day and night, then arranges the space for sleeping and working out.
I’m not saying there aren’t bad marriages, stupid projects, unreasonable management or reluctant investors. Sometimes you should take the alternative. However there is value in taking time, gathering perspective, understanding constraints and another person’s point of view. The most successful people know this fine line. Know when to push on and when not to. Know whether the house is burning, or their burnt toast has set off the fire alarm, or whether just to repaint the walls.
There is also another way to address this issue. In the musical sense, when you burn the house down, it means that you have played out of your mind, given an exceptionally performance and gotten everyone dancing. If you’re in doubt, try this approach first. Try doing exceptional work.