“There is a plan in everything, kid, and I love it when a plan comes together.”
— John “Hannibal” Smith – A-Team
In life and politics, most of us like to plan our lives, and we hope beyond hope that the plan actually comes together. Here is experience talking—fat chance. Time to serve a wake-up call.
Despite the fact that the most painstaking details are planned, and despite the seemingly fool-proofing of a very well-developed and designed pathway, more times than not, something is bound to go wrong. In the predictably unpredictable world of politics, the day of execution will surely bring about some unplanned changes.
Buckle up and get ready.
Many of us have run campaigns, and we work with high-priced consultants and smart, experienced strategists. We plan outlines and have budget projections and forecasts. Yet, I have never been involved in a campaign that didn’t deviate from the blueprint. Things just happen.
Sometimes staff won’t live up to expectations. Sometimes the opposition research on your own candidate missed some crucial and potentially damaging points. Sometimes counted-on supporters leave the tent and are swayed by some force to head to the enemy camp or take a neutral stance. Sometimes a political calculation is just off. Sometimes unexpected and unanticipated interference crops up and collapses the confidence of a once resilient campaign. Sometimes (most), the promised fundraising falls terribly short of iron-clad promises. Sometimes the experts just get it wrong.
What do you do when the mission is compromised, and things start to run off the rails?
Be calm. Build in for human error. Budget with an understanding that money won’t come as easily as promised. Review the master plan daily and make changes and adjustments as needed. Understand that no plan is perfect, and mistakes will happen. Have some patience and have some experienced deckhands at the nerve center. Pay attention to details and try not to look like you are micromanaging as you micromanage.
Don’t ever think that you can actually achieve “mission accomplished” without fully appreciating that you will be left with mission imperfect.