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March   28th

COWARDICE   AS  A   DESIGN  PROBLEM

“Life   without a   design  is  erratic.    As  soon    as  one is  in  place,  principles  become  necessary.  I   think

you’ll  concede that    nothing is  more    shameful    than    uncertain   and wavering    conduct,    and beating a

cowardly    retreat.    This    will    happen  in  all our affairs unless  we  remove  the faults  that    seize   and

detain  our spirits,    preventing  them    from    pushing forward and making  an  all-out effort.”

—SENECA,    MORAL   LETTERS,    95.46

he opposing team comes out strong, establishes an early lead, and you never had time to recover. You
walk into a business meeting, are caught off guard, and the whole thing goes poorly. A delicate
conversation escalates into a shouting match. You switched majors halfway through college and had to
start your coursework over and graduate late. Sound familiar?
It’s the chaos that ensues from not having a plan. Not because plans are perfect, but because people
without plans—like a line of infantrymen without a strong leader—are much more likely to get
overwhelmed and fall apart. The Super Bowl–winning coach Bill Walsh used to avoid this risk by
scripting the beginning of his games. “If you want to sleep at night before the game,” he said in a lecture
on game planning, “have your first 25 plays established in your own mind the night before that. You can
walk into the stadium and you can start the game without that stress factor.” You’ll also be able to ignore a
couple of early points or a surprise from your opponent. It’s irrelevant to you—you already have your
marching orders.
Don’t try to make it up on the fly. Have a plan.