The best, absolute best, part of any video game is leveling up. You do a bunch of “stuff”, gain enough of “something” and level up. You become bigger, better, and stronger. And from there, you get “points” that you can spend to further your development. Points that can make you smarter, and stronger, make old tasks easier to accomplish, and give new ones a better chance at success. It’s the same in life, except you…
Don’t leave a meeting not sure what you are supposed to do next. Don’t leave a meeting knowing people who attended are not sure what to do next. Don’t attend a meeting if you’re not sure what it’s about or whether you need to be there. None of this is being rude (unless you’re being rude), it’s about holding yourself, your teams, and your meetings to a higher standard.
You didn’t sign up for it. You didn’t ask for it. In some cases, you probably didn’t even want it and avoided it as much as you can. But here you are, on that path, that unintended path. And you have two options; Make it the path you want to be on. Sit until you’re able to do #1. It’s okay to start with #2, but it’s not okay to stay there. The longer you…
Your field is your job, your role, your team, what you do, what you deliver, what you bring to the table each and every day. You are the expert of your own field. You are the one best positioned to answer questions and figure out where to go next. You. No one else. You are the Expert of One, and that’s where it starts, believing that and knowing that.
Not when the plan will change, but know that the plan WILL change. It will change, and you will have to adjust and roll with it. Give yourself slush time, space, confidence, etc in all your estimates. And work from there. But go in, knowing this will change and you will have to adapt – that is the first step to not being controlled and beholden to the plan.