Stuck in Second Gear

E veryone's been there. Whether stalled in a sales slump or circling the corporate ladder, you find yourself questioning decisions and concept choices, beating your head against the wall just trying to get from point B to point C.

This phenomenon even has been given a law of management moniker by Harvard Business School Professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter. She classifies it this way: "Everything looks like failure in the middle." Whether it be a new presentation approach, a repackaging of products or a reshuffling of sales staff, every change hits the wall before it goes over. Some just take a little longer than others to reach fruition. The trick is not bailing before letting it become a bona fide success.

Consider the following tips before tossing in the towel:

Laugh at Murphy's Law. Yes, things do go wrong sometimes, but admitting defeat too soon solidifies failure. Keep smiling. Take a Second Look. Every cloud changes shape as it streams across the sky. So too must your plan if you're not achieving the original goal. Re-examine strategies. Re-evaluate time frames. Re-energize. Make over the Mission. Now that you've done the re-evaluation and have put together of list of what's working and what's not, it's time to apply. You've got the basic good bone structure. All it will take is educated enhancement. A makeover will not only make your project look good and feel good, it will blast you out of that miserable, stuck-in-the-middle position. Let Go. The smart professional is prepared to relinquish conceptual steps or selected presentation paths for alternatives, if it means getting that much closer to the finish line. The more rigidly you hold on to one idea, the more susceptible that idea is to snapping. Stay flexible. Be Realistic. Unless you've been gifted with powers to see the future, it's impossible to predict the outcome of your project. Accept it, especially if it involves something you've never attempted before and you have nothing to base results upon. Dreams have great merit. Reality checks keep those dreams in the main. Keep the Body in Motion. No matter what obstacle appears in the road, the worst thing to do is shut off your engine. Lose momentum, no matter how minimal, and it will take double the effort just to restart the process. Feet, don't fail you now. Ignore the Naysayers. There's always someone ready to say, "I told you so." Tell them this: "I'm an exceptional person with extraordinary talent. This is a minor setback on the road to a major accomplishment." That should shut 'em up for a while. Surround yourself with supporters. Start the Party Early. Where is it written that you can only celebrate at the end of the day? Why not treat yourself to a mid-project mini-celebration? You've come this far. With the right toast and the right tone, you'll get out of slow gear and into high gear. Then get ready to gun it to the checkered flag.