Isn’t it fascinating how different we experience time and scheduling across the world?
As I walked around Damascus, Syria this difference got me thinking.
One of my favourite books - The Culture Map by Erin Meyer - places countries on the linear vs flexible time scale, as you’ll see below. With the Netherlands quite far on the linear time side of the spectrum, it always takes a while for me to land and adapt to flexible time cultures.
Even though I keep telling myself I want to find a healthy middle ground between the spontaneity of the Levant and the reliable planning of The Netherlands when I return home after spending the past weeks in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, I know this is easier said than done.
Simply because there’s this inherent tension between craving certainty and predictability versus the need and space to respond to reality flexibly.
Though, I think both sides of the spectrum can learn a thing or two from each other in work settings.
Rigid planning protects you from chaos but makes you fragile when contexts shift. Complete flexibility keeps you responsive but leaves you reacting instead of acting. The organizations that adapt best know which parts of their work need structure and which need space.
Most purpose-driven orgs lean heavily toward planning (understandably so as donors and boards expect certainty). But when the context changes faster than your planning cycles, those detailed plans become anchors.
Enter the planning audit
If you want to experiment with finding a balance between certainty and responsiveness, a planning audit is a good method to start with.
Here’s how it works.
Pick a project or initiative you’re currently planning and ask yourself and your colleagues:
What parts must be fixed? What is non-negotiable?
What parts could remain flexible so we can adapt and respond when the context changes?
What assumptions are we making about the future?
What signals would tell us we need to adapt?
Enjoy the conversation!
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Hi, I’m Kelly Indira Buis. With The Adaptation Company I am a strategic partner to purpose-driven orgs worldwide to help shape how they adapt and deliver.
