How to abandon your best-laid plans
The strategy session was going great. Until it wasn’t.
The activity you planned took longer than expected. People’s eyes are glazing over. You can tell they’re itching to check their phones. In fact, your nerves are making you wish you could check your phone.
You perfected your plan, but it isn’t going… to plan.
It’s time to pivot.
Embracing improv
Pivoting requires improvisation, and successful improvisation requires preparation, anticipation, and practice. Like a musician who can riff on a theme, a good facilitator has mapped out all the ways their plan might go differently, so they can "play the right notes" when the moment demands it.
In other words, to facilitate an effective professional experience, you need to plan… to abandon your plan.
Here’s the good news: there are some moves you can make before you even step into a room to make pivoting easier when the time comes.
The turning point
We’ve all experienced that moment when we’ve realized our plan is not going to work.
- The energy in the room is low. You’re starting to see some yawning. The chatter during discussion is waning. You need to infuse some new energy into the moment.
- People need more time. You thought 30 minutes would be enough, but as the clock nears a half hour, you see people scribbling away, focused and invested in the activity.
- Something you planned just isn’t right for the group. You planned for a whole-group discussion but have discovered that this group thrives when they’re talking in more intimate configurations.
So, what do you do?
How to turn the tide
These are the moments when it can feel intimidating to change course.
But here’s the trick: if you anticipate these moments, you can plan ahead to make pivoting in real-time feel less spontaneous.
First and foremost, you have to embrace the mindset that changing course is not a failure–it’s a strength. You’re working with humans, after all! And people are predictably unpredictable.
To meet people’s needs, you have to be attentive to the dynamics in the room and be willing to stray from your plan. As a facilitator, your goal isn’t to act out a script. It’s to enable a group to achieve their purpose, and it’s far easier to do that if you plan ahead for all sorts of contingencies so that you can respond to the group in the moment.
Three ways to plan your pivot
- Identify key moments where adjustments can be made without derailing the entire flow. Mark these "flex zones" so you know where time can be shaved or extended.
- Example: If a roundtable discussion is scheduled for 60 minutes but could go down to 45 minutes without sacrificing quality, mark that as a potential area to flex as needed.
- Build in buffer time. Add intentional time between activities without jeopardizing the experience. Label these slots as breaks or extended small-group discussion time that you may not need to use.
- Example: Allocate 10 minutes after an intensive brainstorming session to allow for reflection or informal conversations before transitioning to the next activity.
- Have backup options ready. If you know a particular activity might pose a risk, such as running long or getting unfocused, then be ready to execute an alternative approach.
- Example: A whole-group discussion has turned into a free-for-all. Pause the group and pivot to a structured approach like discussion “rounds” where each person shares one key thought in succession, or a silent feedback exercise where participants write their input on sticky notes and group them by themes.
Ask for the group’s input
Tell people why you’re choosing to shift and tie that choice back to the overall purpose of your experience. Ask for the group’s consent before you move ahead.
- Example: “It seems like we’re on the precipice of an important breakthrough, so I’m going to shift things around to give us more time to extend this conversation. The trade-off is that we won’t have as much time for our afternoon brainstorm. Does that trade-off feel right?”
We want to hear from you!
The next time you’re designing a professional experience, try these techniques out and let us know what’s working for you and your team.
And if you need more help, we offer tailored partnerships to help you create experiences that inspire. Reach out to learn more about the opportunity.
