Lessons from a Broken Rain Gauge

In this episode, we're going to talk about the importance of planning and executing in both life and business. I want to share a little story with you about rain gauges, yes, rain gauges. Every year, my wife and I buy a rain gauge in October to measure the rainfall we get through the winter. The problem is, we usually forget to dump out the water before it freezes and the rain gauge ends up cracking. So, we spend a few dollars on a cheap gauge that we can only use a couple of times before it's useless.

But this year, we decided to be proactive. We bought a rain gauge in June because it had been raining a lot and we wanted to measure the rainfall. However, our plan didn't go as expected. Our dog got hold of it and chewed it into pieces. It was frustrating, but it taught us a valuable lesson. No matter how well we plan, things can often go awry.

Planning isn't always fun, but it is necessary. I enjoy planning, but sometimes I get so caught up in the planning phase that I forget to actually execute. And that's where the real progress happens. Planning will take you far, but only if you take action on those plans.

Now, let's go back to the rain gauge example. We could spend hours thinking about the perfect time to buy it, the safest place to put it, and all the potential obstacles we might face. But if we never actually buy the rain gauge, we'll never know how much rain we're getting. Instead, we need to make a plan, take action, and adjust as we go along. If it doesn't work out, we try again with a different approach.

This principle applies to both life and business. We need to make plans, execute on them, learn from what didn't work, and make adjustments. It's a cycle of facing challenges, growing through them, and eventually mastering them. It's all about embracing challenges, learning from them, and becoming the best version of ourselves.

So, remember, you've got this. Make your plans, execute on them, and face every challenge with determination. It's through facing challenges that we grow and become masters of our own lives. So, go out there and do good work!