Why is anticipation important?
Imagine this scenario: you are in a nice boat on a river, rowing slowly downstream, enjoying the ride, and admiring the beautiful scenery and landscapes around you. Everything seems perfect, and there’s no reason to worry.
In the distance, you hear a powerful sound, but you remain engaged with the landscape, rowing in a relaxed manner. As the river begins to flow more rapidly, you feel a bit more tense; however, since you’re still safe, you continue to enjoy the ride.
Suddenly, the river’s current becomes aggressive, and you start to lose control. At this point, you realize you must take action, or the situation will worsen. But it's too late—Niagara Falls is right before you.
What options do you have?
You can row furiously to reach one of the riverbanks, or you can brace yourself for the fall, hoping for survival because no better option is available.
However, if you had anticipated this scenario upstream, you could have made informed decisions about when to stop the ride and which options were available. This foresight would have allowed you to make a strategic decision.
Now, you are left to deal with what is directly in front of you. You must accept the circumstances as they are and hope to survive.
This illustrates the power of anticipation. If you clarify what is important to you in advance and determine your priorities, you will know how to make decisions in both business and life.
If you fail to do this and become distracted by life's scenery, you may find yourself facing your own version of Niagara Falls.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with that—you could survive. You have survived before. But at what cost? You may have wasted time, energy, and resources, forcing you to rebuild from where you were five years ago.
And wasting time is never enjoyable.