A Change of Perspective with The Look-ahead Strategy

When at work, it's often easy to fall into the trap of thinking - this is a drag, I'm not getting anywhere, when's Happy Hour, etc. When failing at a task, it's even easier to feel frustrated and lose confidence. But here's a little trick; a perspective-based method I like to call The Look-ahead Strategy.

Before I go into that, however, the Chinese New Year holiday has passed, and I'd like to share a tale of a time when I was far more financially strapped than I am now. Back then, whenever Chinese New Year arrived, there would be a hefty chunk of change involved. I would need to scrape together enough money to give each of my parents a huge Ang Pow (for those unfamiliar with Chinese culture, it's a red packet containing money, given to people for good luck) and when my nephew arrived into this world, that was another Ang Pow to budget for. Not to mention shelling out the cash for reunion dinners. You see how Chinese New Year could get a little expensive?

Ang Pows!

So for a web developer who was earning maybe three grand a month, this was a bit of a problem. I would have to gather about one thousand Singapore dollars when Chinese New Year arrived, and it was a lot of money to let go of at one go.

And one day, I just got tired of it.

I decided that instead of stressing myself out over that expense a couple months before every Chinese New Year, I would prepare for the next Chinese New Year during this Chinese New Year. I took on side projects that paid a few hundred or even a thousand dollars each time. Every time I received payment, I would put aside the money in the Ang Pows and label them - "Father (CNY 2014)", "Mother (CNY 2014)", "Nephew (CNY 2015)", and so on. These Ang Pows would be left in the drawer so that when Chinese New Year came, I could just use those Ang Pows, with the money already tucked inside them. With the money out of sight and therefore out of mind, I wouldn't need to worry about accidentally spending it. No more stress!

Did it work?

Well, yes, and no. Yes because I did manage to accumulate enough money to execute my plan. At one point, I even managed to accumulate three Chinese New Years' worth of Ang Pows! Yep, three thousand bucks.

And No, because the plan worked a little too well. I somehow forgot I had all that money stashed away, and out of sheer habit, started panicking around Chinese New Year. I did eventually manage to scrape together enough cash... but months later when I discovered the Ang Pows in my drawer, still neatly labelled for that Chinese New Year, boy did I feel like an utter fool. Talk about outsmarting yourself!

Ahem. About that Look-ahead thing...

Right. The Look-ahead Strategy. This brings me to my next point. I was able to accumulate that cash because I changed my perspective. Instead of using a few months to worry about Chinese New Year 2015, for example, I would start preparing for Chinese New Year 2015 during Chinese New Year 2014.

Looking ahead.

At some point, I started applying this strategy to my workplace; indeed, to every other thing I was failing at.

If I'm not having a good time at the workplace, if I'm screwing up and things aren't going well, I just need to stop thinking of it as simply work. It's not just work. I am actively training myself for my next job.

If I fail at a tech interview or don't think I did well, a change of perspective is required. I need to approach each interview with the mindset that this is not just an interview - it's practice for the next interview.

If a little side project of mine fails, again, it's practice for when I do succeed.

See what I mean? The point here is to adjust your perspective. Do not think of whatever you're doing as a task in and as of itself. It's also preparation for the next time you have to perform this very same task. That way, you'll know for sure that you're exactly where you need to be right now. Your suffering isn't for nothing; all that frustration serves a purpose in the larger picture.

But...!

In order for this to work, you need to let go of the notion that you have to succeed in anything right away. There is value in the journey, not just the destination.

You have to stop thinking of that job interview as a must-score. Remember, it's practice. You'll get a job eventually - this is just a trial run.

You have to stop thinking of the company that you may be working in, as the one you are going to spend the rest of your life in. (In fact, you should disabuse yourself of that notion even if you don't plan to use The Look-ahead Strategy, because in this day and age, spending more than a few years in one company is fast becoming a thing of the past. But I digress...)

You're allowed to fail. You're allowed not to be perfect. Failure is only temporary. Failure can have value. With The Look-ahead Strategy, you're always winning - one baby step at a time.

Eyes on the prize, champ!
T___T