If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Leroy Eims said: “A leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see, and who sees before others do.”
The law in detail
Four steps through the law: understand, check, connect, apply. Open any topic to read more.
The core messageWhat the law says – and what it doesn’t
If you want to reach a goal, you set the destination and the route before everyone sets off. Looking ahead costs less than correcting course halfway.
- It does not say
- That a plan removes all uncertainty. It makes deviations visible so you can adjust in time.
- That you must stick to a plan when the situation changes. Good planning expects changes of course and sets out when you will decide again.
- Strictly speaking
- “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” is a play on words, not a law of nature. The evidence shows that clear goals and concrete plans raise the chances of success – but the link is moderate and depends on the setting.
- Planning does not guarantee success, and success without a plan does happen. Concrete if-then plans are especially effective: they tie a specific situation to the next step.
- Applies to
- Every undertaking with a goal: the strategy of a company or division, building up a ministry in a church, a club’s season, a family move and your own career.
The explanationWhat the law means and why it works
At its core, this is about having a clear goal in view and charting a course to get there – for a project of your own as much as for a team, a church, a club or an entire organization.
The more people and resources are involved, the more important this law becomes. It is usually easier to plan ahead than to correct course halfway.
Whoever leads well – themselves or others – is a good navigator: they draw on past experience, examine current conditions, and make decisions based on facts rather than wishful thinking. A plan doesn’t guarantee success, but it makes it more likely – and the first step is looking back.
The signs3 signs the law is at work · 3 that it is missing
- Before a project starts, everyone involved knows the goal, the route and the main risks.
- You review finished projects and use what you learned for the next round of planning.
- You decide in advance how you will notice that the course is no longer right, and what happens then.
- The people you work with only find out along the way where things are actually headed.
- The same mistakes keep happening because nobody looks back before something new begins.
- Plans rest on wishful thinking instead of facts, bottlenecks come as a surprise every time, and the plans of different units don’t fit together.
The research4 sources: 3 reviews, 1 meta-analysis · 1994–2002 · with the limits of the research
- low
- moderate
- high
High – Goal setting, action planning and strategic planning.
- 1999Peter M. Gollwitzer
If-then plans (implementation intentions) markedly increase goal attainment.
- 2001Michael D. Mumford, Rosemary A. Schultz & Judy R. Van Doorn
Planning as performance: processes, prerequisites and common errors.
- 2002Edwin A. Locke & Gary P. Latham
Specific, difficult goals raise performance; 35 years of goal-setting research.
The link between planning and success is supported, but moderate and context-dependent. The core statement is a proverb.
The originJohn C. Maxwell · “The Law of Navigation”
- 1998OriginJohn C. Maxwell
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Law 4
- The Law of NavigationIn essence: Anyone can steer the ship, but setting the course is the leader’s job.
- todayWEGVISOR: The Law of Navigation
The WEGVISOR version recasts navigating as planning and sharpens it into the core statement “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” That statement is a proverb: research clearly supports the value of goals and plans, but their link to success is moderate and depends on context.
The related laws and qualitiesQ03 Commitment · Q05 Competence · Q21 Vision · L01 Lid
A plan only works once you commit to it. Commitment turns the route into a promise that others can rely on.
Competence shows in whether what you say can actually be done. A sound plan is the test of whether your words can be put into practice.
The vision shows the destination, the plan the way there. Without a vision the plan has no direction; without a plan the vision stays a wish.
Planning ahead is part of your leadership ability. If you only react, you hit your own lid sooner.
The action points5 stages of growth – from first awareness to passing it on
- Become aware Look back on a finished project and note what you could have known beforehand and at what point a clear course was missing.
- Lay the foundations This week, sketch the goal and a rough course with three stages for an upcoming project before you get started.
- Make it a habit Start every major initiative with the same short planning step: look back, check the conditions, state the goal in two sentences, name likely obstacles.
- Deepen deliberately Have a critical person check your plan for an important project for wishful thinking, and decide in advance which signals will make you change course.
- Pass it on For your next project, hand the course-setting to others – a colleague, a project group or, if you lead leaders, to them: let them work out the goal, stages and scenarios themselves and guide only with questions.
The reflection questions5 questions for you or a conversation with others
- Does everyone involved in our most important project know the goal and the route – or only the next task?
- What did I learn from my last finished project, and where does it feed into the next plan?
- Where am I planning with wishful thinking instead of facts, and where do I let that slide in other people’s plans?
- How will I notice early that my plan no longer holds, and who is allowed to raise the alarm?
- When did I last deliberately adjust a plan instead of stubbornly sticking to it?
Take your time with one question. Write down your answer – or talk it over with someone you trust.
The picture to rememberThe course is set before the team sets off. The golden dot follows the planned route all the way to the goal.
- The course is set before the team sets off.
- The golden dot follows the planned route all the way to the goal.
What the Law of Navigation looks like in practice
One day’s delay for history’s largest landing
For years the Allies planned Operation “Overlord,” deceived the Germans with Operation “Bodyguard” and built artificial harbors. Then bad weather pushed the attack from June 5 to June 6, 1944 – a risky but wise call.
Second balloon, second plan: escaping East Germany
Two families secretly sew a hot-air balloon to flee East Germany. On the first attempt the envelope falls short and the balloon sinks too early – instead of giving up, they analyze the mistake and build a second, stronger balloon.
Sled dogs versus motor sledges
Amundsen relied on sled dogs, Inuit techniques and supply depots; Scott on motor sledges and ponies. When Scott’s engines failed and the ponies couldn’t cope with the cold, his team hauled the load themselves – with a tragic end.
