So you're thinking of taking an extended break from work/life. What's the worst that can happen?

Blow your budget. Lose your job when you get back. Get sick. Get "taken" but your dad is not Liam Neeson (I know some of y'all feel this!) Not able to make any friends where you're going…etc, etc, etc.

Bad things can & might happen. I say this not to scare you off from doing it, but rather to be real with you. And, the best way to stay chill and flexible in bad situations is to have already faced it before it happens. That's right - face your fears before they actually happen.

How? With scenario planning!

What is scenario planning:

A strategic tool that helps us plan for the future. The goal is to create multiple possible future scenarios and develop strategies to prepare for each. Originally, it was a military strategy for planning and preparing for different outcomes. They simulated different scenarios (think: war games) and devised strategies for future conflicts before they happened. Nowadays, scenario planning is widely used in multiple industries.

And, it occasionally pops up in my living room to help answer the ‘what could possibly go wrong’ question in my personal life.

One common way to visualize scenarios is through a 2 by 2 matrix (the start of one can be seen in the image above). This matrix helps to categorize scenarios into four quadrants, based on two different factors. Both factors must be critical and uncertain in order for scenario planning to really work. In my case above, the two critical uncertainties were 1) Health: will we get Covid?, and 2) Money: will we spend more than planned?.

Preparing for scenario planning would look something like this:

One of your factors ends up on the X-axis. The other is on the Y-axis. And you then proceed to label the polarities. Ex: Let's say Health was on the X-axis. The far left X end could be labeled 'Covid Positive' and the far right X end could be labeled "Covid Negative". You do the same for the Y-axis (Money) and you will end up with 4 different futures. All of them possible.

All 4 quadrants will look and feel different. Add character to them. "Live" in the worlds, even if it’s just in your imagination. What will it really mean for you if you got sick and blew your budget? "Living" in these imagined worlds allows us to anticipate and work towards mitigating the problems before they actually arise (if they ever do!).

You get the gist of it.  Now, back to sabbaticals.

For a big change, like a sabbatical, there are SO many things to run through scenario planning. Run as many of these as you can think of. I recommend drafting a long list of critical uncertainties and start pairing them up as it makes sense. As an example, I considered the fact that my phone has so much personal data on it - what happens if I lose it, or if it gets stolen? As a strategy, I ended up packing two phones - my main one, and a backup. Never did lose one, but it was great to have this peace of mind knowing that if I did, it was OK, because I have a plan.

This is what scenario planning is all about. Facing your fears before they become reality. Thinking through all the possible ways something could go wrong. Through this exploration, you're mentally primed for unexpected circumstances, and you're able to react in a calmer, more confident manner to resolve the problem.

Look - stuff happens, c’est la vie. And you have to remain chill. Be cool. Use scenario planning. When you think about it - it is the very opposite of chill - because you’re secretly spending time in advance, conspiring all the possible scenarios that can happen, but nobody needs to know or see that! All they see is you being prepared for the best AND the worst possible outcomes. Tell me what’s more reassuring than that?

A bientot!

Milena