Flashback to very early in my career. I had an idea (it was a good one) to do something different. In my mind it was a “game changer” and would make things better. I went (charged) into my supervisor’s office at the appointed time, paid no attention to what was going on in her world and laid out my idea. I had excitement and enthusiasm. But I laid an egg. She said “no” and it wasn’t one of those responses where I thought I could bring it up again. It was a clear, definite and forever “no.”

Flash forward about 15 years in my career as I prepared for my meeting with our CEO. I gathered up my pile of folders that measured about 3 inches. Why did I have so much information?

• I had progress report information to respond to items I knew he wanted to talk about.
• I had questions for him that only he could answer, and we couldn’t proceed without his direction.
• I had updates on what my division was working on that was important for him to be aware of.
• I had information about a new initiative my team wanted to pursue, based on what they had heard him talk about in a town hall meeting. (I was expecting a “green light” since he brought it up.)
• I had information about three new initiatives that I believed were important for us to move on.

The start of our meeting was more conversational than in my youth as I first wanted to learn what was going on in his world as our CEO, what his pressure points were. Why? Because my role was to make his job easier, so it was all about him. The initial part of our meeting gave me a glimpse of him on that day, which is very important. From our initial conversation I could tell if it was a day he was only looking for a quick update, short and brief. I could tell if he was in a talkative and conversational mood or was it a day when he was ready to share wisdom. Then I began my report. It might take a couple of meetings before the timing was right to bring up any of those three new initiatives. While they were important, I waited and brought them up when the timing was right and it helped address what was on his mind.

My team wasn’t always happy with me, they expected me to push more things forward so they could get started. Yet in waiting for the right time, my success rate of getting approval was very high.

If you want more success in finding the right time, here are three things I’ve learned the hard way.

Right idea, but no one is ready – You may have the gift of seeing a trend, or of quickly identifying solutions to problems. Your solution may be 100% correct yet fail completely if the people who are impacted aren’t ready. It’s like gardening, you must prepare the soil first so that it’s ready to receive the plant. While I’m not perfect at doing it, I work much harder at going slowly and bringing others along with me. Sometimes, if I’m slow enough, they even think it’s their idea, which helps them accept and move forward. It might hurt my pride because I want the credit, but the important thing is helping them to be ready.

The perfect plan – Sometimes people look for a “perfect” time, which doesn’t happen. They analyze, discuss, analyze and discuss it to death. I’m analytical by nature and have perfectionistic tendencies, so I’ve done this. Luckily, I learned from a friend of mine, Lisa, who used to remind me, 80% moving forward is better than 100% standing still. If you get to 80% ready, you are ready.

Be prepared – You can miss the right time because you aren’t prepared. If you want to move something forward, prepare. Have the information ready to address concerns, a timeline on how to move forward, resources needed, etc. Be ready when it’s time.

 But these things I plan won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day! Habakkuk 2:3 (TLB)