Action Plan or Procrastination Plan? 

I was recently in a session with a team that had put a lot of work into their OGSM. The direction was clear, the goals were sharp, and we were ready for the next step: the action plan. Who is doing what, and by when, to deliver the necessary output and achieve the desired result?

We got to work, but I quickly noticed something happening.

The first action: develop a plan for project X. The second: draft a project plan for the new working method regarding Y. The third: work out a proposal on how to further strengthen the collaboration with partners.

Every result was a document. Every action was a preparation for a next step that still had to be taken. 

The feeling of progress without actually moving

There is a recognizable mechanism behind this. Writing a plan feels like working. That feeling is real, but the progress is not. Because reality remains unchanged. 

This is how energy gets poured into refining the system instead of actually setting the plan in motion. The paradox here is that the more concrete a plan becomes, the more room there seems to be for new plans. Every gap is filled with a preparation, not an action.

The difference between an action and a plan to plan

A real action has a result that exists outside the team. A client who has been called. A conversation that has taken place. A decision that has been made and whose impact is visible in reality.

A plan to plan has a result that exists within the team. A document, a note, a proposal. Something that is ready to be discussed, but has not yet touched reality.

The difference is not always sharp. Sometimes writing a plan is the right first step if there is truly too little clarity to act. But in many cases, enough is already clear. What is missing here is not more information or a better plan, but often the willingness to commit to something concrete whose outcome is still uncertain.

What distinguishes a good action plan

In an OGSM process, I sometimes ask the question: What is the first action that has a direct consequence for someone outside this room? 

That question can be uncomfortable when things aren't sharp enough yet. And that is exactly what it is intended for. Because an action that results in a plan is not a real action. It is a delay with a deadline.

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