Why “Following the Plan” Kills Movements Before They Start 

Every meaningful political movement begins with improvisation disguised as vision.

 

No great movement was built by people who “stayed on plan.” In fact, most movements die the moment they become overplanned.

 

Here’s why:

 

• A plan is static. A movement is alive.

• A plan assumes conditions will stay stable. A movement understands conditions will change.

• A plan asks you to follow the steps. A movement asks you to see the moment.

 

Early in this campaign, I was still trying to treat it like a traditional congressional run. I had spreadsheets, timelines, content calendars, lists of what to do on which day. I thought discipline meant sticking to the plan no matter what the moment demanded.

 

Then the moment shifted because it always does.

 

People showed up unexpectedly. Neighborhood needs changed quickly. Narratives evolved. Opportunities emerged that didn’t exist the day before. Crises happened that weren’t in the plan.

 

If I had stuck to the plan, I would have missed everything that mattered.

 

Movements are built by leaders who respond to the terrain in front of them, not the terrain they imagined months ago on a whiteboard.

 

It turns out the only real plan is to be ready to pivot. Be ready to listen. Be ready to seize the moment. And never confuse preparation with rigidity.

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