Be Prepared

14 Apr Be Prepared

Be Prepared

I was speaking to one of my regular readers earlier this week. He said that a key theme in my articles is the old Scout motto “be prepared”.

Let’s talk about why being prepared is important and what it looks like.

Being prepared is important because:

• opportunities for advocacy can come unexpectedly – what happens if you need to start from scratch?
• meetings don’t always go to plan – have a plan B, C and even Z
• surprises happen – your outcomes improve when you are prepared for the unexpected

So what does being prepared look like?

• Determine your highest-level purpose and always refer back to it. This will make you more adaptable. If you are clear on your ultimate goal and ready to take different paths to reach it, great things will follow (eventually).
• Imagine as many solutions as possible: there’s no single right way to achieve your goal. This allows you to match the best solution option to the decision-maker you are dealing with. Some solutions fit one decision-maker or organisation better than the next.
• Research the person and organisation before you deal with them. Look for their values and drivers, match those to your purpose and develop the best solutions that meet your purpose and their needs.
  Your solution is more likely to be adopted and more quickly if you can meet the decision-makers’ needs as well as your own.
• Have a short explanation and summary of your ask available, as well as a list of what problems it solves for your community – on paper and verbally. This ensures that you don’t miss an opportunity – expected or unexpected.

Do you have any other ideas on why being prepared for advocacy is so important? Or what it looks like? Please feel free to reach out.

This article comes from my column entitled “Here to Help” in Hunter Local, April 2026. If you have an everyday problem just begging for a simple, real world solution, send it to “Here to Help” and let’s see what we can achieve.

Elaine Abery has a closet full of great ideas and empowering solutions. She’s also the Director of Unravelling Red Tape, a company dedicated to helping everyday people, not-for-profits and companies change the world through improved decision-making and legislation.

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash