What Could Possibly Go Wrong? - RV Business Coach
August 5, 2021

What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

It seemed simple enough: just make some hot dogs and hamburgers. But it didn't go as planned.In this video I'll describe what happened, how we reacted, and what it means for you.

Spoiler Alert:

Has 2021 gone as planned for you? Or has it been like our simple meal of hot dogs and hamburgers? It seemed so simple at the start: 2020 was FINALLY behind us, and we could move on.

But did we? or did the first half of 2021 feel an awfully lot like 2021?

Even though 2021 is over halfway gone, it's not too late to make 2021 your best year yet! Check out https://go.RVBusinessCoach.com/2021

Transcript


This is a really simple meal… just hot dogs and hamburgers. What could possibly go wrong?

It’s probably common knowledge that you should never say (or think) “what could possibly go wrong?” Lest you find out.

But probably more important than experiencing stuff going wrong is how we react to it. Hi, I’m Don Downs of RV Business Coach, and today I’m going to share the story of Saturday night dinner on our last camping trip:

  • What happened
  • How we reacted
  • Why it matters to you.

We’d planned a simple meal: hot dogs and hamburgers. Easy enough, right? Just plop them on the grill and cook them. What could go wrong?

But when we got out the grill, we discovered we didn’t have any charcoal. We decided that by the time we went to the nearest store, bought charcoal, and got back to the campsite, supper would be too late. So, on to the backup plan…

In addition to our charcoal grill, I have a small tabletop gas grill. I found this grill in my parents’ garage after my dad died, and using it brings back many fond memories of family camping when I was growing up.

So I got out the grill, connected a cylinder, and lit it. While I was strolling around the campsite, waiting for it to preheat, I suddenly heard my kids yelling, “Dad! Dad! The grill! Look at the grill!”

Flames were shooting up from where the propane bottle connects to the regulator. Fortunately, I was able to reach the grill from behind and unscrew the propane bottle. The flame continued, though, without any gas! Flames were coming up from the regulator and the wooden handle of the grill.

I was able to blow out the flames. The handle was a bit blackened, but still usable. The knob on the regulator, however, was pretty melted. My immediate reaction was that I should chuck the whole grill into the trash, which I hated to do.

And so we moved on, deciding to cook them in a pan on the stove in the camper. My oldest son, who is an excellent cook, took over the task.

The result? We had some excellent burgers and hot dogs! Sure, they didn’t have that nice smoky taste that comes with grilling, but they were delicious anyway.

And while he as cooking, I was able to do a little research, and determined that the regulator had probably gone bad, and I could replace it with a new one for about $15.00.

In a lot ways, supper was a disaster: we didn’t get enjoy food cooked on a charcoal grill; we damaged the grill that had belonged to my dad; and we had to cook hot dogs and hamburgers in a skillet, my least favorite method.

But at the same time, I think it contains some life lessons.Sometimes, life doesn’t go as planned. We set goals, make plans, have dreams… and then things blow up in our face. For many of us, 2020 was a year where that happened a lot, and on a BIG scale.

I remember scrolling through my Facebook feed December 31 and January 1, and seeing a LOT of posts saying, “Goodbye 2020! Good riddance!” “Welcome, 2021! It’s about time!”

But let me ask you something? How is 2021 going?

For many, it’s largely been an extension of 2020. We remained largely locked down, the economy didn’t immediately rebound just because we started a new year, or 20 days later, got a new president. The division in the country remains, and in some ways is even worse. Yes, many of the things that made 2020 so ugly, have persisted in 2021.

So in a lot of ways 2021 has been like my camping trip. Great ideas that didn’t work. Maybe some pivots and backup plans… many of which didn't work.

But also like my camping trip, there is still time to turn it around. 

In fact, we're beginning to see some encouraging changes... The lock downs are for the most part ending, mask requirements are easing, and mployers are starting to hire again. But we know that the Delta variant could change all of that. So we may have to change plans and pivot some more.

So despite what may have been a rocky start, there’s still the opportunity to feast on 2021. We can still make it our Best Year Yet!

There’s still time to assess your goals, or if you didn’t make any, to create them now. And there’s still time to make plans to meet those goals. And to pivot and recover, if we need to.

I’ll soon be re-releasing the course I offered at the beginning of the year called Best Year Yet.  Go check it out at https://go.RVBusinessCoach.com/2021.

I'm offering this course to help you get back on track to make 2021 your Best Year Yet.

In the meantime, let me know:

  • How has 2021 been for you? 
  • What challenges have you faced?
  • Have you been able to overcome them?
  • Could you use some help? 

Let me know in the comments below. Or if you don’t want to share it publicly, just shoot me an email at don@RVBusinessCoach.com.

Referenced Products

Items I talked about (Note: These may include affiliate links):

Video Production Notes

As you probably figured out, I recorded this using a green screen. I’d hoped that doing so would let me use more interesting backgrounds. But, like the things I describe in the video, things didn’t work out as planned.

I was having trouble with light washing out my face. I finally found lighting setup that didn’t do that, but apparently it was too dark for the green screen to work well. So you can see green tint in my hair, fuzziness around my shoulders and head, and a green blur when I wave my hands (fortunately my hands were out of the picture most of the time).  <sigh>

So what you see is me modeling what I'm talking about: pivoting, trying new things, and in the end... modeling imperfect action.

I’d like to credit the photographers for the free photos I used:

And for those who are interested, here is the equipment I used to make this video (Note: These may include affiliate links):

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