Look before you leap!

Enthusiam without knowledge is not good; haste makes mistakes Prov. 19:2

One of the temptations I have always wrestled with, is the impulse to move too quickly in order to 'just get it done'. Or, that I get so excited with a good idea, that I run ahead and a good idea crashes because I didn't gather all the necessary details. It is 'when' we are feeling pressured to reply or respond immediately that we need to 'step back' and think the matter through. Rarely are things so immediate that we can't take that few moments to reflect -- and if they are that urgent or important - it is all the more vital that we find a way to 'slow' it down if just momentarily. One of the strategies that I've tried to employ is to take a clean sheet of paper - write the problem - or the 'great idea' in the very centre draw a circle around it - and then on one side write the potential pitfalls, and the other, the possible solutions. I find it only takes a few minutes - but it gets my mind thinking 'wider' about the issue. I then try to identify the 3 most dangerous pitfalls, and the 3 best solutions - if I've only got 1 pitfall or 1 solution, I'm thinking - "I'm not seeing this clearly yet". I have found - prayer helps me to see the bigger picture as I try to yeild the 'the idea/ problem the pitfalls and the solutions' to Him. I will also take that piece of paper (if it is appropriate and available) and talk it through with someone else to see if my thinking makes sense. There are many different strategies that people use -- what are some of yours that you've have found that help you with the temptations of 'Enthusiam without knowledge is not good; haste makes mistakes' ?

Neil