Many years ago, some way into my disastrous family case, I received a call from an ex boss who I’d not spoken to for a long time. It’s worth know he was possibly the best businessman I’d ever know. I respected him greatly.
He asked how I was, not knowing what had happened to me and the family court hell I’d found myself in. I brought him up to speed and informed him I was lost. Nothing was going my way. I did not see a way through the hell in front of me. He listened, as was his way. After a while he asked me what my plan was. This rather surprised me. I didn’t have one and told him so. Well, my plan was to keep going back and not giving up, no matter the cost. What other plan could I have?
He pointed out that my lack of a decent plan was, a plan. It was a plan to leave it all up to the gods. A plan that could as likely get me a decent outcome as a bad one. Probably, given what I now know, more likely a bad outcome. I had a plan alright. It was the ‘no plan’ plan. About as good a plan as relying on reading chicken bones thrown over my left shoulder.
Welcome dear reader to the ‘no plan’ plan, the most common plan for a separated parent in the family courts.
Family law and the myriad of family court hangers on love that one.
It’s the one that keeps the professionals in fancy shelters (one in the city, one on the beach), their kids in wonderful schools and a daily mode of transportation that rarely includes waving a payment card and having your nose shoved into someones armpit.
Okay, nuff’ waffling.
Make a plan. A good one.
A good plan needn’t be complex and you do not need to be a strategic genius. You do need to have clarity and it helps most of all to have a very clear objective.