The Power of the Pivot.

I’m gonna be honest: I’m pretty allergic to the term “pivot” in business. It’s got this Silicone Valley whiteboard vibe to it that I don’t love, and generally just seems like a way to slap a clever sounding label on the fact that you made a mistake and have to change course. But I also * really * love some good alliteration, and “The power of rethinking your plans” is just a lot less catchy of a title.

So, here I am. Pondering the pros and perils of pivots and perfect plans.

And really, in and of themselves, I’m pro-pivot (when they’re stripped of all of that tech-bro baggage). Sticking with a bad plan is a bad idea. Want an example? Well, I have one handy.

Persnickety Planning

Recently, I was out on one of my “just gonna go walk around the desert for a while” backpacking adventures. I planned and planned – I knew the map, I had my gear. I was planning on covering 80 very challenging miles in 5 days, heading over the tops of 2 big mountains in southern Arizona. I knew where I was sleeping each night, where I could find water, etc. I had everything planned out, meticulously. If I completed the planned hike, I’d hit a milestone that’s pretty important to me.

You see where this is going, don’t you?

Manning Camp: The last known location of the puffy coat.

I made it over the first mountain and was half way down it when I realized that, somewhere on the descent of that mountain, I’d lost my puffy coat, hat, and gloves (ask me all about it in our next call!).  When I realized what I’d done, I agonized for hours (and miles) about what to do. I very much wanted to stay on the trail. I had a plan. I had GOALS! I wanted to meet them.

A quick check of the weather told me snow was expected over 6300′. That second mountain is over 9000′.  I had to choose between sticking to the plan out of pride or adapting based on new information. Sound familiar?

But the curt truth is: Sticking with that plan with those new facts would have been about the dumbest damned thing I could have done, and would have undermined my faith in myself as a capable solo backpacker.

PIVOT!!!

So I changed the plan. I cut the hike from 80 to 40 miles, kept my elevation under 4500′, and coordinated a new pick-up time and location. I only got 3 days on the trail and didn’t make that milestone. But, more importantly, I also didn’t freeze to death or suffer in any way beyond the usual exhaustion and aching muscles, etc. In the end, it was still beautiful and challenging in all the right ways.

I won’t make up some grand story about how as I was trekking through the desert some revelatory business wisdom occurred to me. It didn’t. I was absorbed in the surrounding landscape and the bizarre and beautiful flora of the desert. Didn’t think about work once on that hike, probably! It was delightful.

The Point

But now I’m back in the office, and as Q2 is getting underway for New Why, we’re evaluating the plans we laid for ourselves at the beginning of the year, and considering some incoming data. We may be attached to our plans, but if they no longer serve us, it’s time to reformulate. It’s like Q2 is Q1 all over again!

The same thing happens in web development and digital marketing. You start with data and goals, and then you make a bunch of well-informed assumptions. But once your website is live or your campaign is out in the world, real people interact with it—and that’s when the truth shows up.

Maybe users keep skipping your main CTA. Maybe no one’s clicking that beautifully designed newsletter signup. Or maybe your programs or offerings have shifted and your website is now outdated.

Marketing works the same way: a content plan that was the obvious right choice in January might be falling flat now, or your audience might be engaging more on LinkedIn when you expected them to be all over Instagram.

These are signals—not failures. They’re just telling you it’s time to regroup and rethink. Making a smart pivot (gawwwd that word) isn’t a sign you didn’t plan well—it’s a sign that you’re paying attention to changes happening around you. It shows that you’re staying nimble, humble, and open to change.

So that’s what we’re doing this quarter at New Why—taking a beat, rechecking the map, and making sure our plans still line up with our north star. Not because we messed up, but because things change.

If your organization is feeling like you need to recheck your plan, drop us a line. We’d love to learn more and explore a new plan with you!

The views were worth it!