As usual, life is not black and white, it is grey. The best performance can be obtained by:
Idea(s)
Plan(s)
Action(s)
Of course, the trick is to know when to switch from one to the other. Generally, I like to take an idea (or ideas) and think about them for a while. When I feel vaguely comfortable that there are no obvious roadblocks, start planning. When I'm vaguely comfortable there are no subtle roadblocks, it's time for action. If you hit a roadblock, it's back to the ideas phase.
This strategy keeps you moving forward, bring fresh information quickly, and avoids most roadblocks before they waste any time.
Depending on the scope of the idea, the planning could be anywhere from minutes to days. Scope and complexity also change whether the planning happens purely in my head, or requires some typing to get everything clear.
Luckily, life usually gives us ideas while we're working on something else, so there's time to think about an idea for a while before you even have time to take action, which gives some planning time.
I agree. It is never black and white, and the applicability of any rule or principal also depends on the context.
A small company cannot afford to do planning like that of a billion dollar company.
A billion dollar company cannot afford to plan like a small company (that is, not do much of planning). And for both, the folly always is in waiting for completing the perfect plan, before acting, because there is nothing such as the perfect plan.
Note: 'Afford' as not just in money terms, but the risk of taking the extra time to plan.
Idea(s) Plan(s) Action(s)
Of course, the trick is to know when to switch from one to the other. Generally, I like to take an idea (or ideas) and think about them for a while. When I feel vaguely comfortable that there are no obvious roadblocks, start planning. When I'm vaguely comfortable there are no subtle roadblocks, it's time for action. If you hit a roadblock, it's back to the ideas phase.
This strategy keeps you moving forward, bring fresh information quickly, and avoids most roadblocks before they waste any time.
Depending on the scope of the idea, the planning could be anywhere from minutes to days. Scope and complexity also change whether the planning happens purely in my head, or requires some typing to get everything clear.
Luckily, life usually gives us ideas while we're working on something else, so there's time to think about an idea for a while before you even have time to take action, which gives some planning time.