Recently, I came across my five-year plan dated December 2005. It listed several personal, professional, philanthropic and financial goals with some success metrics and a specific timeline.

I have one year left and I’m not even close to reaching some of these goals. I began to reflect on whether I should cram hard to reach some of my loftier goals in 2010, or throw in the towel and give up—admitting defeat.

However, I realized that several things have changed, which affect some of the success metrics and variables in my plan. I’ve also accomplished several things that didn’t even occur to me when I developed this document.

My personal plan is a lot like strategic planning for B2B marketing—every plan is a fluid and tentative document because, quite frankly, things change. When running campaigns, we constantly discover new things and learn more about our clients’ ever-changing markets.

And, with all the metrics we can gather, we can turn on a dime when we need to redirect or expand our campaigns. So I say, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. But if it is, fix it fast!

After much deliberation, I’ve decided not to abandon my five-year plan, or kill myself trying to accomplish the tasks. I’m going to revise the plan and tack on a few more years because now, I want to achieve even more and in less time.

Have you changed one of your marketing plans as a result of market or industry changes, economic conditions, or other occurrences?