Strategic Planning vs Anxiety Insurance: How to Tell the Difference

Are you planning for success or just trying to calm your nerves? Here's how to know - and why it matters for your business.

I babysit my daughter's Golden Retriever, Suki, and she's always a highlight in my week—pure joy, unconditional love, meaningful doggy looks of adoration.

Recently, though, I caught myself wasting hours on something that had nothing to do with actual dog care...

My daughter was going away on a weekend trip that clashed with a weekend away we had planned, and Miss Suki was momentarily homeless.

Fortunately, our sons came to the rescue and volunteered to doggy-sit, so problem solved.

But not for my brain.

When Planning Becomes Obsessing

As the weekend approached, I found myself trying to work out the mechanics of who was going to put her to bed, feed her, let her out in the morning, walk her etc. How were those plans going to work with their weekend work schedules when one starts early and the other has a late shift?

If you could spy on my brain you would notice a pattern happening:
Possible problem → possible solution → possible problem → possible solution... and on and on it goes.

Now here's the tricky part: sometimes this IS strategic planning—the kind that helps you prepare for real obstacles.

But more often? It's anxiety insurance in disguise because you're problem-solving for things that haven't happened to calm your nerves.

The Hidden Cost of Anxiety Insurance

The problem with anxiety insurance isn't just that it feels uncomfortable. It's what it costs you:

• You're still stressed because your imagination keeps generating new problems faster than you can solve them
• You waste time and energy over-preparing for situations that may never happen
• You miss the chance to build the most important skill: trusting yourself to figure it out as you go

Why do you do it? Because the anxiety insurance momentarily gives you a feeling of control. That you've got it all figured out.

But just like in life, it's the same in business. There are always some things out of your control, and no amount of worrying about them will solve them.

How to Spot the Difference Between Strategic Planning and Anxiety

How do you know the difference between strategic planning and anxiety insurance?

Check who's driving the car. Is it the CEO strategic thinker who has the foresight to think about potential obstacles OR is it the scared employee who feels responsible for everything and is scared about getting in trouble?

This distinction matters because one moves your business forward while the other just exhausts you.

What Actually Happened (And What It Taught Me)

So what happened with Suki?

I caught myself mid-spiral and stopped. I reminded myself: my sons are grown men who can figure out a dog's schedule. And if they couldn't? They'd call me.

The weekend came. Suki was fine. The boys figured it out without my elaborate contingency plans. Imagine!

Three Questions Every Business Owner Should Ask

Here's what I want you to consider this week:

✪ Where are you buying anxiety insurance in your business?

✪ What are you over-planning, over-preparing, or obsessively problem-solving before there's even a problem to solve?

✪ And what would it feel like to trust yourself - really trust yourself - to handle whatever comes up?

Because that's what CEOs do. They plan strategically, sure. But they don't try to control every variable. They trust their judgment, their resourcefulness, and their ability to adapt.

From Taskmaster to CEO: The Shift That Changes Everything

They stop trying to plan away all the uncertainty and start believing that they'll figure it out.

The taskmaster tries to plan away all uncertainty.

The CEO knows she'll figure it out.

Which one are you being right now?

Ready to Make the Shift from Anxiety-Driven Planning to Strategic Leadership?

If you're tired of the endless loop of problem-solving problems that haven't happened yet, it might be time for a different approach.

As a Master Certified Life Coach specialising in helping overworked female business owners transform from overwhelmed taskmasters to powerful CEOs, I help clients build the self-trust that makes anxiety insurance obsolete.

Want to explore how this could work for you? Book a free consultation call HERE.

Tricia is a Master Certified Life Coach based in Brisbane, Australia, who works with hardworking female business owners across the US, Australia, and New Zealand. Through her signature "Taskmaster to CEO Transformation" program, she helps high-achieving women move from burnout and overwhelm to strategic, sustainable success.