Can You Afford That Act In Your Lineup?

Here's a strange situation. According to an article in USA Today, a newly built high school in Riverside California (at a cost of $105 million) will sit idle because the school district doesn't have the money to pay for operating it. While the cost of operating the school would be $3 million dollars per year, just maintaining it comes with an annual price tag of $1 million.

While the source of their problem stems from inadequate funding sources (and maybe some poor planning), we experience similar challenges when we start a project or a task that will ongoing activities associated with it. We meant well when we started, but just didn't think about all the "maintenance" costs associated with it.

The next time you are contemplating bringing a large act into your lineup, ask yourself these questions:

• What ongoing tasks or activities will result from success with this project?
• Can I consistently complete these tasks and my other responsibilities as well?
• Can others consistently contribute their time and energy to the ongoing activities that will result from this project?
• What will I have to take out of my current schedule to spend the necessary time on this project?

Having clear answers to these questions may prevent a perfectly good elephant from squashing you!