Next week will be different. Spoiler: It won’t.

This week, you had a plan. Focus time to think, time to step back, to actually work at the level you keep saying you want to work at.

Monday went well. You protected that time. You got your head out of the detail and into something more strategic. You felt great. This is the start of something new.

By Tuesday, something slipped. A piece of work that wasn’t quite right. You stepped in to fix it. No biggie, it was a quick turnaround.

Then something else came up. You got pulled into that too. With hindsight, your team could have handled it seamlessly.

By Wednesday, your plan had gone out the window. You were back on the battlefield, fighting the good fight.

Oh well. Next week will be different.

You’ve said that before. Many times.

And that’s how firefighting becomes the norm. Not with one chaotic project or huge restructure or cultural transformation. But in the myriad small decisions that feel completely reasonable at the time.

Each time you step in, you make it more likely you’ll have to step in again.

So the question isn’t why it keeps happening. It’s what you’re getting out of being the one who steps in every time.