Planning is not always easy to do. Many folks are not generally oriented toward looking ahead more than a month or so. Others look ahead in terms of significant life events, like “when the kids go off to college” or “summer vacation next year, where should we go?” Ask yourself, “do I have a fairly consistent attitude about the importance of considering the future and doing some planning for it?” The overwhelming input from researchers in this field is clear that good planning is important for overall success in life.
- Paul Getty said “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. For Getty, planning was not a periodic thing he undertook…it was a lifestyle decision he made early in his career, and by doing so he successfully established and ran Getty Oil Corporation for decades. Twenty years ago folks “went on a diet” to manage weight…but currently most people eat healthier and are more conscious of the benefits of staying trim in an ongoing way. Asked if they are dieting, they’ll say “no”; they incorporate watching their weight into their daily activities. For them, dieting is an everyday, “goes-with-my-usual-life” part of their program. The lifestyle of planning can be developed in much the same way. Planning can become a routine part of your daily life.
Some folks criticize planning, saying it “takes away the spontaneity in life”. I disagree. I think it insures the spontaneity in life, by creating safety and predictability which allows for the freedom of spontaneity! As adults, we have to learn to fit in time for fun activities among the many agendas clamoring for our attention. Does this take the fun out of the event? Maybe a bit, but simply dropping an obligation to engage in a fun experience is liable to be costly in terms of repercussions, let alone being viewed as immature and impulsive. We need to be careful about the impressions we leave behind; good impressions are hard to establish and easy to damage.
Speaking of impressions, let’s not forget we’re social creatures, and our activities have an effect upon all of us. I may not be fond of planning, but others I’m connected with may be, and my lack of planning can wind up inconveniencing them. Have you ever made a date with a friend only to have them cancel the day before the event, saying that something else had come up that they’d known was looming as an obligation but hadn’t yet attended to? Or had a team member drop out of that important Monday morning strategy meeting because the out-of-town wedding he was driving to necessitated his arriving home late Monday afternoon? Or neglected to note in your datebook your spouse’s birthday until late in the evening the night before? The common denominator in all these illustrations…a lack of planning.
You might begin a new season of planning by carrying a 3×5 card with you and writing down daily chores you have for yourself that otherwise you’d likely forget. Do this for a week and consider how much more efficient you become. Notice the items you remember to do and the feeling of accomplishment you get from your successes. Be mindful of how much easier it is to manage your week with this little planning reminder. Take note of the confidence you have in your organizational skills. Why are these positives happening? Because you’re planning.
There are two kinds of shifts in life we have to undergo in order to grow: awareness shifts and application shifts. Many times we simply have no awareness that certain changes are necessary to make our lives more fruitful. For instance:
- getting more sleep
- listening more carefully
- slowing down our reactivity to avoid being impulsive
Once these awarenesses hit us we are forever changed. However, we need to apply them to benefit from them. I’ve found that application is more challenging than awareness for most folks; it has to be done intentionally and with some energy. Try out applying the awareness for 30 days as an experiment. Test out your new way of operating – if it doesn’t benefit you, then discard it – but if it works for you, then keep it up! You may be surprised…
Chase E. Kneeland, M.Div. LMFT 