Do things usually turn out the way you planned? Or are there usually unanticipated sticks in your wheels that derail your best laid plans?
I think those who live seemingly charmed lives just aren’t risking enough. Those who aren’t afraid to go out on a limb fail more often, because they accepted the risks and went for it anyway. Those who live without regret usually end up with unremarkable lives.
Meh. The stuff I plan usually turns out to be wayyyyyyy better than the crap that just happens to me. Case in point: car breaks down in a city where you’ve never been before = annoying. Planning an exotic vacation to a city where you’ve never been before = tons o’ fun.
Like the previous poster, I don’t see the connection between planning and risking. Maybe the person is just a really unimaginative person with poor planning capacities. Does that make their life more remarkable than someone who plans creative and exciting adventures?
I don’t see how unnecessary risk makes one’s life remarkable.
Yeah, crap that happens to you is equally likely to be bad as good (or some probability split anyway.) I never ever plan bad stuff. The stuff I plan is 100% good stuff. And I am one hell of a planner.
My point was not that unplanned stuff is better than planned stuff. Nobody plans bad stuff.
My point is that those that never experience unplanned outcomes just aren’t trying hard enough.
I’m tempted to say that things turn out like I plan most of the time but the trip from The Plan to How It Turned Out is usually so bizarre and unlike anything I expected it’s kind of hard to commit.
I’m very good at anticipating risks. My “plans” are more like plan trees for things that might happen. Most of the time, what actually happens falls somewhere on the plan tree of possibilities I’ve considered.
I think most of the time my plan changes, but often it’s for the better or it all evens out. It’s more rare to go bad. I do remember once going shopping for a few weeks worth of groceries, but my debit card wasn’t in my purse so I just had to leave everything there. It evened out though, because my van broke down and I wouldn’t have been able to carry all that on the long walk home so it turned out to be a positive. The food would have spoiled, or at least half of it would have.
Yesterday I planned to buy my little girl one of those little wading pools to play in. Turned out the store had none left so I got her a slip-n-slide. We spent the rest of the day outside, every one of us taking a turn. I haven’t done that in 30 years! A little change in plan makes life interesting.
The things I plan generally don’t turn out very well. My priorities change, I lose interest, or stuff just plain doesn’t happen the way I’d hoped it would.
But the things I plan the least have been the most amazing things in my life.
My first big life-changing moment was when I picked up the phone and bought a plane ticket to India…for next week. The three months I stayed there changed my perspective on everything.
I joined the Peace Corps on an utter whim because I was drunk and mad at my boyfriend. I was looking at the website, saw the “apply now” button and figured “hey why not?” with absolutely no plan to actually do it. Six months later I was on a plane to Africa.
When I travel, it seems like my best laid plans are always ruined by delays, unexpected expenses, etc. But the real magic moments are the stuff I could have never planned- getting invited into people’s homes, getting lost and discovering new things, etc. Eventually I stopped planning my vacations so that I’d have more time for those unexpected surprises.
Now, I’m to the point that I’ll do stuff like take off for a month-long trip to the Philippines without so much as a Lonely Planet. It’s amazing the adventures you have when you have no idea what to expect!
I guess my philosophy is that often the stuff I want is stuff I didn’t even know was out there. I keep my eyes peeled for opportunities and take them as they come. It leads to a bit of instability, but a lot of fun!
While I would say that nearly all of my plans are successful, I also don’t make many plans.
I’ve always been a “dip the oar in once in a while” kind of guy, preferring to spend my time floating down the River of Life rather than always fighting the currents. I wrote a poem about it back in high school, and I still live the same way. I’ve seen a lot of interesting things, met some terrific people, and had more than a couple of adventures.
It is possible to make plans that include the ability to explore the unexpected, which is part of why my plans always work. I also follow a couple of other rules for planning trips, jobs, et al:
You can’t cut the rope longer. Take as much of any supply as you can get away with (can afford, can carry, can manage to cram into your bags, etc.) if it’s “need for survival” type stuff.
Plan for the worst; hope for the best. No matter what happens, you look good.
I’ve also found it helps if you don’t have dipshits trying to help you execute your plans.