Back To Basics: Inculcate the Habit of Planning.

In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.

–Dwight D. Eisenhower

A Difficulty with Planning

I hate planning! And, regardless of all the good things that are said to come from planning, I still hate it. I hate planning because I find the art difficult. The idea of an unexpected occurrence coming in to derail my plans always leaves me uneasy and in question of the need for planning in the first place. It’s depressing. Also, I never seem to stick to continually doing it. However, it would be fair to state that the periods I loved the most were periods for which I had planned and ensured I had followed through with my plans. Things seemed to click during these periods and my productivity soared. This has led me to ask a lot of questions about planning.

1. Why do I find planning difficult?
2. How can I improve the art in the shortest time possible?
3. Are there people that thrive without it?

Planning is an art preached about by the wise and successful –specifically deliberate planning– because it brings about clarity and progress. In the first Back To Basics post I highlighted planning as a vital behaviour for sticking to what we find important in our lives.

My exploration has led to the conclusion that personal planning is hard –for beginners. You only improve with time and commitment to the art.

This difficulty arises from –I think– two factors that work hand in hand to make planning a nightmare:

1. Uncertainty
2. Scarcity of information

Tony Robbin would argue that uncertainty is a basic human need without which we would go bored out of our minds. Basically, this factor is out of our control and it would be unwise to bother about it. However, tackling it is something that can be done. But, only indirectly by tackling the second factor –scarcity of information.

Your best bet against scarcity of information is resourcefulness and the ability to ask the right questions. Delving into the details of resourcefulness is beyond the scope of this post. I will treat this in a future post in the Back To Basics series.

One thing that I have found to be invaluable is a Work-Progress Journal. It forces you to think, crystallizing out the particular areas that work; shedding light and awareness to dark areas where serious questions can/need be developed to lead you to the answers you need.

An additional factor that adds to the difficulty of planning is the type of planning system used. This factor particularly affects the sustainability of our planning habit.

Nevertheless, think of planning like brushing your teeth or taking a shower. If you neglect any of these habits for a little while, you begin to stink from various external body parts.

I recently watched David –my six year old cousin– refuse to take a shower one morning. He hates to take a shower and constantly puts his mother through the ordeal of having to chase him for a bath –I reckon I must have been that way as a child as well. I imagined David ten to fifteen years from now. Would he still harbor the same opposition towards having a shower? Or, would years of inculcating the unnatural habit allow him embrace it as a necessity to personal hygiene?

How to Plan

Effective planning requires three things.
1. Lists
2. A Calendar
3. A Planner: a.k.a Planning notes

The lists you'll need are a master list, a monthly/quarterly list, a weekly list and a daily list.

The foundation of your time planning system is the master list. In it, write down everything that you can think of that you will need to do for the indefinite future. As new ideas, goals, tasks, and responsibilities arise; write them down on your master list. Use a simple piece of paper or your hand-held mobile device to compile this list and then store them in a "master list file"

The monthly/quarterly list and weekly list are optional. Although, with them, things can be a lot easier. Transfer tasks from your lists into appropriate locations on your calendar and use your calendar to create planning notes for the months/quarters and weeks accordingly. Trying as much as possible to match important activities to time that seem available on days. Things change and your plans should change accordingly to meet up to the challenge –or, lack of it. The overall goal is to be in charge of your schedule and in turn your life.

How you plan a particular day can make or break our overall system. Refer to your master list, monthly/quarterly and weekly planning notes. Figure out what you can realistically accomplish on that day and plan for every single hour of the day. Label each of your task for the day with a specific time period for which you are going to complete it -Cal Newport refers to this as Time Blocking.

Planning on paper far outweighs mere mental planning. For one, it frees up the mind and leaves you with something to always refer to when your memory flutters.

Restart

Neglect planning long enough and the result might just be a life that stinks from various external parts. However, sustaining the habit of planning can be tricky. Life is unpredictable. One perfect day could lead into a next day filled with turmoil, uncertainty and busyness. What use would your plans be then?
This problem is addressed by the beauty of flexibility. Forcing activities into a rigid schedule reduces the chances of maintaining the habit. See plans as suggestions in which you discipline yourself to follow. If something urgent and important pops up, be wise enough to address that while maintaining the continuity of your plans.

The continuity of your plans rests solely on the system you use. Most of our system fail after a period of neglect because we can't make the connection between where we used to be, where we are and where we want to be. With the explained how-to system. All you need do is pick up your master list and your calender to restart.

Excerpts from an interview with Newport reads:

"[...]get all your obligations back on your master list; get all deadlines back on your calendars; get your autopilot routine re-scheduled, then get back to business!".

Accomplishing Without A Plan

People exist who don't make plans but seem to thrive at what they do. These people seem to have an uncanny ability to know exactly what to do when they want to do it –even though some vocalize the benefits of having a little structure that comes from planning once in a while. These people employ what has been termed Anti-planning by Newport. It is a productivity technique that can come handy in cases where planning isn’t appropriate/effective. Anti-planning rejects the idea of figuring out in advance when and how you’re going to accomplish important projects needed by planning. Instead, it requires you just dive in and adapt the best you can to your circumstances. It requests only that you keep a record of your experience, capturing, for later review, your thoughts, triumphs, and frustrations. Altering between plan and anti-plan could be a good pattern. Giving a break from too much “structure” or too much “aimlessness” before one becomes overwhelmed.

In her TED Talk PhD. Psychologist Meg Jay emphasized the need to build Identity Capital. i.e mindfully work on activities that add value to your identity or make investments in who you want to become. Developing the habit of planning allows you to work only on those activities that have the most significant impact and influence on your life –activities you consider important.

Final Thoughts

To hate planning is pointless. It's not planning I hate. It's the difficulty that comes with inculcating a new habit that irritates me. There are days when taking a shower or brushing my teeth seem like the worse thing to do. But, I never leave home without doing these things? I bet you don't either. Why then would we commence our days without taking out 10-20 minutes to brush through what actually needs to get done? Once the early difficulty is by-passed, I believe we will see the benefits the wise and successful rave about.

If there is one resolution I'll carry into the new year. It'll be to inculcate and improve the habit of planning. Now is always the best time.

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Post Written by W. P. Uduk.
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Editor's Note: Back to Basics is an occasional feature that focuses on vital behaviours and hacks necessary for a remarkable life.

Photo Credit: www.effective-time-management-strategies.com



How do you fair with planning? I'll be happy to hear your thoughts.