📘 Part 3: Planning

This episode's vocabulary

Maintenance (noun) - the work needed to keep a road, building, machine, etc. in good condition.

Perspective (noun) - a particular way of considering something.

Fashion (noun) - a way of doing things.

Maneuver (noun) - a planned action that is intended to obtain an advantage.

Orderly (adj.) - well arranged or organized.

Industrious (adj.) - an industrious person works hard.

Fly by the seat of your pants (idiom) - to do something difficult without the necessary skill or experience.

Chaotic (adj.) - in a state of total confusion with no order.

Sequence (noun) - a series of related things or events, or the order in which they follow each other.

To overlook (verb) - to fail to notice or consider something or someone.

Helicopter parenting (noun) - a way of taking care of a child that involves a parent being very closely involved with their child's life, especially their education, and trying to control it too much.

Detrimental (adj.) - causing harm or damage.

Consequence (noun) - a result of a particular action or situation, often one that is bad or not convenient.

Capable (adj.) - able to do things effectively and skilfully, and to achieve results.

High-flying (adj.) - extremely successful.

Fulfilling (adj.) - making you feel happy and satisfied.

To schedule (verb) - to arrange that an event or activity will happen at a particular time.

Execute (verb) - to do or perform something, especially in a planned way.

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Questions and Answers

M: What things should be planned on a daily basis?

R: Well, you can maybe divide it up into two groups, like personal and work events. You need to know the order you'll go about your day from a sort of personal maintenance perspective, like when to wake up, have breakfast, brush your teeth, maybe the approximate time you should go to bed. And then alongside that work tasks are quite important, since you need to make money somehow. Usually, you'll need to complete things in a logical fashion. So if you're a teacher, then you need to plan and prepare material, use it and tidy up. So these things kind of go hand in hand in terms of daily planning.

M: Is planning important?

R: Oh, it's essential. But it's not the only thing. I suppose you could say is necessary but not sufficient. There has to be some sort of flexibility and room for maneuver whenever you come up against unexpected things. Oh, generally though, it helps to make life more efficient and provides a direction to go in.

M: What kind of people like planning?

R: I suppose if we speak in terms of personality, then orderly and industrious people probably prefer it. Although more broadly, people who are good at planning will prefer to do over people who are bad at it, which is ironic, really, because the people who are bad at it could probably afford to do it more often.

M: Why don't some people like to make plans?

R: Um, lots of people aren't sure what they want to achieve. So without a clearly defined goal, it's hard to make a plan. Others just prefer to fly by the seat of their pants and see what happens. That makes life chaotic. But I suppose it's more interesting for them, at least.

M: Are plans always necessary?

R: Well, some idea of what you're doing and how to get there is usually helpful. It doesn't have to be a step-by-step guide. But a loose plan is usually better for, well, better than no plan. I think the only exception might be if you're experimenting with what a little chaos might be like.

M: Should people make detailed plans?

R: Only to the extent that they're necessary. There's no point in having a plan so detailed you need it almost tattooed on your retinas to be able to follow it. And that kind of thing draws your focus. I think a plan with the main stages in the logical sequence is usually enough, maybe with some small but important details highlighted so you don't overlook them by mistake.

M: Should parents make important plans for children?

R: I imagine that depends on how we're defining the word important here. If it's about booking medical appointments and school events, then that's pretty much essential as kids can't quite do that themselves. At least not at that point. If we widen it to mean things like career, subjects to study at university, then that seems like excessive helicopter parenting. And I think that only has detrimental consequences, doesn't it?

M: When should children start to make plans for themselves?

R: When they're capable, not all planning skills or things to be planned are relevant or developed at the same time. I mean, like, I planned my route at home at the age of 10, for example, but I couldn't have planned out my career until much later. So I suppose when the age, the situation, the level of importance and brain development allow it. Some people are never ready to make any plans for themselves. So it's a very individual process.

M: Is it important to have a career plan?

R: If that's what you value, then yeah, although life isn't all about having a high-flying career as a doctor or a lawyer, for example. Not for everybody. Some people just want to become teachers and have quiet lives by the seat with their partner and children. And they consider that a fulfilling life. I don't think that requires a detailed plan from start to finish.

M: How do most people plan their future education and career?

R: Well, I think they know they want to do well and make money in a respected or fulfilling job. Though, what that is, and how they will get there, and what they need to do isn't well articulated by the vast majority of people. It's not just because people are bad at scheduling and sequencing things though. It's because life and other people are quite chaotic too, which makes it difficult to see far into the future.

M: Thank you, Rory, for your lovely answers, for your well-planned answers.

R: Well-planned and executed.

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