Friday, June 18, 2010

Planning Ahead

It's something I'm good at. I basically can't do anything without thinking about it first. It's almost a fault.

I was just reminded of this because I have had a few conversations with my brother recently about things that I like doing that he wishes he were good at--namely doing well in Sim City and Risk. I've noticed that the fatal errors he tends to make are those of impulsive decisions--when you think "Man, it would be AWESOME to have this sports stadium in my city!" you have to remember that the traffic will back up around it and that you'll have to pay money to control it, that the rich snobs whose houses are right across from it will want to move out, and that it also costs a good deal of money to maintain. In the same way, if you just got a cannon on Indonesia and it's the only thing protecting your continent of Australia, you shouldn't go straight into Siam or India.

In the same way, I plan out other aspects of my life; I know where I want to look for jobs next year, what videos I want to do coming up, what I should be practicing to get my auditions going, and some goals I have that I want to work on. However, I am acutely aware that things can and will go their own directions against the plan, and I think this is what separates me from many people. When something breaks the pattern of events I have planned, I get excited. I love working new things into my life. I get my variety, I accept the change, and most of all, I get to make newer plans.

I think this is what people mean when they say to take life by the horns. To a certain extent, you know exactly what you need to do to stay on the bull, but at the end of the day, you need to enjoy the ride.

Sleep: X
Clarinet: X
German: O
Blogging: X

2 comments:

  1. Ic denke, dass es wichtig ist, sowohl Sachen zu ueberdenken, als auch sich manchmal Spontanietaet zu erlauben. Viele Leute versuchen ihr Leben bis ins Kleinste zu verplanen and immer vorausschauend zu handeln, aber im Endeffekt funkt Ihnen dann doch das Leben dazwischen. Ein beruehmter Spruch im Deutschen ist: "Erstens kommt es anders, zweitens als man denkt." Ich plaediere fuer Ausgewogenheit.
    Falls Du Dir die Muehe gemacht hast, das jetzt alles zu uebersetzen, hast Du auch ein X fuer Deutsch verdient. :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really wish I could leave a comment in German like scratchingcat above me but I have no talent in languages beyond English (and sometimes I even lack ability in that too).

    One thing I can relate to massively is loving the making of plans, and adapting calendars to fit. I redraw out calendars nearly weekly. Yet I'm terrible at longterm planning, especially realistic and useful things like jobs. That avenue of life is coming up pretty soon and I still don't have a clue! :D

    ReplyDelete