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Productivity

Why You Shouldn’t Over-Plan

Mondays are productivity days at SimpleProductivity blog.


Photo by jean-louis zimmermann

Planning is the basis of any productivity system. Yet many people struggle with the two extremes: under- and over-planning. Today we will look at why you shouldn’t over-plan and how to make sure you are planning at the right level.

The Temptation Of Planning

For those both new to planning, and old pros, the temptation to take the plan to the next level is always there. After all, if a plan works well, more planning must be better, right?

Right?

Making The Gods Laugh

There was a saying in ancient Greece: “If you want to make the gods laugh, make plans.”

Is one of those gods named Murphy? Might be.

But the fact is, if you over-plan, something is going to come up to completely muck it up. If you are running a tight ship, that ship is going to spring a leak. If you think you have thought of everything, something else will come along and the plans will get shaken (at best) or thrown out the window (at worst).

Over-planning is just a waste of time. All that energy will be gone when your plans derail. And they will.

The Right Level

A better approach is to right-size your planning. It is good to spend a bit of time thinking about contingencies, as they apply to the tasks currently at hand. It is best to apply for the things you will do next, and maybe the next step after that. No more.

Conclusion

Over-planning can be a waste of energy. How much over-planning do you do?

Over To The Readers

When was the last time your plans went awry? Did you have plans beyond that? How much time and energy got wasted?


Photo by jean-louis zimmermann. Licensed under Creative Commons.