This week’s topic for Your Whole Self has been playing a big part in my life recently, and got me thinking about how we feel when things don’t go to plan. So I am looking at Preparation Over Planning.
It’s safe to say that we’re often encouraged to plan our lives down to the last detail. A plan for the
week. A plan for the month. A plan for the next six months if we’re feeling extra organised and in my case when planning, armed with a fresh notebook to write it all down.
But life has a habit of quietly nudging those plans off the table. Someone may get ill, the timetable changes, the weather takes a turn for the worse, or your body decides it has other ideas entirely. And plans are lovely when they work, but they don’t always take into account real life. That’s where
preparation makes all the difference.
Planning is about deciding what we want to happen.
Preparation is about being ready for what might happen.
Planning says:
Here’s my perfect version of how things will go.
Preparation says:
And here’s how I’ll support myself if they don’t.
One of the clearest examples for me comes from teaching
Pilates. I always plan my classes, of course, but anyone who teaches movement knows that a class never unfolds in the exact way you mapped out on paper. Everyone’s body will feel different on any one day, different energy levels, different needs, and as a teacher we have to be prepared to be able to adjust to what happens when they walk through the door.
So the real skill isn’t the plan itself. It’s being prepared to adapt, shift, modify and meet people where they are.
Preparation is what allows me to change direction mid-class, offer alternatives, or build in a variation that helps someone feel successful instead of frustrated. The plan is the starting point. The preparation is what makes the class actually work.
And it’s exactly the same in everyday life — specially when we start to get into our plans for Christmas. How often do we get stressed when we start to make plans and then something happens … M&S are sold out of turkeys
… for example !!
Preparation gives us flexibility. It builds resilience. It softens the pressure of perfection. It means when life shifts, we don’t crumble just because our plan did, so what if everyone has to have one less pig-in-blanket on their plate, because we could only buy one pack of 6, when we had planned to buy two. (Apologies to all vegans for the heavy meat references here, by the way.)
In wellbeing, preparation might look
like:
- having recorded classes ready to press play on when the live session doesn’t fit
- keeping a few simple meals or snacks in the house for low energy days
- making sleep a priority so you can handle unpredictability with more ease
- building habits instead of relying on willpower
Preparation removes the stress of needing everything to go right. It means we’re more grounded, more adaptable and more able to look after ourselves whatever the
week brings.
So this week, instead of asking What’s my plan? try asking How can I prepare myself kindly for whatever turns up?
That small shift changes the whole feel of things.
As you move through the week, here is a reflection point for you to consider:
Where could I trade a bit of strict planning for gentle, grounded preparation this week?
Have a fabulous week everyone, keep moving,
looking and feeling good.
With love and support,
Jane xxx
