The plan was so clear
The future was bright
The world was my oyster
No hurdles in sight
Work hard and go on
Do the grind daily
Lift, pull and strain
And do it all gaily
The work will pay off
As the planning will too
Be prepared to succeed
When good luck follows you
. . .
It was Helmuth von Moltke, the Prussian military commander, who first wrote, “No plan of operations reaches with any certainty beyond the first encounter with the enemy’s main force.” More commonly you may hear it quoted as a version of, “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”
In my case, it’s been more like, “No plan survives first contact with reality.”
I had a plan, all the details, all the progressions, next steps and roadmaps. Building blocks galore to work with and a newly paved super-highway to personal, relational, and professional success.
It was a formula for guaranteed happiness, probably powered by too many self-help guru’s and motivational Ted Talks. Or the over-flowing optimism of youth. What could go wrong?
Well, everything. And nothing.
The plan, in fact, did not survive first contact with reality. Does this make me a victim? No. Everything I am, and am not, at this juncture is a direct result of ten thousand little, and a few larger, decisions I’ve made along the way to my current station in life.
So to the extent that I am a victim, I’m a victim of uniformed or bad choices, maybe poor planning, and certainly a well-documented inability to anticipate the future. What I’m not a victim of is fate, the world, society or bad luck.
As I ponder what’s next for me, I wonder if I should make a plan.
Nah. Maybe next time.
—
This post was previously published on ILLUMINATION.
***
You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:
White Fragility: Talking to White People About Racism | Escape the “Act Like a Man” Box | The Lack of Gentle Platonic Touch in Men’s Lives is a Killer | What We Talk About When We Talk About Men |
Join The Good Men Project as a Premium Member today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
A $50 annual membership gives you an all access pass. You can be a part of every call, group, class and community.
A $25 annual membership gives you access to one class, one Social Interest group and our online communities.
A $12 annual membership gives you access to our Friday calls with the publisher, our online community.
Register New Account
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
—
Photo credit: iStock