When actor Eric Stonestreet said this on an episode of Sklarbro Country, he was talking about his philosophy for going into casting auditions.  Of course I swiped the thought for my self and made it about life auditions.  Like when your agent calls and says you have to give an update at today’s staff meeting, or when your next gig is a Tuesday of keeping a toddler/you alive/sane.  If you think you can “plan” a day with a child, you’re dumb.  I can be dumb.

What Stonestreet and I are driving at  is it’s helpful to  have things lined up and ready, practice, but don’t plan it out too much. Plans can be hard to deviate from and assume everything is always in perfect control, and when plans don’t happen the way they were laid out it can sometimes take days/years to get over.  Preparation still allows and even accounts for change, providing a certain nimbleness a blueprint does not.  This has been a foggy one for me over the years, and though I consider myself a high level preparer, I’ve often planned things in too detailed a way.  When that happens and things misalign, I misalign.  For me I’ve also found plans are perfect in my mind, but rarely do the realities match the expectations.  A prepared me however still gets to pack up the fishing box and poles, double-check to make sure the license is current, but is also OK with–>ready–> even eager for a road to be closed or the best spot to be taken.  We’ll just find a better spot or use the net to catch a story.  Got a lunch packed up either way.

This is sage advice I’m giving you that I stole.