Planning..

In June, I was asked by my team to write the blog entry for the month of November. Considering it’s the theme of my birthday month.

Anyone who knows me will already know this, I’m an « avid planner » aka “control freak” or at least I used to be-before this whole new world pandemic shit hit the fan.

Ever since, I’ve been reflecting on what I would have to say about planning..“nothing came up” or better yet, a lot came up it was so chaotic my thoughts almost canceled each other out! A work plan? A life plan? A retirement plan? So many types and kinds of planning.. 

In reflection, I started to think about what it means to plan, the essence of planning.

I have planned my whole life since I can remember. My life was pretty well planned. NOTHING WENT ACCORDING TO PLAN. My plans at least.

You see, I’ve inherited the skill from none other than my mother.

When I was a teenager, to take some control over my pre-planned life schedule, I planned rebellion schemes against life’s *norms*. Planned how I will relay certain information to my parents. I planned how, when, why, and what I would say every time I needed permission to go out. As many of us, children of baby-boomer parents, you are also overly empowered -or rather pressured into planning your career since Jr High.

Naturally, I wanted to be a doctor. So I planned for that across my high school years. All plans went to bust when I didn’t get in. Instead I majored in French translation and of course, in an act of self rebellion, I planned to enjoy my life and just be a cultured house mom. 

Loving my life, I found myself choosing a career in communications consulting and planned to indulge in myriad adventures meanwhile.

Once I got the hang of professional life planning became essential. Planning for me was a way of life; a lifestyle..I planned for everything. My travel calendar, social life, savings plan, social security fund, career path, financial stability, etc.

Funny story, a long-term good friend of mine bought me a planner schedule mug with an erasable marker gift twice! #true_story

طبعاً، تأتي الرياح بما لا تشتهي السفن

And just like that, we grow up and we come to realize that plan B is the plan.. Plan A will fail. Plans change…it’s normal.

After my journey with AlMashtal, launching a social enterprise mid-pandemic, I learned the real and hard way that you must only plan for one thing, prepare yourself to keep an open mindset and truly accept constant pivoting to be able to move forward.

My fellow THNKR and friend, Yoshi San, told me a statement 4 years ago that, to date, strikes me as true: “Marry the vision, not the how”.

Took me a few years really to learn that; Covid drilled it in.

It really doesn’t matter how you achieve your vision/ goal/ objective/ purpose. How something is done isn’t what matters but rather understanding the process while being open and constantly working on enabling yourself with the skills needed to be truly agile.

Shift, recalibrate, yet still keep the balance. Realize your goal and “deliver on your plan”. Surf the waves.

The Japanese methodology of building houses and building to survive natural disasters and earthquakes is the mental image that comes to mind.

Here I am today delivering to you my two cents on planning.

Plan to be prepared. Plan how you will prepare yourself to embark on whatever it is you’re planning for. Planning for something as simple as a travel plan today is different.

Prepare yourself with the characteristic skills. The hard skills too! You never know when you need to really use those basic human skills for your survival; shout-out to the apocalypse planners :p

Take a carpentry or welding course, a basic MEP (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing) workshop, get into a coding program, pay for a personality test (trust me, getting to know yourself and how you work is worth it). Get coached on how to adapt in order to reach what you need to be prepared for in this journey we call life. We are all a unique code.

Plan to play.

I know it’s not as easy or as simple as it sounds but after plan #100457 we get stronger.

If we persist, we build grit and we make it and then move on to the next plan to achieve the next thing we strive to reach.

Happy November to my fellow Scorpios and Saggi’s out there!

Alaa Ghanimah

• Co-founder of Almashtal Creative Incubator