It’s easy to confuse thinking and planning.
They both happen in my mind.
They both feel like I am progressing.
I find they do different work.
When I’m thinking, I’m exploring.
Ideas move freely.
Good ones.
Bad ones.
Ethical ones.
Unethical ones.
Everything gets a chance.
My thinking is inclusive.
My point isn’t to decide.
My point is to see what’s here.
To notice patterns.
To follow a rabbit hole.
To let strange connections show up before I judge.
My thinking opens me to the possible.
Planning does the opposite.
Planning narrows it.
Planning begins right after my decision.
I decided on an outcome.
A direction.
A commitment.
The work changes.
Planning is a relating exercise.
What connects to the outcome?
What doesn’t?
What fits the direction?
What doesn’t?
Planning is exclusive.
My exploration is restrained.
My possibilities thankfully shrink.
Alignment is my constraint.
Thinking wonders.
Planning relates.
That’s why I don’t think in targets.