Content

• Steps
• Tips
• Warnings

No one can know the future, but we have to speculate in order to make the right decisions and be ready for anything. Our guesses are not based on knowledge of the future, but on our previous life experience and intuition. If you do not want the future to catch you by surprise, and you are ready for all the difficulties and obstacles that come your way, then you need to master the art of planning.

Steps

1. 1 Determine what you want to prepare for. The future is a huge space full of contingencies, but you most likely need to be prepared for a specific situation, problem, or opportunity. So think carefully about what to expect.
2. 2 Use your intuition. Not all decisions are rational or carefully considered. Sometimes intuitive assumptions work well. What seems right to you? What do you think is going to happen? When you use your intuition, you also rely to some extent on your experience and knowledge.
   
   
   • Listen to your natural instinct. Intuition is often "turned on" when you have not yet analyzed all the details of the question and do not know all the details.
   • Intuition draws your attention to emotional factors and elusive signs that you often don't want to attach importance to. If something haunts you, or you don’t like someone, do not ignore your gut instinct, even if you cannot clearly define what is the matter.
   • Let your intuition be a hint rather than a solution to a problem. Try to understand what exactly makes you suspicious and try to dig deeper into your experiences until you find a clue.
3. 3 Think about what you already know. Your knowledge has been accumulating for a long time. Have you tried something like this before? Do you know how a certain person might react? Have you ever read about a situation that is happening to you? Can you ask others for advice? Or gather information to help you predict what will happen?
4. 4 Identify your biases. People tend to base their decisions and actions on preconceived notions. For example, recent events can play an important role for no particular reason. Or, you are more likely to believe in something that most of your acquaintances trust. If you realize something like this is happening to you, start looking at hard evidence (such as facts and numbers) and question your own assumptions. Read the list of cognitive biases to find out which applies to you.
5. 5 Come up with a hypothetical situation related to your problem. Ask yourself, "What if?" and present all possible scenarios. Be especially careful about the consequences of this or that decision.
6. 6 Think about the worst case scenario . What can happen? Assess the potential risk.
   
   
   • Perhaps even the worst outcome is not really dangerous? Maybe you just have to clean up the mess, come to terms with losing a certain amount of money, deal with criticism, or accept rejection?
   • Is there anything you can do to avoid or prepare for the worst-case scenario?
   • Is the worst-case scenario too dangerous or undesirable?
   • What are the chances that you will have to deal with the most undesirable situation?
7. 7 Think about the most profitable scenario. What's the best option for you? Assess the possible benefits.
   
   
   • What can you do to tilt the course of events towards the best possible outcome?
   • How should you set your goals?
   • What are the odds of the best outcome, and what are the desired outcomes?
8. 8 Think about what action you need to take. If you are trying to plan something, then most likely you need to think through how you respond to potential situations.
9. 9 Assess your possible actions. Based on your experience and knowledge, choose the best path.
10. 10 Prepare yourself. Whatever you need - people, equipment, conditions, plan of action, or just courage, get it ready.
    
    
    • Recordings can greatly assist you in preparation. They will not only give you the opportunity to remember your plans, but also see the complete picture. Use a calendar, notepad, list, or table - whatever is convenient for you.
11. 11 Try your own plan. Act in accordance with your forecasts and plans. Then let the situation develop naturally. See what happens. By remembering the result, you will be able to more accurately plan actions in the future, based on your own experience.
12. 12 Adapt. As you observe the evolving situation, try to adapt to it. You may not be able to change your plan along the way, but at least you can get new information. Use it to decide what to do next.

Tips

• Establishing the best and worst outcomes helps you make appropriate plans and make the right decisions.
• Inaction can be effective, too, but first assess the pros and cons of this behavior. You may find out new information later, or your involvement in an issue may affect your reputation. On the other hand, you might miss a moment or opportunity. Another option is to wait quite a bit, just to find out more about the problem.
• Experienced planners are highly valued in the business world. If you are good at assessing possible situations, why not make it your profession?
• Exercise. Even if you do not have the opportunity to personally plan something, then just try to make guesses, and then watch their implementation. This process will greatly enhance your ability.
• Be honest with yourself. An optimistic view of the future will not stop a natural disaster, but a realistic assumption will help prepare for the inevitable.
• Practice group brainstorming. You don't have to plan on your own. It is much more constructive to share ideas with others, because in the end you can achieve significant results.
• Statistics and odds estimation are mathematical methods of analyzing what is happening. Use them to plan your actions.

Warnings

• Be careful, because you can get so carried away with planning that you forget to act. Sometimes it's best to just do something based on your own intuition and see if it works.
• Don't take your plans and guesses too seriously. Nobody can foresee everything in the world.