Are you a meticulous planner or do you just wing-it?

Planner for 50 years !

Planner. I don’t like having an emergency unprepared. I take taxi’s where ever I need to go. I wing it when shopping for groceries. It is a safe adventure. Checking out the specials and meat department, and all of the pastries and fruit is almost as fun as eating them. Shopping for food is like a treasure hunt.

Depends on the thing, and who I’m doing things with.

I tend to like to wing things I’m not particularly attached to, like shopping for just myself, or gift shopping, or going out wandering by myself.

But if I’m doing detailed shopping for a purpose, like a new recipe, or electronics or household crap, etc., lists and planning can help avoid multiple trips, wasted time, and other frustrations.

And if I’m doing something with someone else, then it can help to talk about what we’re going to do, to avoid upsets . . . unless we can agree to just go wandering together.

What I do sometimes get excessively meticulous planning, though, are creative plans, and gaming strategies, and game programming.

I’m like @Zaku. I only wing it when it’s something not very important. When it comes to going out, some people are frustrated with me because they don’t like wasting time planning and just want to get on with it. And in turn, I am frustrated with them because they keep on wanting to go at the time when I’m not convenient. I function much better when I do things according to plans.

When it comes to going out to have FUN, I tend to be a fly by the seat of my pants type person. I’m there for the fun & the adventure & I find planning it out takes ALL the mystery out of the fun/adventure!!!

When it comes to shopping, I am more of a planner. Not so much on what I’m going to buy, but I do make the list of the items that I really “need” in the layout of the store to make my time in the store more efficient. Of course, I am prone to impulse buying, but I find that I buy less when I stick to my planned layout as it limits what am tempted to see!!!

^^ I have tried to do the shopping list thing but I always tend to see something there and then here and then somewhere else. I can’t just stick to the list when I see so many nice things. So the list goes out the window by the time I leave the store. lol, I do understand the importance of lists in certain situations like medical stuff and maybe buying expensive items. But mostly I do love the adventure of discovering things I would have never thought to see.

@RayaHope I didn’t say that I “stuck to my list”...NOOOO…far from it!!! I said that I “made a list of the things I “really need”. That’s to make sure I don’t forget to buy them & then I impulse shop the rest!!!

I went to the store one day to buy 1 item. I walked out with over $100 in my buggy. I get home & I have EVERYTHING but the 1 item I originally went in to buy!!! So, my list tells me what I “MUST BUY” & I have fun browsing the rest!!!

I am mostly, for the kinds of things you mention, just a grab and go, spontaneous type. After I had chemo, my memory was shot so I started making lists, but then I would forget the list. Oh well, nobody has died because I’m so scattered, and I am usually the only one inconvenienced.

@LadyMarissa LOL!! Oh geez, we are so alike :) I have done that so many times too. You are too funny :)

@canidmajor Sorry to hear you had cancer :( I thought making a list and then forgetting it was just me :)

^^ NOOO…making a list & forgetting it NOT just you!!! I always thought it was MY way of saying “I’d rather wing it!!!” So now, I make my list “on my phone” as I NEVER forget to take my phone with me!!! So, my phone tells me what I MUST BUY & my brain tells me what I WANT TO BUY. Doesn’t save me any money, but it is 1 thing less to carry!!!

@LadyMarissa If I was older and we went shopping I bet we would have ever so much fun! Maybe between the two of us, we’d actually get what we went for. Or it would be one giant HOT mess. LOL!!

Not an either/or question. It’s more of various shades in the middle. Some things, I plan – others I wing it.

I plan meticulously so that I can wing it. Build a solid structure that you can improvise upon.

Just like @cookieman here.

Meticulous as can be because if you aren’t, you’ll regret it later.

@LadyMarissa I think there’s a rule or law on the books somewhere that says you cannot leave Walmart without having spent $100, no matter what you went in for. :)

I’m more of a planner, probably because my mom used to drag me with her on ‘errands’ <shivers> even hate the word>. Sometimes it would be for 3 hours, which is a long time for a bored 12 y.o.! So now, errands stress me, so I’m likely to have them planned to the nth degree so it takes me no longer than absolutely necessary.

Somewhere in between, I guess. Planning too much tends to set me up for disappointment because things never go exactly according to plan. I like to have some idea of what I’m going to do, but I don’t need to meticulously plan everything out to the minute. Especially when it comes to something like vacations. Vacations shouldn’t be stressful; that defeats the purpose of a vacation. All the trips I went on with my best friend when we were younger were very spontaneous with almost no planning and they were the most fun, looking back.

But for example, I’ve been interviewing for jobs lately and sure, I need to read up enough about the position to answer questions properly, but I’m not sitting there rehearsing answers to possible questions. My attitude is I can either speak about myself or I can’t, and more planning won’t help. I seem to fare better in interviews if my answers are off the cuff.

I’m neither and both. I like to research a little what there is to offer at the destination, and have very loose plans with lots of cushion to not be rushed. It’s ok to change plans too.

If it’s something simple like drive to the beach for two hours, sure I don’t need any plans to do that, let’s go, it’s not very far from me.

If it’s let’s take a vacation for a few days or a week, then yes I like to plan a little. If you don’t, you’ll probably miss something you would have liked to do, or zig zag around and burn time that could have been spent relaxing or doing another sightsee.

Planning a little ahead means less stress during the vacation usually. It also extends the fun of the vacation, because doing a little research you get to anticipate the fun things you will do, and your brain is in vacation mode for those moments even before the actual vacation. Looking forward to fun events you have planned usually increases happiness in people.

If it’s a day at the beach or a meal at a restaurant, I will probably google TripAdvisor reviews and maybe if it’s a park or beach, I’ll look at the facility’s website to see their admission fees, parking, etc. I may also look at other sites that come up and read what they say, for example, I’m going to a concert at a stadium in a few days and I googled the stadium itself, and found a bag policy that I didn’t know about. Now I’m glad that i know, so I will not bring a big handbag on the day of the concert, I’ll just bring a small bag with a few necessities in it, like driver’s license, registration, cash, phone, one credit card.

If I’m planning a vacation or even just a few nights in a hotel, I’ll google TripAdvisor reviews and the hotel’s site itself. I’ll do extensive googling about the town, the demographics of the town, the hotel, the drive times from home to the hotel, etc.

I don’t like to plan my time because I think the best parts of any trip are the times when you are chilling out in a coffee shop or looking in an antique store, or sitting by the water somewhere just killing time. I recently planned a trip to Yellowstone and the surrounding areas, and looking at Facebook groups, some people plan the roads they’ll drive on and the sties in the park. To me, that’s not pleasant. I want to spend as much time or as little time in each spot, and enjoy it without thinking about how we have to stay on schedule and rush to the next place. If it means I’ll see less spots, then so be it. If one day I want to take my time leaving the hotel, or we find a good food spot to stop and grab a bite, or a great souvenir shop that has good stuff, that’s the best. If another day we’re up early, or we’re not particularly hungry, or we stop somewhere and it’s not all they made it out to be and we’re not into it and want to move on, we will and not worry about a schedule.

To me, that’s what makes Disney World unappealing right now. You have to schedule things, reserve meals, rides and attractions, and that means rushing from place to place to stay on schedule. To me, that’s no fun and it’s stressful and a lot of work.

@RayaHope I can guarantee that our shopping extravaganza would be a HOT MESS!!! ROFLMFAO

@smudges My old boss always said that me & his wife were the ONLY 2 women in town that thought we had a $200 cover charge to get into Walmart & he promised that they’d let me in for FREE & I assured him that I could get in for free; however, they would hold me hostage IF I didn’t spend enough to get out & that magic number was $200!!!
I have the opposite problem. My shopping trips with my Mom are some of my fondest memories. Now that she has passed, I do my best to honor her as often as possible!!!

Some vacations do require a massive amount of planning or you miss a lot, and you can’t expect a lot of frustration is likely. @jca2 mentioned Disney, and she’s right on target. Don’t just show up at DisneyWorld without knowing the differences between the 4 parks, reserving the park you want to go to each day, your top ride picks, how the app works, the list is much longer than what I mentioned. There are people who buy tickets, but don’t reserve the parks, and when they get to the park they cannot get in. Sold out. They have tickets! Can’t get in. Unless, you are annual pass holders and go constantly, then you can’t fly by the seat of your pants anymore at DW.

Same with traveling anywhere that’s a once in a lifetime type place far from home. You will miss seeing things that you didn’t even know were there.

If you like no-brainer trips, cruises are great for that. The only planning is getting to the port. I still research excursion, but you don’t have to. Or, total relaxation trips where you have no plans to see the sights and everything is where your hotel or campsite is.

I don’t do Disney & I don’t like to travel, so NOT going to miss much there!!! I do enjoy taking a long weekend, renting a cabin up in the mountains, NO WiFi, NO cell service, NO computer…just being out in the peace & quiet for a few days enjoying nature & my mind!!!

A holiday at Disney would be a BIG difference compared to a simple day or two outings. I had a family member go to Disney and it was such a hassle. You nearly need a planner specialist to go through all the details about navigating that park. Certain ride times and show times and you miss something it screws up everything…geez, I would not find fun in all that.

I tell people you come home from Disney World needing a vacation. It’s like every day is a marathon. So much money, so much work, so much research is necessary.

People will take toddlers to Disney World because they want them to experience it, and they want the photo ops, but I don’t think kids really are old enough to appreciate it until they’re at least 10. For toddlers and little kids, it’s a lot of stress waiting in lines and stuff. Toddlers and little kids are happy with simple things like a swimming pool or a playground, or a small amusement park (like a local one).

I’ve always liked to be spontaneous. If planning a major road trip I’ll plan ahead, otherwise I just ask my wife to hop in the car and let’s take a drive. As long as the grands aren’t with us. Anything with them is fun but tiresome at the same time..How much longer? Are we there yet? I have to do pee. Lord the good old days when it was just me and her. Drove anywhere we wanted to and for as long as we wanted.

@Nomore_Tantrums I remember those days with my ex. We’d just drive around for hours in Tennessee, trying to get lost on the backroads, and succeeding. So much fun!

Another time we went to the store to get basics like bread and milk and ended up in another state. >8^O

@smudges Yup a lot of fun! Just head out in any direction and see where you end up : )

Geez, you do get around. I tend to plan things sometimes too much! I try to think of all the problems that may come along and then take whatever I’ll need for that. I always bring too much and have to carry a bunch of junk back with me that I should not have taken in the first place. Oh well..

I like to save money so that I can splurge.

I read as much of an university course calendar up from undergraduate to graduate. To see if I would be happy getting a PhD from that university. Then I will wing it from a position of knowledge, for the exact calender year.

Like for example. Last night I perused the University of Alberta course guide. Was 80 pages of courses. Still nothing grabbed at me, other than a couple of nutrition courses.

I’m still interested in taking courses in career counseling.

I am a “as needed” planner. I will plan only If it’s important like work, school, music gigs, recipe ingredients.
I love being spontaneous on other things like travel, sex, outings, meeting new people.
This is the secret to my joie de vi·vre.

@Forever_Free “I love being spontaneous on other things” interesting..