As life gets more complicated, planning gets more important.

I’ve never been a good planner. I don’t like planning, so I naturally resist it. But as work gets more challenging and my 9-year-old son Gus gets more active, planning is simply unavoidable.

There’s the school of thought that if you want to learn to swim, you jump in the water. That applies to me here. Since my life isn’t going to get simpler, all I can do is make my best effort to plan ahead a bit, because if I don’t, everything falls apart. I’m confronted with the effects of any failures to plan daily. I’m under water, and my arms are flailing.

And wouldn’t you know it – it’s starting to have an effect. I’m beginning to think a couple of moves ahead. I’m beginning to fix process failures as I notice them. I’m recognizing better what’s important to me and what isn’t.

I still make plenty of mistakes, but it’s cool to see myself starting to suck less at something important.

What about you – is there anything you’ve struggled with a long time that you’re starting to get better at? Did you get there by diving in or some other way? Did you get there by … planning ahead?