Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable

How to plan for the unknown.

Image created via Midjourney

"Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable."

A phrase attributed to Dwight D. Eisenhower, which he used repeatedly throughout his life.

Planning has always been an integral part of my personality. I budget for different financial scenarios in my business. My home is filled with lists and calendars to keep our family of five organized.

I carefully planned to quit my corporate job in 2021. Months of thinking about the timeframe. Agonizing over our budget and whether we could afford such a drastic pay cut that would come with a new career. Eighteen months and two jobs later, I found myself without a job. I had no plan for that scenario.

Sometimes life hits you and you can't plan. It might be a job layoff. Or it might be a health condition, like my recent diagnosis with a brain tumor.

I've spent the last few weeks intensely planning for post-surgery and recovery time. But it's also impossible to know the outcome. Everything is in probabilities and likelihoods, with nothing definitive. I might be fine within a few weeks. Or I might face a really long recovery.

Still, I'd rather plan than not plan. It's the only way I can navigate uncertainty without surrendering to the unknown.

Plans give us a sense of control

Two things can happen when you plan. 1) Things go according to plan. 2) Things don't go according to plan. It's a 50/50 chance (or a different calculus, depending on the scenario). But at least in some scenarios, you can use the plan.

Without planning, you are unprepared 100% of the time.

And maybe that's fine for some people. But I'd rather put some plans into place, on the chance that they're useful and save me some stress down the road.

When I can't control the outcome, I can at least control my preparation.

I hope you never need to plan for a serious health scenario (like my upcoming brain surgery). But, in case you do, here are some things to consider.

Prepare for a long leave from work

The typical recovery from brain tumor surgery is 4-6 weeks. My neurosurgeon thinks mine might be longer. I have the added layer of being self-employed.

It sucks that work is highest on my list, but it's a reality. If you're preparing for a long absence, you're probably thinking about your paycheck. Because the last thing you need is to worry about money while you're recovering. So do as much as you can to plan in advance.

Decide when you'll stop working (and when you can afford to stop working). I thought I would keep working until closer to my surgery date, but I just couldn't do it. I was incredibly unfocused, plus I had a ton of things I needed to do around the house.

Since I'm self-employed, I also had to figure out what I could reasonably hand off to other people (like friends and my virtual assistant) and what needed to be entirely paused while I'm not working. I had to inform all of my clients. If you're working for an employer, you'll need to do something similar. How much you share is up to you, but I was forthright that I have a brain tumor.

Update legal documents

I have a will and a trust that outline how my estate will be handled if I'm no longer living. These documents have been in place for years. Earlier this year, my attorney's office reached out and asked if I wanted to do a review. At the time, I couldn't think of anything specific. But now, with a brain tumor, I thought, "Yep, time to make some changes."

A healthcare power of attorney is also critical if you're undergoing any medical procedure. Your healthcare POA can make medical decisions for you if you're unable to, and also makes sure your wishes are carried out. The healthcare POA should be on file with your hospital or any medical provider. (I was able to upload a copy of mine through MyChart.)

If you don't want to pay an attorney because you don't have the money or the time to get these documents in order, see if your medical provider has a standard healthcare POA that you can fill out.

Prepare household finances

I have to plan for a period of time when I won't be the person buying groceries or taking care of other household purchases. My parents will do a lot of that.

I added my parents as authorized signers on my credit card. That way, they can make purchases and I don't have to worry about paying them back later. I also have a spreadsheet of how much we spend each week on things like groceries, for example. I don't expect my parents to monitor our budget, but they can have a number in mind.

I also started a GoFundMe. We're going to incur a lot of additional expenses over the next few months while I'm recovering. The GoFundMe helps to cover that.

Plan communication

A lot of people have asked, "How will we know how you're doing after surgery?" And that's a good question, especially since I don't know when I'll be able to send messages. My contacts are all over the place, like my phone, Slack, and Facebook DMs.

I finally decided that the day before surgery, I'll start a giant group chat in my text messages. And designate one person (probably my dad) to provide updates. That way, people have information, and it's all in one place. I'll start a second group chat for family.

Anytime someone asks how they'll get updates, I add them to a list of people to put in the group chat.

Keep the important things moving

A ton of my work happens online. It's how I get clients (LinkedIn), how I grow my audience (my blog, newsletter, and social profiles), and how I share my writing (my personal blog).

The idea that content would simply stop was upsetting to me. Not just because I rely on content for work, but because writing is an integral part of who I am. I pictured this void in my publications, serving as a constant reminder that I had to pause my life to deal with a brain tumor.

So I've pre-written and pre-scheduled a bunch of content. Because it's important to me.

It's also really important to me that things are as normal for my kids as possible. To do that, I've had my older two kids help with grocery shopping and making dinner. That way, they can guide my parents. My middle child (13 years old) is very detail-oriented, so he's done a great job with grocery shopping. He understands the staples I buy every week and how to find things in the store.

Think about what's important to you. Maybe it's not content. Maybe you don't have kids. But assuming you don't want to put everything in your life on hold (and it's fine if you do!), think about the ways you can maintain some normalcy.

Accept when plans aren't possible

One thing I couldn't plan for: anxiety. As my surgery date gets closer, my anxiety is off the charts.

I thought I'd finish writing one last deliverable for a client. Instead, I had to email saying, "I'm sorry, I can't do it." I was overwhelmed by everything.

I had a bunch of content I wanted to pre-write and pre-schedule. And while some got done, it wasn't nearly as much as I'd planned. The time existed, but everything takes me longer because I'm so unfocused.

There was no way to plan for the outcome of surgery. And there was no way to plan for the final days leading up to surgery. As much as plans gave me a sense of control, it was a reminder that so much is outside of my control.

I can only do so much. And have to trust that things will work out.

Create boundaries for yourself

---

I’ll be writing more about my Brain Tumor Journey in my personal blog. If you’d like to support my recovery, I have a GoFundMe or you can buy me a coffee.

You can also subscribe to support this publication as I continue to write during my Brain Tumor Recovery.