Planning For Life’s Curveballs

If we can plan on anything, it’s that life will throw us some sort of curveball when we least expect it. Unfortunately, there’s no way to know what way the ball will curve so there’s no way to prepare for every worst case scenario. Fortunately, we can prepare for a general curveball situation by making the things I always do, a little easier for myself.

For instance, I like to cook. It saves money and the stress of leaving my house and it’s adaptable to my moods — but sometimes, like any chore, it adds stress instead of reduces it.

Whether I don’t have the time, the energy, or the motivation, or I’m blindsided by a case of the sads, I try to plan for the inevitable by having prepared meals like noodles and burritos on hand. The key is getting shit I will actually eat, ideally that don’t go bad immediately. I generally always like to stock up on things that take no prep work like bananas, berries, and prepared packaged snacks. And I also like to keep a tray in the fridge or on the counter with all the things I need for no-prep snacks and fulfilling prepped foods like noods + PBJ stuff + baked beans, or anything else that makes nourishing my body easy to access and attractive. I love bananas for this reason. You unwrap it, it’s perfect every time, and you just ate a fruit. No notes.

With the motivation of looking out for future me, I do anything that I know I’d appreciate in the future to make my life a little easier and things move a little faster. Eating is essential and unavoidable, so making it easier to access in a way that feels good for me, is a simple and effective corner to cut.

I do other little things to help future me, like lining the trash bag with several at a time so that I can empty it faster in the future. We make hundreds of choices every day and the cumulative effort of those decisions can take a toll on us. To prevent exhaustion, find creative ways to eliminate decisions where you can.

When you need to go into a more low power mode, let yourself. Let yourself. Nobody gives a shit if your bed stays unmade, there’s no consequence if you didn’t hydrate enough yesterday. Life doesn’t suddenly stop being unpredictable (and sometimes terrible) when we perfectly optimize our routine. Nobody is gonna cuss you out for not cleaning the toilet.

So many of us believe that we’ll be happy once we _____. Once we do that thing, once we lose that weight, once we find that person, once we buy that house, once we control every little thing that happens — but even if we do succeed at every single dream, life will always be a curveball throwing bitch.

Prioritizing yourself by letting yourself go into an intentional ‘low power mode’ so you can recharge more effectively, that the best thing you can do for yourself. When we let yourself take breaks now, we avoid burnout later.

Cut yourself some slack when it comes to rescheduling plans, lowering expectations, letting ourselves slack off on chores, postponing that thing, and asking for help with that task. Once the critical things are done, you’re allowed to be done. Looking out for future you is great but if it’s at the expense of current you, weigh the costs. Sometimes going off grid is exactly what I need, sometimes going off grid adds more stress to my life. It’s important to read the room but don’t be afraid to ask yourself some things like: “What commitments can I eliminate or postpone for now as I manage?” “Can I afford to outsource any work or caregiving responsibilities? Is there someone in my home that can pitch in more with household chores?” “Is there anything I can take off of my plate now by delegating or pivoting?” “Is there anyone I can call on to help me with my responsibilities?”

Preparing for a potential speed bump is a great way to reduce the impact of running over that shit at full speed.

If you need to take a break, it’s better to take it now before your body demands one. Low power modes are better than needing a full on reboot. Let yourself do the bare minimum and focus only on the critical until you’re able to recharge and return to a more sustainable place.