P - Planning Ahead

Note: This is the final installment in a series of posts that are looking at the elements of my awesome (if I do say so myself) acronym, C.L.A.P. for kids! The C is for chores, the L is for Learning, the A is for Attitude, and the P is for Planning Ahead... which is today's discussion!

For some reason, I always, *always* -- as in, I STILL -- struggle with seeing past the current moment. Now, in some ways, this is a strength -- I don't tend to stress too much about the future 'cuz I'm too busy taking care of the present. There's a scripture about that...

However, this backfires sometimes because some of the present worries and concerns could have been avoided, or at least been of lower intensity, had I looked ahead and planned a little... There's a scripture about that, too...

So, as I developed this C.L.A.P. system, I determined positive things from my life that I could pass on to my children (like the importance of a good attitude) as well as, speaking quite humbly, mistakes from my life that I wanted my children to avoid.

Of course, I'm aware that my actions speak louder than my words, so I've been working on this little element of planning ahead. I run a household planning meeting every Sunday night and it has worked wonders in giving myself a heads up about what kinds of phone calls I need to make, times I might need help with childcare, when I can squeeze in a date with my main man, food items to grab from the store, etc. etc. etc.

I just use a slightly-bigger-than-pocket-size calendar that sells at the dollar store during back-to-school season for -- you guessed it -- one dollar! Heck, I think I've hit a jackpot of a deal considering the value I get out of that dollar in terms of how much planning ahead has made my life better. I like that I can see the whole week on one spread... oh, I'm getting too detailed... let's get back to C.L.A.P. for kids...

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Now, I don't require my children to attend my personal planning meeting, but I do encourage them to hold their own little calendaring session, thinking ahead about their scouting goals and homework that needs to be finished up and how to spend their free time. Everyday, one of the priorities they have to check off before they have privileges, is Look Ahead. This encourages them to recognize that their whole lives lie before them, and give a little thought as to how they might want to use their time, developing talents and skills that will pay off in the long run. Things are so much more likely to happen if they're scheduled in.

I guess that's what I'm trying to get around to saying -- that it's all about an investment of time so we end up with that satisfying sense of accomplishment and responsibility that too often doesn't get achieved by happy-go-lucky types like me.