The first draft was never the final draft. I learned this as a scientist and writer—every manuscript I wrote went through revisions. It changed, it included input from collaborators, and took unexpected turns. What started as a “perfect plan” rarely ended that way. And that’s okay. That became the point. I learned that flexibility is the key.
I think about life the same way. We all hear “live in the present”; some agree, some dismiss it. The way I see it: live what you’ve got today to the fullest and to the best of your ability. I look back at the past to cherish it and learn from it. I plan for the future, but loosely. The wiggle room is deliberate.
Here’s why. Even with the best homework, full preparation, and 100% effort, a plan can still fall short. There are stakeholders. There are external factors. Life has collaborators you didn’t invite and revisions you didn’t schedule. When you’ve built in wiggle room, it absorbs the shock better. You bend instead of break.
So don’t get too attached to your draft of life; there will be revisions. Live in today for what you have. Prepare fully for what you’ve planned. And grow resilience for what you haven’t planned—but what may still come.
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