To Plan or Not to Plan

In Argentina, people consider me very organized, a planner. Here, I am one of the most punctual, future/goal oriented people that most of my Argentine friends know (And that's not always a compliment, it's actually more of a criticism, confusing and annoying to Argentines). In the United States, I'm not considered disorganized, but I'm certainly not the most organized nor am I the most goal oriented or punctual person. In fact, among the folks with whom I went through grad school, I was easily one of the least organized.

So, the context of our countries has a lot to do with who we are. A related example is that when I went to school in Bay Village, Ohio in first and second grades, I was placed in all average elementary school classes. I even remember thinking and accepting at that time that I was just average academically and that I should probably concentrate on some other facet of my life as a means of excelling.

Upon moving to North Canton, OH, I was placed in all of the advanced groups. Suddenly, because of a change in context, I had become smart. My identity shifted from a rough and tumble academically average kid to a more cerebral and precocious one, simply because my context changed and my sense of identity changed with it. In Buenos Aires, the same is currently taking place, but instead of turning into a more plan oriented person (As I have been reidentified by Argentines), I am deciding whether this is the best way to live my life. I am beginning to think that I am too organized, too plan and future oriented. I wonder if I have been making poor life decisions as a result of my planning a year or at least months in advance. Have I been locking myself into unnecesary decisions? Have I not been living in the moment or enjoying life as much as I might otherwise? What are the consequences of this way of doing things?

To begin to address this topic, I'd like to discuss why this difference between Argentines and people in the US might exist to the degree that it does.

In Argentina, there is some type of crisis,whether financial or governmental, about every 10 years. As a result, Argentines have had to become very adaptable people. Chronic inflation, the dirty war, military coupes, bank crises, the drastic devaluation of the peso, and coralitos have taught Argentines that putting too much confidence in future plans is not worth it since future crises are likely to destroy their plans. In response, Argentines have become expert at spontaneity, quick thinking, adaptability, making-do, being happy with what they have, living in the moment, and concentrating on things that really matter like family and friends. On the other side of the coin, many neglect the future, fail to plan ahead at all, place very little importance on the future, and let their emotions and feelings rule the moment (not to say that this doesn't occur in the U.S. perhaps for the same or different reasons).

There is some question as to whether the government and crises in AR have lead to the 'live in the moment' attitude of the people or whether the inherent culture and mentality of Argentines is simply reflected by their government- The chicken or egg argument. However it happened, Argentines don't spend much time looking to the future and they think it is weird and a bit unsettling and maybe even disagreeable that I do.

This cultural disconnect has shaken me and made me reconsider my planning habit.

I think it is part of the American dream to plan. We are culturally inundated with the idea that if you work hard enough, do what you're supposed to do, save for the future, invest, one day you will achieve the American Dream of economic prosperity. We are taught that we can do anything we want to if only we put our minds to it. Our society tells us that we must have goals and direction, that without them we are drifting like so much floatsam and jetsom, without real purpose and without motivation to jump through the many hoops that life puts before us.

Argentines respond to the above mentality with the question why? Why do you need economic prosperity and to why must you achieve concrete goals? What are they for? What purpose do they serve? What's the point?

Many would say that they have different types of goals such as 'to enjoy life', 'have fun', 'do what they want to do'. And when they tell me this, it makes me think....Why are my goals more concrete and material? My goals are more about specific achievements like publishing a book, learning fluent Spanish, starting a business, becoming a PhD, teaching at the college level. By contrast, Argentines seem to have goals that are more like guiding principles, but not concrete ends. Their goals can be achieved or completed every day. Mine require me to work for the future, to constantly look forward. Neither goal is better or worse I suppose, but their way of looking at life seems to be more liberating than mine. Mine traps me in a direction and disallows me from feeling contentedness until I complete my goals. Theirs allow continual enjoyment and contentedness.

And so, I am the uptight American while they are the free flowing liberated Latinos.

I wonder to what extent I do try to exert too much control over my life, to what extent I put too much pressure on myself, to what extent I don't allow myself to have fun and be happy. I wonder if the goals that I set keep me from being happier. I wonder if the goals I set disallow me from changing my mind depending on how I change day to day or what I feel from one day to another. But, I also wonder if my sense of committment to people and ideas is admirable. I wonder if one day I will receive an end reward that is much better than the momentary day to day pleasure of Argentines. I wonder if this same concept, this mentality has kept their country from pulling itself out of the constant morass in which it seems to be stuck. Is this the same reason why the United States has been by contrast successful and relatively stable, albeit neurotic and disconnected?

In the end, a simple maxim (while boring, overused, and wimpy)-moderation-is probably the best way to go. There is definitely something to be learned from the liberating live-in-the-moment mentality of Argentines. I could definitely benefit by liberating myself from my ambitions. After all, you can't necessarily justify denying yourself happiness all your life when you might not even complete your goal or if you're not enjoying the process of attaining it. I could benefit by a bit more spontaneity, accepting that it is ok to follow a feeling or passion as opposed to following a completely structured path toward a goal. The process must be enjoyable and goals don't always have to be concrete-they can also be about enjoying life and doing what feels good.

All that said, I think back to the famous psychological study....Preschool kids are presented with cookies. The teacher says that the students can have the cookies at the end of class. Some of the kids end up disregarding the teachers instructions and taking the cookies before the end of class. Another group of kids waits until the end of class to get their cookies, as instructed- a study in delayed gratification. The kids are followed as part of a longitudinal study and many years later as adults, their lives and habits are analyzed. The kids who couldn't delay gratification, who took the cookies before their time, were most more likely to be working low paying jobs, on public support, or even in jail. On the other hand, the kids who were able to delay gratification were more likely to be professionals: doctors, lawyers, teachers.

Returning to the idea of planning, I think I would like to live in a country that plans, that delays gratification (although I think the U.S. has recently been more lucky than it has forward looking) and call me uptight and repressed, but I also want to be and I suppose just am one of those kids who waits for the cookie. I have to say, though, that living in AR is making me consider the value of occassionally enjoying the reward before I'm supposed to....