Why Accepting Changed Plans Is Difficult, But Might Be The Best Thing For You

I bet you all (or at least most of you) know the Rolling Stones song, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” Do you remember the refrain?

It goes like this: “You can’t always get what you want / But if you try some time / You’ll find you get what you need.”

This song popped into my mind a couple of weeks ago when, once again, my plans were changed for me. I was left with no choice and had to accept this change of plans.

Interestingly, once I did that a huge wave of relief washed over me.

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First, let me give you a little bit of recent history.

I decided to move from a house on a beautiful but out-of-the-way quiet street to a townhouse in a community closer to the center of town.

I went on a tour of the community and loved everything about it. In full disclosure, it is not a 50+ community. There are houses, apartments, and townhouses. This is a vibrant community for the young and young-at-heart.

It has beautiful landscaping, woodland trails (you know I love to walk in the woods), and sidewalks with lots of streetlights.

I was hooked. I love everything about this community. An additional bonus is that it is close (but not too close) to the highway and the shops I like to frequent.

I bought a yet-to-be-built townhome in October of 2020. At that time, the proposed completion date was May/June 2021. I am a professional organizer, so I got to work.

I planned a visit to see my son and his family in Seattle in mid-March/early April and decided to put my house up for sale while I was out of town.

In my mind this was perfect. Miles and Josie (my dogs) would be out of the house at their boarding location. I would be out of town and wouldn’t have to rearrange my day to accommodate potential buyers. What could be better?

My plan worked. I went to Seattle in March, and I received an offer on my house. This is what I wanted, right? Well, maybe not. I received word that the building at the new community was backed up.

Some delays were weather-related, some were Covid delays. My home was now scheduled to be ready in August, but my buyer wanted my current house in May.

What to do? I am an organizer, so I found a solution.

I discovered a company called Hello Landing.

They have rental properties in complexes all over the United States and it just so happened that they had a furnished unit for rent in an apartment complex directly across the street from the community in which I was building. Great!

My house was sold, I put my furniture into storage, and moved into the furnished apartment. I brought everything I needed, or so I thought. August came and went.

The builder had some supplier delays due to the pandemic, some weather delays, and some worker shortage delays.

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My move-in date was moved to November. This was not what I wanted but it was going to be fine. When I was with my son in Seattle, we made plans to gather for Christmas in Maui.

I knew I would be ready for a beach vacation after moving. Plus, this was a plan to spend time in a beautiful place with my family.

The next change of plans came when my move-in date was changed to mid-December. I started to feel anxious.

How was I going to move into the townhouse, move out of the apartment, and pack for a vacation?

I told myself I could handle it and arranged everything. I arranged everything but the timing was very tight. It was hugely stressful to think about all the little details involved and keep the business running.

Then there was another change of plans. This time the closing date was moved to January, after my return from my vacation with my son and his family.

My first reaction was “No!” This can’t be! Then I stopped to think about it. It wasn’t what I wanted. I wanted to move in, get my office set up, and be ready to hit the ground running after my vacation.

But once I made the phone calls to reschedule movers and the other moving-related deliveries, I began to relax.

This was just what I needed. I didn’t need to try and do everything all at once.

Although it wasn’t intentional, this delay gave me breathing room. I’ll go on vacation, have a wonderful time with my son and his family, and return refreshed and ready to tackle a move.

Accepting the change of plans was the best thing I could have done for myself.

The next time a change of plans is made for you stop and think if perhaps it is for the best. My initial reaction is usually to argue and want to keep things the way I have organized them to begin with.

I am learning, though, that sometimes what I think I want is not always what I need. This is the lesson I want to share with you.

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Diane N. Quintana is a Certified Professional Organizer®, a Certified Professional Organizer in Chronic Disorganization®, Master Trainer and owner of DNQ Solutions, LLC, and co-owner of Release Repurpose Reorganize, LLC based in Atlanta, Georgia.

This article was originally published at DNQ Solutions. Reprinted with permission from the author.