Remember the 6 Ps

Proper Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance: Plan How To Vote

I was all set to vote. I had a plan. But no plan survives first contact with the enemy.

And the enemy turned out to be me.

It was a very important election, too. Perhaps the most important one there is, really, and it happens every year, so you’d think I would have been ready. The school board election.

It’s the one that decides the budget for the local public library and the budget for my local schools. And it determines who’s on the school board. Will it be parents and educators who care about kids, or will it be the book-banning bathroom police? These things matter a lot to me, and I was determined to vote. Except I left it till the last minute.

The polls are open till 9pm, plenty of time. I meant to go after lunch, but something came up. And then I had to make dinner, and then, and then, and then it was 8:30. And I zipped up to the polling place, but oops. It wasn’t open. They’d changed the polling location. That little postcard I’d gotten in the mail—it was still on the fridge, but I never really did read it…

Making a plan to vote sounds like such silly advice. I’m going to get in my car and drive to the Town Hall, okay, is that enough of a plan for ya? But voting is harder than we think.

Polling places change. Schedules change. Rules change—are changed, often by those who are not trying to increase voter turn-out. Do you need ID to vote in your state this year? Are you sure?

Voting by mail or absentee? What’s the plan? Allow time to receive and return the necessary application forms. Especially for college students away from home, planning how voting will work is essential. Got a car? Got ID? Are you registered at your college address?

There are so many variables. Is anyone you know in a wheelchair? What about parking? Is it raining? Will there be a line? If there is, how long can I wait—what’s the after-school pick-up schedule? Etc, etc.

My first boss, a former Army guy with a crew cut, was a little bit rigid in some things. He had a uniform code for employees which required that we wear black socks and no colored T-shirts. He started his training sessions for new employees with the old Army adage: “Proper Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.” And we all rolled our eyes and ignored him and wore red socks if we felt like it. He was wrong about the socks. But you know, over the course of my life I’ve found that he was on the right track about the 6Ps.

“Planning is everything,” said Dwight D. Eisenhower, who made a few good plans himself, like how to invade Normandy. Voting early is the best plan. Voting early would have ensured that I got a chance to cast my ballot for sanity and education and the library being open on Sunday. And voting early does other things, too. Campaigns will be reaching out to voters all through Election Day. Voting early lets the campaign know that they don’t need to waste resources on you—calling you, texting you, knocking on your door.

It also opens up Election Day for those who missed the lecture about the 6Ps and left things till the last minute. Voting ends at 9pm, and if you’re not in line by then, you’re done. You voting early helps poll workers have a smaller crowd on the big day. It helps elections run smoothly and efficiently and that boosts confidence in the whole election process.

The full Eisenhower quote is “Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” Life happens, and your plans may well go awry. But if they do, you can channel the Duke of Wellington (sorry for all the military references here). He knew the value of flexibility. After the Battle of Waterloo, he remarked, “Napoleon built his campaigns of iron and when one piece broke the whole structure collapsed. I made my campaigns using rope, and if a piece broke I tied a knot.” I love that quote. My plans break all the time, but I try to tie a knot and move on.

Herding is tough, as all cat-lovers know. But you can help out the candidates of your choice—and yourself—by planning to herd all your friends and family to the polls as early as possible.

Dear Friends,

Are you fighting mad about the election of 2024 and wondering what to do about it? I hope you’ll continue to check out The Optimistic Activist.

Every week I post some ideas for doing something. How to get out the vote, spread the word, and support progressive candidates. Ideas for simple but effective activism. As easy, as practical, as do-able as I can make them.

Together, I think, we could really make a difference.

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future.”

                                      --Noam Chomsky