Plans can sound great, but terrible once it comes time to do them.

Here, neuroscientists explain why planning is more fun than doing.

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But why is planning more fun than actually, you know, doing?

His work focuses on cognition and neuroscience.

Psychologist Frank Ghinassi, PhD, is the president and CEO of Rutgers Behavioral Health Care.

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Psychologist Craig A. Smith, PhD, is an investigator at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. His work focuses on cognition and neuroscience.

The same holds true forplanning versus taking a vacation.

5 reasons why planning is sometimes more fun than doing, according to neuroscientists

1.

We tend to remember things through a lens of emotion or in a way thats less concerning.

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In the abstract, these things can sound fun, he says.

But getting down to the details, which need to be covered as plans approach, requires effort.

In the abstract, these things can sound fun.

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But getting down to the details, which need to be covered as plans approach, requires effort.

Reality is complicated

Its easy to imagine your plans will go perfectly.

There are often many things that could go wrong, and often some things do, he says.

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Psychologist Craig A. Smith, PhD, is an investigator at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. His work focuses on cognition and neuroscience.

The possibility of things not going the way you planned can be a source of great anxiety and stress.

Thats true whether youre having people come over to your house or going on vacation.

it’s possible for you to be worried that something wont work right.

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But some people are impacted by this more than others.

As much as possible, give a shot to remind yourself of things that went well, he says.

When it comes down to it, we tend to exaggerate how bad things will be.

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Its all okay, he says.

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