best laid plans
Well-crafted intentions fail
Best laid plans refers to careful preparations that fail despite good intentions.
The phrase comes from a Robert Burns poem: "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley" (often go awry).
Usually appears in rueful acknowledgment that things didn't work out as hoped: So much for the best laid plans.
- pipe dreamUnrealistic aspiration
- roll of the diceRandom chance outcome
- blueprintDetailed technical drawing
- roadmapDetailed plan forward
- disruptionForceful interruption of process
contingency · fall back · worst case scenario · unpredictability · wild card · derailed · misstep · persistence · foresight · intention · resilience · adaptation · accident · preparation · flexibility · failure · recovery · learning
best laid plansimprovisation
Spontaneous, unplanned creation
winging it · spur of the moment · off the cuff · playing it by ear · going with the flow
best laid planssure things
Guaranteed outcomes
foregone conclusions · certainty · fait accompli · certainties · destiny
best, better, laid, laying, plan, plans, planned, planning, planner