This is a quote cited by Russell Davies that has nothing yet everything to do with planning. It speaks for itself:
From The Confusion by Neal Stephenson. The heroine, Eliza, is giving her protege advice on how to get on in the world (specifically the worlds of intrigue, politics, love and finance) but the advice could be exactly what you'd give to a young planner. Or frankly, a young anyone:
"Pay attention, thats all...Notice things. Connect what you've noticed. Connect it into a picture. Think of how the picture might be changed; and act to change it. Some of your acts may turn out to be foolish, but others will reward you in surprising ways; and in the meantime, simply by being active instead of passive, you have a kind of immunity that's hard to explain."
I love that.
So do I.