A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.

Rigid plans make travellers blind. When every stop is scheduled, anything unexpected becomes an interruption, and the best parts of a trip, the wrong turn into a good street or a stranger’s recommendation, get treated as problems. Holding the destination less tightly lets you see where you actually are and respond to it.

The same goes for a career, a friendship or a Saturday. Keep a direction but loosen the itinerary. This week, leave one block of time unplanned and follow what turns up instead of what you had intended.