Engineer your best weekend ever

Deep into All the Money in the World, the personal finance book I wrote in 2011, I threw in what I can now see was something of a time management chapter. I began by recounting an episode of Dora the Explorer where Boots (the monkey)?got to do all his favorite things on “Boots’s Special Day.” I pondered: What it would be like to fill a weekend with all of one’s favorite things?

Since this was a personal finance book, I threw in the question of what such a special weekend would cost.?

The answer turned out to be $200 for Jennie Aguirre, an Arizona resident who agreed to be my guinea pig. We worked together to figure out some of her favorite activities, which she then planned into?all the major spots of an upcoming weekend. She danced with girlfriends on Friday night, went on a bike ride with her husband on Saturday, had friends over for board games on Saturday night, and went clearance shopping all by herself on Sunday afternoon. The family then ended the weekend with a special crab leg dinner with peach pie for dessert.?

She had a blast and realized how fun life can feel when you keep having good things planned in the near future. “It was exciting to be out Friday night and look forward to the next morning and then go on a bike ride and look forward to our friends and family coming over and then have game night and think, hey, I get to go shop all day tomorrow!” she told me.

Jennie had started by calling this experiment her “dream weekend,” but then we realized that wasn’t quite the right language. That would imply a more once-in-a-lifetime thing like jetting off to Paris and having a private dinner in the Louvre. There was nothing about the weekend Jennie planned that she couldn’t do at least once a month or so if she wanted. Happiness turns out to be pretty attainable. (And relatively affordable! Jennie shopped at Dillard’s, so she kept the check under control.)

I’m guessing that if you thought about it, you too could create your best weekend ever out of things that aren’t terribly difficult to do. What are some of your favorite activities? What do you find yourself looking forward to??

I’m reasonably introverted, but I love small parties where I know most of the people, so I’m always excited about those. I like eating in good restaurants. I like running in cool places (with friends when possible!). I like little seasonal adventures like visiting botanical gardens. I like massages, and I like singing interesting music with my choir. A perfect weekend would contain some of all that. Boots the monkey marched in a drum parade, stopped by Diego’s Animal Rescue Center, and visited his daddy at the amusement park where he worked.?

How about you? Try making a list. If you want to keep with the frugal theme of All the Money in the World you could figure out a way to do these activities on the cheap (a potluck vs. a formal dinner party; visiting a garden where you already have a membership, etc.). But in any case, choose a few, and then pick an upcoming weekend. Maybe next weekend! Figure out the logistics to do these favorite activities during the major weekend time slots: Friday night, Saturday day, Saturday night, Sunday day, and Sunday night. What needs to happen for you to fully enjoy this time?

Then revel in this anticipation. You probably won’t put this much planning into every weekend…though you could. But as you’re experiencing your fun, pause to notice it. What does it feel like to not only enjoy what you’re doing but know you have more good stuff coming up soon??

Life should be enjoyed whenever possible. Planning great weekends can be a big part of that.?

PS. If you’ve enjoyed these recent newsletters on topics from All the Money in the World, perhaps you’d enjoy reading the book! You might not find it in a physical bookstore?a decade after publication, but you can order a copy from major retailers?here.?