The hottest Planning Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Business Topics

Stop idolizing Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Próspera

The Novelleist • 130 implied HN points • 10 Mar 26
🌍 World Politics Planning
  1. Autonomy for cities is promising but not enough on its own; good outcomes also require the right governance, policies, and attention to quality of life.
  2. Hong Kong shows that having near-identical autonomy and land-rent systems to Singapore didn’t produce the same results, so similar powers can lead to different outcomes.
  3. Don’t idolize Hong Kong, Shenzhen, or Próspera as automatic blueprints; there are other, better examples and deeper lessons to learn when building utopian cities.

Methods and Outcomes

The Breaking Point • 159 implied HN points • 08 Oct 24
💼 Business Planning
  1. When making decisions, it's important to separate methods from outcomes. If you mix them up, it can lead to confusion and endless debates.
  2. You can plan in two ways: starting with methods to estimate outcomes or starting with outcomes to figure out the methods needed. Both ways can work depending on the situation.
  3. To empower your team, give them clear outcomes and let them choose their own methods. This way, they feel involved and motivated to succeed.

Europe needs better rockets

Odds and Ends of History • 268 implied HN points • 16 Feb 26
🎙 Podcasts Planning
  1. A single planning objection can kill local projects like a neighbourhood battery. This shows how complaints can waste council resources and block useful energy infrastructure.
  2. Europe needs its own independent rocket launch capability so it can reliably access space for industry, science, and future growth.
  3. Reliable, abundant energy is what makes modern life possible. Arguing for technologies like nuclear can help counter degrowth ideas and protect prosperity.

Build the Rail! Save the Snails!

Comment is Freed • 125 implied HN points • 16 Feb 26
🌞 Climate & Environment Planning
  1. The core problem isn’t the environmental rules but an adversarial, litigation‑driven planning system that makes developers over‑engineer projects to avoid rare but ruinously expensive judicial reviews, driving up time and cost.
  2. Fix the process by having government set clear standards early and create a central Infrastructure Directorate to coordinate consultees and produce a full project specification, plus an early "Statement of Key Issues" so objections are raised and dealt with up front and money shifts from costly pre‑construction work into real mitigation and building.
  3. Change the culture by expanding state planning capacity (funded by an industry levy) and increasing secondments between industry, regulators and environmental bodies so professionals share incentives and focus on cooperative, long‑term problem solving rather than adversarial legal tactics.

Universal's troubled waters

Odds and Ends of History • 201 implied HN points • 02 Feb 26
🎙 Podcasts Planning
  1. The new Universal theme park is creating unexpected pressure on local water infrastructure, showing gaps in planning and coordination with utilities.
  2. Planning committee meetings are a key public forum where politicians and campaigners can highlight development issues and sometimes create dramatic moments.
  3. Foreign-born founders make a large contribution to the UK economy, and immigration policy should be reformed to better attract and support high-growth entrepreneurs.
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My super simple task management hack

Tiny Empires • 98 implied HN points • 30 Jan 26
💼 Business Planning
  1. Pick one clear big goal and use it as the filter for every task you consider.
  2. Each day choose exactly three meaningful tasks from your prioritized list and schedule them the night before or during a weekly planning session.
  3. Block out 1–3 hour calendar slots for those tasks, overestimate how long they’ll take, and treat them like real meetings to ensure focus and accountability.

How Duolingo builds product

Lenny's Newsletter • 3459 implied HN points • 21 Mar 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Duolingo's product teams are structured with co-leads from different functions for effective leadership.
  2. Duolingo uses quarterly OKRs with a structured planning process involving team, area, and company-wide reviews.
  3. Duolingo plans with quarterly OKRs for teams/areas and yearly OKRs for the whole company to define strategic bets.

Many Victorian cities grew by tenfold in a century

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 55 implied HN points • 03 Feb 26
💾 History Planning
  1. Cities in the nineteenth century grew hugely while getting better: wide, connected street networks, modern sewers, running water and mass transit let homes become larger and more affordable relative to incomes.
  2. Governments used regulated monopolies, concessions or municipal companies and charged users enough to pay for big upfront costs. That alignment of private profit and public benefit let operators build coherent, non‑duplicative networks.
  3. Since 1914 many of those arrangements unraveled and were replaced by zoning, price controls and subsidies, which slowed growth and worsened housing affordability. Cities that want faster growth and more housing should consider permissive building rights, coordinated street planning, and financing models that align private incentives with public goods.

How I Used Methodable to Have a Nice Tuesday

Human Programming • 51 implied HN points • 22 Jan 26
🕹 Technology Planning
  1. A small meta-plan in Methodable can un-scatter your attention by giving you one clear instruction at a time so you follow prior intentions and finish high-priority tasks.
  2. Start with a simple seed meta-plan and gradually structure it: collect your to-dos, free-write motivations, then convert those into detailed, executable subprograms.
  3. Designing guided workspaces with time-boxing, embedded editors, and positive self-talk makes it easier to regain focus, stay motivated, and end the day feeling accomplished.

How to see beauty

Ralph Ammer • 884 implied HN points • 01 Oct 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Planning
  1. Moments of excessive beauty can be hard to fully enjoy due to distractions and worries.
  2. When drawing, focus on what you find interesting, make a plan, and stay relaxed yet attentive.
  3. Accept imperfections in your art as they can capture the essence of the moment and experience.

The grandeur and minutiae of Yellowstone

PASSAGES • 379 implied HN points • 22 Jan 24
🏝 Travel Planning
  1. Yellowstone National Park is huge, covering several small European countries or two average U.S. states.
  2. Planning well ahead for a trip to Yellowstone is crucial to avoid unexpected changes and inconveniences.
  3. To fully experience Yellowstone, it's best to explore different areas of the park on separate days and minimize backtracking.

TBM 325: Skeptoptimism – Thinking Slow, Acting Fast

The Beautiful Mess • 952 implied HN points • 01 Dec 24
💼 Business Planning
  1. Thinking slowly helps in planning well and reducing risks. It's not sitting idle; it's about being active and experimenting with ideas.
  2. Being a skeptoptimist means balancing a belief in teams with a realistic view of challenges. It's important to express confidence in the team's ability to succeed while addressing risks.
  3. It's key to involve others in 'slow thinking' to ensure they understand and support the process. Sharing your thoughts can help bridge the gap between deep exploration and action.

House builders are not a bunch of bankers

Odds and Ends of History • 268 implied HN points • 14 Jul 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Planning
  1. Housing developers aren't the greedy land-bankers people often think they are. In fact, many factors affecting their work are quite broken.
  2. There's a new plan to possibly build Heathrow's third runway before the election, which could change how we handle infrastructure projects.
  3. Focusing on time management can help speed up large projects. A surprising example is how a nuclear plant was approved in just three days!

Making a plan

Register Spill • 334 implied HN points • 04 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Planning
  1. Making a plan before starting a project is crucial for success.
  2. A detailed plan helps in thinking through the tasks and potential challenges.
  3. Writing down tasks and delegating them can improve productivity and efficiency.

Mapping your company's year: how to sequence the big processes

Lessons • 255 implied HN points • 07 Apr 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Sequencing big projects in your company efficiently can save time and streamline processes.
  2. Key company-wide activities to schedule include board meetings, business reviews, budgeting, and performance reviews.
  3. Being thoughtful about the timing of important processes like performance reviews can impact company productivity.

Take Infinity: Mini Exasperations #1

Exasperated Infrastructures • 12 implied HN points • 05 Jan 26
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Planning
  1. A plan to publish 52 weekly pieces focused on urban politics and infrastructure, each following a three-part format: a short observation, a few curated articles with context, and a recommended writer.
  2. Infrastructure decisions are political and require clear alternatives analysis and honest cost comparisons; big projects like tunnels or high‑speed rail come with trade‑offs around funding, oversight, and procurement (including Build America/Buy America implications).
  3. There’s an emphasis on building reader community and engagement through a short survey, subscriptions, and by spotlighting other writers to broaden conversation and connections.

Out of the Woods

The Weasel Speaks • 117 implied HN points • 20 May 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Planning
  1. Sometimes, not planning can work out well if you have experience and know what you're doing.
  2. The 'why' of your actions is important for achieving results, even if the 'how' can vary.
  3. Having different levels of planning, from extensive to in-the-moment, is essential for successful team leadership.

Points of failure

Chronicles and Meditations • 79 implied HN points • 01 Oct 23
🏝 Travel Planning
  1. It's important to identify points of failure in systems and in life to prevent things from going wrong or costing a lot to fix.
  2. Make a priority list focusing on crucial tasks first while not stressing over less important ones, which can save money and prevent chaos.
  3. Some plans in life have critical pitfalls, like forgetting a crucial document while traveling, which can disrupt the entire plan.

Permission to Act: The Psychology of Effective Planning | LSW#59

The Leading Sapiens Weekly • 120 implied HN points • 12 Dec 24
💼 Business Planning
  1. Plans help us take action, even if they're not perfect. They give us the confidence to start exploring without needing everything to be figured out.
  2. Taking steps forward can bring clarity. Instead of waiting for a perfect plan, moving can help us learn and adjust along the way.
  3. Sometimes, acting on a not-so-accurate map can be better than seeking perfection. It allows us to move forward and learn from our experiences rather than staying stuck.

Invert, always invert

The Engineering Manager • 10 implied HN points • 23 Nov 25
💼 Business Planning
  1. Inversion is a problem-solving technique where you think about how things could fail instead of just focusing on how to succeed. This helps you spot potential problems before they happen.
  2. Using inversion in engineering projects can reveal blind spots we often miss when we only plan for success. By anticipating failure, we can create better strategies and avoid disasters.
  3. Next time you're starting a big project, try doing an 'inversion pass.' Ask what could go wrong and work to prevent those issues, which can lead to more successful outcomes.

Excess Capacity in SFUSD's schools

SFEDup • 58 implied HN points • 21 Mar 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Planning
  1. Different sources provide varying estimates of capacity for SFUSD schools.
  2. Actual enrollment history may provide a more accurate measure of capacity than the Facilities Master Plan.
  3. SFUSD has excess space for about 25% more students than currently enrolled, which may indicate too much capacity.

Steps to Strategy

Seth’s Substack • 58 implied HN points • 03 Apr 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Make time for big picture thinking and strategy in your leadership role.
  2. Remember to prioritize self-care to be more effective in your strategic work.
  3. Consider specific prompts like wish lists and worry lists to guide your strategic planning.

How we increased execution by 10x at Coda | Oliver Heckmann - Head of Engineering at Coda

platocommunity • 39 implied HN points • 13 Dec 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Cutting down planning time to 10% allows for better focus and higher quality plans, leading to increased execution speed.
  2. Bridging the Planning-Execution Canyon by synchronizing OKRs in planning and execution documents improves insight, accountability, and progress tracking.
  3. Creating centralized Team Hubs with all important information in one place reduces information silos, fosters transparency, and promotes unified teamwork.

Chinese Ghost Cities

An Interpersonal Journal • 79 implied HN points • 07 Apr 23
🌍 World Politics Planning
  1. China builds 'ghost cities' as future urban solutions by planning ahead and constructing modern, connected environments before the need arises.
  2. Urban developments in China, like the infamous 'ghost cities', prioritize thoughtful planning, amenities, and interconnectedness with main cities to accommodate growing populations.
  3. Chinese 'ghost city' projects have yielded successes in addressing housing demands, but also face challenges like slow population growth and displacing existing communities.

Conquering the Dreaded Annual Plan

Build To Scale • 39 implied HN points • 17 Oct 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Annual planning is crucial but understand that it's a flexible roadmap, not a rigid rulebook for the year ahead
  2. Using SWOT analysis can help identify internal strengths, weaknesses, and external opportunities, threats to guide strategic initiatives
  3. Evaluate your team's readiness to scale, recognize their strengths, weaknesses, and consider bringing in new talent as needed

How to redraw a city

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 17 implied HN points • 18 Jun 25
🪑 Design Planning
  1. Japan's cities transformed rapidly thanks to a planning method called land readjustment. This approach helps organize land into larger areas for better infrastructure while ensuring fairness for landowners.
  2. Infrastructure is crucial for city development, but it can be tricky because it often doesn't generate direct revenue. Japan managed to tackle this by sharing the benefits of new developments with everyone involved.
  3. Land readjustment isn't just useful in Japan; it has been applied successfully in other countries too. When communities feel included and can benefit from changes, it leads to better urban planning outcomes.

Strategy Is About Confident Decision-Making

The Strategy Deck • 19 implied HN points • 14 Apr 23
💼 Business Planning
  1. Strategy in business involves making confident decisions for success and profitability.
  2. Three fundamental elements of strategy are investment decisions, analysis and prioritization, and stakeholder involvement.
  3. Types of strategy work include business strategy, product strategy, and strategic planning, each with specific focuses and benefits.

12 Steps To Inner Rewilding

Creative Destruction • 53 implied HN points • 01 Mar 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Planning
  1. Start by taking time to do nothing for inner rewilding, giving yourself the space to observe and disconnect from things depleting your inner diversity.
  2. Conduct an inventory of your inner self, focusing on understanding your thoughts, feelings, connections, and overall ecosystem to initiate the process of inner rewilding.
  3. Seek guidance from individuals who are experienced in inner rewilding and reconnect with systems and people around you to develop a plan for reintroducing inner wildness.