Hello. How are you doing? Are you surprised to see me in your inbox? Please, forgive me. I recall telling you that you’d see me twice a month for the next three months. However, seeing me once a week isn’t such a bad thing, is it?
Last week, I was thinking about planning and how important it is for everyone, especially young adults, so I decided to write to you this week.
Although I intended to write about planning, I realised I had already failed because I didn’t have a plan for how to address it to you. For the first 8 to ten minutes, I was just unsure what to write. I had no idea how I was going to carry it out. And I failed because I was supposed to give you this yesterday.
I’m going somewhere, and it’s here: making resolutions is beneficial. In fact, making a decision to do or not do something is a good thing, just as I decided to write about planning. However, if you don’t have any plans, you won’t be able to follow through on your decision.
Plans are not the same as resolutions. Your firm decisions to do or not do something are referred to as resolutions. They are the actions you have decided to take. For example, I resolved to write once every two weeks for the first three months, regardless of how busy I am. Yes, I need to make time to write. That’s a good one, isn’t it? In fact, I think it’s fantastic.
However, if I don’t plan ahead of time, it won’t be enough. To plan is to “think about and decide what you are going to do or how you are going to do something,” according to the Cambridge English Dictionary. A plan is a detailed plan for doing or accomplishing something.
A plan outlines how you will achieve your goals. So, as you make resolutions for work, school, spirituality, career, finances, relationships, and other areas of your life, learn to make plans alongside them.
Planning necessitates sitting down and setting achievable and realistic goals for your life. For example, one of my goals for this year is to reach out to more young adults with learning disabilities and mental health issues. Isn’t it spectacular?
However, regardless of work, how do I intend to make this a reality? I need to make plans to make this work, or else I’ll fail spectacularly because I’ve already failed to plan. So, no matter how amazing your resolutions are, if you don’t plan, you’re already planning to fail.
So, planning entails you stepping outside of your comfort zone and attempting the impossible. It requires you to write out how you intend to accomplish something, even if the how-to is ambiguous or vague for the time being. It’s up to you to make up your mind and stretch yourself because the circumstances around you aren’t in your favour. But you know you have to push yourself beyond your perceived limits. Stretching only serves to highlight the fact that your limitations are entirely self-imposed. Your limitations do not pass the four walls of your mind. They are your thoughts.
It’s critical to understand that if you don’t plan well, you’ll eventually become desperate, and people will take advantage of you. So, planning isn’t enough; planning well is required. Most importantly, make sure your plans are flexible. Be open and willing to learn. Listen to people’s opinions, filter them, and use the ones that are relevant.
Planning is essential for success in all areas. You want to lose weight; how do you plan to do so? You want to meet new people; how do you plan on doing so? Do you want to improve your financial situation? What are your plans?
“A goal without a plan is just a wish,” says Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, a French writer, poet, aristocrat, journalist, and pioneering aviator. It’s past time to prioritize planning. While the year is still young, make a list of your resolutions and plans. And, if you’re a believer, bring them before God and let Him direct your steps.
I wish you a happy and prosperous new year.