Going Back to the Drawing Board

I was a planner.  The moment I learned to read and write, I started dreaming… I started planning.  I would scribble notes about my dreams and plans for my future.  I would write short-term and long-term goals.  That habit stopped when my most important plan in life got derailed. At that very moment, everything stood still, everything turned black! I told myself I am not going back to the drawing board because it is useless to plan in this chaotic world.

Why plan when nothing is predictable?  Our world today has more uncertainties than ever before; today’s world is a chaos.  We live in uncertainties – relationships, jobs, businesses.  Writing down life goals is a futile exercise; I will be content with the general fact of what I want in life - happy relationship with my kids, meaningful work, making more money.

Years passed and I received menial results from my efforts; I wasn’t going anywhere.  It finally dawned on me that my efforts are turning in mediocre results because I am not specific to what I want in life; I wasn’t planning.  Hence, I picked up my pen and paper (my iPod) and wrote down my thoughts, my plans.  I went back to my drawing board.

A clear plan encourages you to get out of bed in the morning.  It gives you a purpose; it motivates you to take action.   A specific plan is the reason why we do what we do.  A clear plan focuses us to what we want to achieve; it drives us forward to our goal.  A clear plan kills procrastination and complacency.

We suffer so much stress because of the uncertainly around us. A clear and written plan takes away our focus from our uncertain world to the certainty of our hopes and desires. A written plan makes our goals look more realistic.  As we read our plan, it gives us the will power to run after these goals and dreams despite the chaos of this world.  Our plan gives us the strength to carry on whatever hindrances we may face.  We write our plan on a paper (iPod), not on stone.  If plan A does not work, we can have plan B and so on till we reach our goal.  What is important is that we draft a plan for our goal.

Writing down your plan gives it life; it breathes the air of hope into your life.   As you put action into your plan, every small step gives you a feeling that you are making progress.  This is the air of hope that gives you the feeling that you are getting closer to your goal no matter how small the step may be.   You start to feel good about yourself and get more encouraged and more determined to achieve your goal.  This small step is more powerful than the actual achievement of your goal because it is this small step that propelled you to reach your goal.

Writing down your plan focuses your energy into something productive.   Writing down a plan takes your mind off the negative thoughts – worrying about things that you can’t control.  We easily get distracted by chaos around us – gossips in the office, relationship issues, problems at home.  Writing down your plan will take your mind away from these negative thoughts and focus your energy into something more beneficial for your future.

Writing down your plan helps you go through the tough times in life.  No one is exempted from the tough times in life.  Fame, fortune, beauty nor health cannot shield you from the facts of life - tough times. Losing a job, divorce, financial crisis, relationship issue or even the daily troubles at home can ruin your future.  But if you have your plan well written, you can set your sight in the future and make the present a little more bearable.  You can say to your present situation that it is a challenge, an opportunity to make your future better and brighter.  Your plan will remind you that this tough moment will make you a stronger and better person. You will overcome it because you have a goal to achieve.

Writing down your plan helps you go through the tough times in life.  I realized this much later, but I am glad I did.  I am glad that I am now back in my drawing board.