Early in April this year, I joined a team for an outreach in Oyo State. We were at the place on a Thursday till Sunday. On the last day of the exercise, a friend made a comment that sparked a train of thoughts in me on how people sometimes allow time to be wasted without a plan, and consequently, purpose is helplessly unpreserved. She said, “We were here on Thursday but it was just like an hour gone.”
Life runs in similar way: We were here some years ago and we will soon leave this planet. There are two irrevocable gifts of life that one has to be wise in handling: Time and opportunity. This is because what we do or don’t do with opportunity when time lasts invariably becomes the net worth of life.
While pondering on her words, my mind was inundated with hundreds of thoughts. I observed we were on a mission and we had a purpose to accomplish; we encountered unforeseen circumstances such as rainfall; we had reasons to make adjustment such as change venue, time or method; and despite the fact that the circumstances were not lenient on us, the time didn’t stop. If we had not planned our time, it would have just kept burning for nothing. Time waits for no persons, no matter their status.
Dr Mike Murdock wrote, “Planning is the starting point for any dream or goal that you possess.” He defined a plan as “a written list of arranged actions necessary to achieve your desired goal.” Planning becomes the highest form of faith in God. Failure to plan in the name of spirituality is foolishness. Such a deception is born out of lack of understanding of how God works. God is the planner of ages who never does anything without planning. Evidently, God never starts anything He has not finished. God stands in eternity and says, “Only my plan shall prevail.” Therefore, any visions or dreams that aren’t documented are mere wishes or hopes.
Follow me closely as I earmark the seven (7) principles and benefits of planning I learnt from our outreach.
Principle #1
Planning Preserves Purpose
On the second day of the outreach, we were heavily disturbed by rain. Nevertheless, we were able to accomplish our purpose for the hour because we had a guiding plan. Planning preserves purpose even though procedure may change.
Every man is here on earth to fulfill a purpose. However, discouragements will sediment at the bottom of our hearts from time to time. We will keep having discouraging thoughts, moments and circumstances to fight. But it is relieving to know that when we have a guiding plan for our lives, our purpose for each moment of our lives shall be preserved.
Principle #2
Planning Regulates Time
The greatest commodity in our life is time. Time is the only thing that is unambiguously equivalent to life. Our life end up becoming what we exchange our time for. Therefore, time should be made accountable. It should be monitored and effectively spent
Time drips continually like the eastern earthen roof: sixty drops of the measure of time make one hour. When we have twenty-four hours, it makes one day. It doesn’t take long for time to accumulate. However, planning is the strategy by which time is prolifically captured.
Planning is the most effective time management strategy and a sure way of living effectively. Success is accomplishment and accomplishment is in doing. However, work will be uncoordinated or simply unregulated without adequate planning.
At the outreach, our time was regulated by planning. Everybody knew what to do, how to do, when to do, for what reason to do and when to do any items in our agenda of program. Our order of programme outlined when to sleep, when to eat, when to pray and when to work. So our time was well managed. Not only does planning regulate time, it also redeems time.
Principle #3
Planning Gives Value to Time
You probably have heard the saying: “How time flies!” Time is volatile; it vapourizes readily where there’s no planning. Our time out for the outreach from Thursday to Sunday was just like a few hours gone. On the last day, we could not believe we had spent about 3 days already for the program. Nonetheless, what counted at the end of the day was what we were able to accomplish according to our planning, even though time itself had flown away.
The best judge of our effectiveness in life is time. The quality of life is measured in domination or donation, not in duration. It is in what we have been able to do between the first life cry and the final breath.
Principle #4
Planning Helps to Accomplish Much within Short Time
A dream or goal with not deadline can last till eternity. An academic program that’s supposed to last for 3 years can be run for 7 years if there is no solid plan for it. For instance, you may be a PhD student and goes to the laboratory any day you feel like. However, having a plan can make a difference. This is because planning makes you to be disciplined.
Planning will dictate what kind of friend you choose, what number of hours you spend on TV, and what kind of book you read. In a nutshell, planning will help you to accomplish much within a short time.
Planning also monitors the progress of purpose. One can monitor one’s progress in business, academic, or ministry with a plan. During our outreach, we simply confirmed our progress by checking what agenda we had accomplished compared with what we set out to accomplish. So in short time, we made a great impact in the community.
Principle #5
Planning Helps to Shun Distractions
It is natural for discouragements to come. Many circumstances cannot be figured out at the beginning. But they will surface somewhere in the middle of the way. Both expected and unexpected distractions are best handle by having a solid plan.
The wisdom needed for the moment will come if there is a plan. Of course, you can’t adjust a plan you don’t have. When we were distracted by rain at our outreach, we changed the venue. In fact, some of us quickly came up with an alternative program that somewhat fulfilled the initial plan. A person who works with a plan is not readily distracted by little challenges.
Principle #6
Planning Checks Procrastination
A Planned Life is a Captured Destiny. You see, life can be funny. One may be at the realm of profession of what one would love to accomplish in life for the whole first half of one’s life. John Mason rightly said, “Some people spend half their lives telling what they are going to do, and the other half explaining why they didn’t do it.”
What you ought to do today may be postponed till tomorrow because nothing is planned for tomorrow. That of tomorrow too can be postponed till next tomorrow because every new day is always an unoccupied, unplanned day.
A loosed destiny is the one that is not planned. It can stray at will following the dictate of societal happenings. An unplanned life can be stopped by economic hardship but the mind of a planned one will devise a surviving mechanism no matter how difficult is it.
For our outreach, we never allowed our time to be dictated for by harsh circumstances we met on ground. We never procrastinate what we ought to do per time. Procrastination is not only a thief of time but also a thief of life because time is life.
Principle #7
Planning Helps in Maintaining Priority and Focus
There are one thousand and one things that will demand one’s attention in life. You cannot do or become everything. You don’t have to be everywhere; however, you can be somewhere and affects everywhere. This is the nature of light. Light only stays at the lamp-stand and gives illumination to everyone that comes in or goes out.
There are many good things that may demand for your time but not all good are right. A little deviation from what your priority should be may lead you where you should not be. Therefore, the key to effective living is priority. Planning is important in setting right priority. It will help you focus on few but glorious things you’ve carefully selected among other important things. By this, planning gives meaning to life.
'Yemi Adekunle
Writer, and Pharmacist.
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