Failing To Plan Is Planning To Fail

Introduction

Planning plays a pivotal role in the achievement of our aims and objectives. It is a process that helps us accomplish our tasks at the right time in the right way. Whether we're dealing with a business matter a family issue or anything concerning our job, education, career, character, or even health; careful or thoughtful planning may lead us to success, whereas poor planning will bring about failures.

Set Your Priorities

First, we must set our priorities in sequence of our necessities. What we need the most should be at the top of our priority list. If anyone with no home of his own, plans to buy an expensive car without any overwhelming need, this will be like putting the cart before the horse. Once you have set your priorities, after careful contemplation, consideration, and consultation, adhere to them as long as possible. Blowing hot and cold about your tasks and targets results in regret and remorse.

Long-term Planning

Far-sightedness should also be an essential part of your planning. This is usually referred to as long-term planning. Any plan that encourages you to gain only temporary benefits, neglecting its loss in the long run is not a good one. A far-sighted person, organization, management, and establishment even sacrifices a temporary benefit to stay safe from a prominent loss in the future. A good plan enables you to ponder over the possible outcomes, results, repercussions, positives, negatives, and pros and cons of your action in advance, eventually protecting you from loss. Moreover, instead of relying only on one plan, we should have more than one so that we can use the second option if the first one does not work.

Practicability

To be mindful of the practicability and feasibility of your plan is of vital importance. Following a plan that has produced good results in a certain place whose ground reality is different from yours may be risky. Likewise, if you plan to achieve something impossible, you are going to build castles in the air. Be aware of the difference between planning and daydreaming. Analyse and realize the gravity of the situation and plan your actions accordingly.

To-Do-List and Checklist

Procrastination is a major hurdle in the timely accomplishment of your tasks. Many people desire and aspire to achieve their aims but fail in doing that even after a very long period. There are many causes for it, including inattention and a careless attitude. Anything that fails to receive our attention falls prey to procrastination. A tried and tested technique to get rid of inattention and procrastination is to make your plans in black and white in the form of a to-do list as well as a checklist. Keep glancing at these lists from time to time. This will serve as a means of motivation. By employing these tactics, sooner or later, you will achieve your goals. Also, set a timeline for each task.

Avoid Haste

As long as possible, avoid making plans in haste. Haste is the mother of shame. In other words, any action done in haste and hurry without proper planning bullet may lead to shame. However, timely completion of tasks is also equally important. Some people brood over things in the name of planning for a very long period and eventually miss the boat.

Do Not Bite Off More Than You Can Chew

If you're very shy, and hesitant and end up accepting unnecessary and extra responsibilities, there will be a drop in your performance standard. Do some thinking before accepting any extra responsibility. This will help you maintain and retain an excellent level of performance.

Time Is Money

As mentioned before, time is money. Make the most of your time by planning your work each day, if possible. During work, avoid chit-chat with colleagues, excessive use of your mobile phone, unnecessary research, unnecessary emails, pop-up notifications, distractions, interruptions, and even irrelevant thoughts. Also, avoid interference and involvement in matters that have nothing to do with you. Plan to do the most important task at the time of the day when you are energetic and dynamic and have no mental and physical fatigue.

Of course, cooperation, collaboration, and coordination with colleagues in the management may be an official requirement, but this should be scheduled beforehand. Moreover, find out ways to carry out work more quickly and smartly, benefiting from modern technologies rather than doing them in a tedious, monotonous, and laborious way. But also remember that sometimes it is dangerous to have shortcuts.

Some matters are so crucial and sensitive that they should not be dealt with in a hurry. Likewise, assigning a task to a capable and willing individual may also prove to be a great help in the timely completion of our task. We should have the ability to judge the qualities of others so that we can choose the best from among them.

Deception In The Name of Planning

‘Future planning’ are the words that seem to have been engraved on the minds of most people. Although planning to meet the basic needs of your life and to get facilities with good intentions to a certain extent is not something bad, it seems all our future planning is restricted to world life. We fail to recognize our real future, that is, our afterlife. We are making plans for the worldly life where we will not live forever, but we are not making any plans for the afterlife where we will never die. It appears most of us have been deceived by this world.

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) once said: “Do you not feel surprised at Usamah who has made a deal on one month’s credit? Without a doubt, Usamah has long hopes. I swear by the One under whose Power my life is! When I blink my eyes, I presume that I will pass away before my eyelashes open. When I raise my eyelashes, I presume that the promise of death will be fulfilled before I lower them. And when I put the morsel into my mouth, I presume that I will not be able to swallow it before death. O people! If you have wisdom, count yourselves among the dead".

The best plan is the one that leads us to prepare for our debt before we meet our debt. The most important factor to ensure is that all our planning must remain within the bounds of the Sharia.

Conclusion

I will conclude with a blessed Hadith, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who once said (Mukashafa-tul-Quloob, p.34): “An era will soon come upon my Ummah when they will love five and will forget five:

1.     They will love the world and will forget the Hereafter

2.     They will love wealth and will forget accountability

3.     They will love creation and will forget the Creator

4.     They will love sins and will forget repentance

5.     They will love palaces and will forget the grave.’

Don't fail to plan for the ultimate test. Never forget! Your guide is this world is the Quran and Sunnah. Don't be deceived!