#future #present #PlanningForTheFuture #PlanForTheFuture
To paraphrase a Valero TV ad: Why do we focus so much on the future, and not enough on the present?
There are many ways to think about this. So, let’s start with the present, since there is no time like it.
There’s an adage that says, “Do today what others won’t, so you can do tomorrow what others can’t.”
In other words, use the present to plan for the future.
Another school of thought says, “I want it now.” Yet, sometimes forgoing immediate gratification bodes well for your future.
A third thought is, “Carpe Diem,” or “Seize the Day.” But if you seize today, will you have enough to seize tomorrow, or next week, next month, next year?
Certainly, what one does today can help, or hurt, him or her in the future. That one extra cookie, tasty as it is, may leave some extra weight tomorrow. It may be extra weight you will not want, but will have difficulty getting rid of.
At the same time, putting a penny in a piggy bank today, and every day, will get you started on saving for your future. Of course, you MUST have the discipline not to raid your piggy for an impulse buy. And, once you fill that piggy with a penny a day, you have to have the wherewithal eventually to take it to a bank and start to make your money work for your future.
Indeed, focusing on the present, with the right activities, will go a long way to ensuring a good future.
One difference between the present and the future is knowledge. We may not know what the future will look like, but we certainly know what the present looks like.
If your present, as you see it, is not looking good to you, it’s imperative to think about what YOU can do now to make your future better.
Yes, that thought process might involve enduring the present unpleasantness for a time, while you act on finding a good future.
Also, thinking about a good future can relieve some of the stress of a not-so-great present. But, thinking alone will not bring about that good future. You have to think it, certainly, but you also have to know what you have to do to get to it. Then, of course, you have to go about doing those things now.
In short, the present and the future are not necessarily discrete entities. But they can be if you want them to be.
The future, of course, means you will be older. There may be things that you can do now, that you won’t be able to do then. If those things you can do now will help you later on, do them while you are able.
There are also everyday habits in the present that can help, or hurt, your future. Keep the helpful habits and lose the hurtful ones if you can.
Though you may not know what the future will bring, prepare well for it. Be flexible enough to alter your plans as needed, while being steady enough to do the things you are certain will help you later.
Enjoying the present and leaving the future to chance is perilous. No, the future doesn’t take care of itself. But, there may be things, good and bad, that will come your way that you cannot anticipate. Then, it’s a matter of dealing with the future as the present when it comes.
So, enjoy your present, but have an idea what you will need to do to ensure a good future. You will thank yourself later.
Peter