Planning the future in spans of 6-12 months requires deciding with certainty what paths to follow.

The present is most valuable when its events are the results of past planning. Knowing not only where we are currently, but where we should be, sets an internal pace, and an objective measure of progress along our path.

Even in writing this, I stumble over words and concepts I know to be almost universally true. Why? Because their truth is uncomfortable, and as such, they are shown to be all the more timely and important for me.

Some of us, myself included, have tried to avoid planning for fear of missing some larger but hitherto unknown opportunity. We must realize however, that the negative effects of continued stagnant procrastination, a self-glorified, self-righteous, self-justified holding pattern we daren’t break, wastes away our precious time and focus.

While those action-oriented individuals spend their time continuously planning, executing, processing input from successes and failures, and repeating, those in the eternal holding pattern gain zero units of real world experience. This withdrawal from reality into an unproductive feedback loop is where many of us find ourselves today.

So now, what is the first action?

It seems that I must repeat the most boring, generic, cliche advice that all of us claim to know, but few actually rise to act upon – brainstorm and write out goals, now!

Work backwards from these to the present, and take immediate action.

Every day we lose precious time to Motivation Malfunction. Little by little, it tries to sap away our precious focus, to dwell on ‘what ifs’ and ‘boo hoos’ that lurk about in the peripheral of our consciousness. This article, “Staying Motivated When It All Goes To Hell“, is a great wake up call to keep moving forward, faster than ever.

I use it as part of my “Emergency Motivation Arsenal”, in case I find myself moping about instead of pursuing my goals.

It’s easy to get motivated by an idea. A plan. A goal. We tend to get easily excited by and obsessed over these (and other) four-letter words. The thought of them is intoxicating, and when you’re caught up in the euphoria, suddenly all things seem possible. You want it bad, and you chase it with a smile on your face.

But there’s another four letter that most people don’t like to face, and that’s work.

When your goals just aren’t doing it for you, when you’re not getting excited enough to chase them anymore, something is wrong. You feel like you’re going through the motions, doing what you have to in order to chug along, and the hot idea that once dominated your thoughts has lost its luster. What used to be a driving passion becomes just another chore. You start entertaining thoughts of giving up.

Full Article: Staying Motivated When It All Goes To Hell