One of the questions that kept popping up in my mind since the beginning of 2022 is why most of the time I don’t pay too much attention to planning my day, although I was doing so at an earlier age, especially when I was in college. What made things different now?
I even asked myself why planning is something obvious in organizations but rare to find among individuals. If I told you that I know a company that operates daily without a plan, you might think I’m kidding. On the contrary, if I told you that a person doesn’t plan their day, you might feel that this is normal and most people don’t; and if you have little interest in that, you might add something like “But planning your day is important after all!”.
After wrapping my head around, I realized that when I was in college, I knew I had limited time to prepare myself for the job market. Especially since I was studying computer science, one of the fast-evolving fields. So, I wanted to prove myself so hard to become one of those talented software engineers in the market. Thinking about the limited free time I had after spending a long time per day on college-related activities made me realize that I needed a plan. I knew internally that I had limited resources, and every second that would pass was so valuable. Knowing that fact worked as fuel for me to use my resources wisely.
The same idea happens with organizations but on a larger scale. Any organization has limited resources. Improper planning will be translated to a huge cost and waste of those limited resources. It also might be worse and lead to bankruptcy of the organization. So, realizing the limited resources and setting a plan to use them efficiently is crucial to any organization.
With those two examples in mind, I realized that I unconsciously fell into the trap of thinking that my resources are unlimited. I kept saying to myself things like, “I have the time. I can do it tomorrow!”. Even when I had some goals that might be useful to my life and career, I kept thinking the same way. I kept forgetting that time, the most valuable resource in our lives, is limited! And the second that passes will not come again!
From time to time, we need to remember this fact to appreciate our resources and use them wisely, especially our time, even when we don’t have clear objectives. Thoms Edison says:
“Time is really the only capital that any human being has, and the only thing he can’t afford to lose.”
