Quotations for Motivation #22 --- Planning

Those who don't plan offer the excuse that it takes time. What they are really saying is that they are afraid to think.

—Stephen R. Covey, Irish Challenge, Finaghy, Ireland, Sept. 15, 1963.

How large should we make our plans? I answer, AS LARGE AS OUR POSSIBILITIES. It is the spirit that glories in performing difficult tasks that conquers the sea, and masters the air. Our plans should be AS GREAT AS OUR PERILS. Perils are opportunities to men of vision and action. Our plans should be AS GREAT AS OUR RESPONSIBILITIES.

—Millard A. Jenkens, Baptist Message, Shreveport, La., March 17, 1927.

Planning is the very essence of order. Without it life becomes pointless and chaotic. To exist without planning would be like pouring a concrete foundation without first constructing the forms.

—R. Crawford Davis, Westate, Denver, Colo., November 1963.

Study implies not what we are doing today, but what we are to do in days to come. Some call it planning, but an equally good word is navigation.

—Franklin D. Roosevelt, New York Times, New York, New York, June 10, 1931.

Men who do not plan their own future seldom have any.

---Orison Swett Marden, Success Magazine, New York, N.Y., January 1906.

Whatever is worth doing is worth planning to do well.

---William T. Ellis, The Daily Argus, Mount Vernon, N.Y., April 15, 1916.

We succeed most often when we plan successfully.

—Liston Dickson Elkins, Waycross Journal-Herald, Waycross, Ga., June 22, 1944.

Half-baked plans lead to financial indigestion.

---B.C. Forbes, Gazette and Bulletin, Williamsport, Pa., Feb. 1, 1929.

Plan for tomorrow—but plod today.

---B.C. Forbes, Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wis., Aug. 9, 1929.

The man who has no inspiring plans involving work for himself in the future has already begun to die.

‑‑‑A.J. Gearheard, The Shreveport Times, Shreveport, La., Jan. 19, 1919.

The trouble with planning seems to be that the plans won’t work unless the people do.

---Beverly Gray, The Calgary Herald, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, April 7, 1948.

Some men are so busy covering up their past they haven’t time to plan for the future.

---Avery Powell, Waycross Journal-Herald, Waycross, Ga., Sept. 28, 1937.

Every man is the architect of his own fortune but nowadays a lot of us seem to have foozled our plans.

---Edmund J. Kiefer, Buffalo Courier-Express, Buffalo, N.Y., Jan. 27, 1932.

It is shortsighted to plan for one’s old age without providing for one’s everlasting youth.

---Edmund J. Kiefer, Buffalo Courier-Express, Buffalo, N.Y., June 16, 1957.

If you are always in a hurry there is something wrong with your planning.

---J.J. Mundy, Waycross Journal-Herald, Waycross, Ga., Sept. 22, 1934.

Work without a plan is like sailing a ship without a compass. To him who does everything in its proper time, one day is worth three of his who does things haphazard.

---Lucius W. Nieman, Milwaukee Journal, Milwaukee, Wis., May 12, 1912.

If you have no plan for your life, do not blame someone else if you get nowhere.

---Roy L. Smith, Buffalo Courier-Express, Buffalo, N.Y., Jan. 17, 1931.

No life is ever successful which is not planned.

---Roy L. Smith, Buffalo Courier-Express, Buffalo, N.Y., June 11, 1931.

Many people are so eager for the future to arrive that they don’t make any plans for it in the meantime.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., March 4, 1949.

One trouble with everybody is that we all think the future is much farther ahead than it really is.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., Jan. 16, 1953.

One trouble with planning for the future is that you’re never sure when it will arrive.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., Feb. 7, 1954.

Some people have plans but others merely have designs.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., Jan. 8, 1957.

Some people like a surprise so well that they seem to plan things in that direction.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., July 23, 1961.

It would be a lot easier to plan for the future if things didn’t have a way of sneaking up on a person without invitation or warning.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., March 31, 1965.

No matter how much they thought they planned for the future it sneaks up on some people unexpectedly.

---John Merrill Chilcote, St. Joseph News-Press, St. Joseph, Mo., Feb. 13, 1970.

If you make no attempt to plan, you are shaping that future accidentally by expedient, short-range decisions. It is moving without a clear sense of direction, and dissipating much of its energy on non-essential activities. Long-range planning is not an activity of future interest only; it is an activity which is pertinent to your situation today. Planning with long-range vision starts affecting the character of today's decisions from the moment the process begins. Long-range planning consists of much more than laying out a plan--it is a way of life. It is more like a process than an act. It involves continual evaluation and reevaluation, planning and replanning, changing to fit new circumstances.

---David M. Badger, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., August 1966.

Planning presupposes a conceived purpose. When we speak of the value of careful planning, therefore, we must have in mind planning to a foreseen end. Obviously unless we have first seen clearly what we are planning for, we cannot plan effectively. We are not primarily reformers of the world at large, but rather reformers, that is to say, improvers of ourselves. Out of this rises the further implication that we are not divided into givers and receivers, but that we as individual units are contributors, united as collaborators in an endeavor by which we hope to better our own qualities. Self-improvement carried to its maximum of possibility means the realization of the whole purpose of life. Betterment of anything may properly be said to be an improvement of it. we must remember, that action is not necessarily synonymous with progress.

—Albert E. Bowen, Improvement Era, Salt Lake City, Utah, September 1935.

The recipe for developing a plan will be successful is you must first catch your idea. It must be a concrete, practical idea. The only reason for not having ideas is that the idea-less man doesn’t use his mental power. The man who uses his brain is the only man who can ever hope to win in the long run. There is such a thing, however, as bring too clever. Given my choice between two men, one who was almost stolidly good-natured and just plodded along, and another one who was forever having brilliant flashes closely approximating genius, I believe I would pick out the plodding plugger. Not because the plugger would be 100 percent efficient, but because he would be more dependable. The too-brilliant man is erratic. He depends on bright ideas rather than hard work. His judgment is often not well balanced enough to detect the difference between a workable idea and one that isn’t practical. It might well to remind the scintillating man that “any dub can think up ideas, but it takes a wise Willie to collect on ‘em.” An old-time salesman once said that the way to succeed was to wear out the soles of your shoes instead of the seat of your pants. He had the right idea. The man who combined about 10 percent leg work with 90 percent bright ideas is on the wrong track. He should revise his percentage and make it 90 percent leg work and 10 percent ideas. The richest treasures that this world holds are at the command of the men with idea. Have ideas. Have plenty of them. But figure them out on a basis of strict workability. Don’t try to be clever at the expense of sound business experience. Remember that the final test of an idea is, “Will it work?” And remember also about wearing out the soles of your shoes instead of the seat of your trousers.

---Ray Griffith, The Evening World, New York, N.Y., Jan. 15, 1919.

The man who has a well thought out plan is the man who is going to get somewhere. To be an opportunist, poised on one foot and ready to take advantage of the turn of fortune, sounds well, but it is the gambler’s way, and the gambler sooner or later comes to grief. The planner is the thinker, the investigator, the foresighted man. He advances slowly but surely, learning always from the past, thinking always of the future. Other men may have what they call luck, but he works out his destiny like the master builder who creates his structure with a set of blueprints before him. No business is stable and sound unless it pursues a well-considered policy. It is worthwhile for a business to employ men who will do nothing but plan ahead for the future of the business. In buying, in selling, and on the technical side of production such men are worth their salaries many times over. Of public servants in high offices of government, the people have a right to expect that they have policies and carry them out. The business world demands for its protection that taxation policies shall be known in advance. Efficiency and economy are promoted when public expenditures are carefully planned. Public business of all kinds cannot be conducted in any haphazard fashion. The servants of democracy must show their plans and be responsible for their execution. So it is through the universe of people and things. Order and stability are the product of well laid plans. If we believe that the world is governed by certain immutable laws, we in our small ways will endeavor to approximate that universal order by introducing plans into our private and public affairs.

---Lucius W. Nieman, Milwaukee Journal, Milwaukee, Wis., Dec. 8, 1918.

Man is master of his own life if he will but be interested enough in his future to map out a constructive plan of procedure. There are many excuses and alibis, but the answer to all of these is merely a lazy mind, that would rather drift with the tide than brush the cobwebs from the convolutions of their brain and do some first class creative thinking and lay a plan for their life and work to it. The plan must be sensible though and within the realm of possibility. For a man of 50 with no training in the matters of state or experience in politics to aspire to the presidency of our nation would be a very ridiculous plan. In planning our lives we must first take stock of our present equipment and fit ourselves into the machinery of life where we can be adapt ourselves, must after the fashion of the rock mason who chisels and shapes the rock as he places it into the foundation of a great building. You can succeed or you will fail in life in exact proportion to your determined desire to cut a swath in life. Your personality is your personified credentials placed before the eyes of the world. The world will read your credentials and you will either step up or down day by day as you have built a personality worthy of promotion or demolition.

---Terry Walter, Evening Independent, St. Petersburg, Fla., Jan. 5, 1929.

Every person should have a plan for his own life. His plan should take into consideration what he can do, what he wants to do, what he thinks he can do, what his opportunities are, and what opportunities he can make. The persons who do the best in this world are those who do the best they can with whatever there is at hand. If one waits around for conditions to get right, one is likely to wait around all one’s life. Conditions have a funny way of getting right for the person who goes to work in and on conditions as he finds them. Most persons have no plan. They drift along from day to day. Have a plan. It does not make so much different what the plan is--any good plan is good; but it must be an honest plan or it will ultimately fail.

---Wickes Wamboldt, Waycross Journal-Herald, Waycross, Ga., Aug. 6, 1940.

Much time and energy is often lost by not having all parts of the plan in readiness at the proper moment. Work done on one part of the plan, often at great effort, cannot be utilized for the next step when it is ready, because something else is not ready.

—Waldo Pondray Warren, Dallas Morning News, Dallas, Texas, Nov. 14, 1907.

Long‑range planning is not too popular. Some people would rather follow trails than blaze them and are therefore quite satisfied with changes that inevitably will come. Long‑range planning invites change. Determine the exact plans to be followed. What time limits will be set for completion? ... Set long‑range objectives. Divide long‑range goals into attainable short‑range goals. Determine the exact steps and timetable for implementing plans. Objectives are useless unless they are underwritten by careful follow‑through.

-‑‑Howard B. Foshee, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., January 1960.

Just what does constitute good planning? Here are some characteristics of planning. Planning must be logical. Ask yourself: What do we want to accomplish? Or, what are we aiming at? Planning must be comprehensive. Planning must look at the total picture. Planning must be flexible. Plans must be flexible if every opportunity is to be grasped. Planning must be extended into the future. When people help develop plans for the future, they catch a vision of where they want to go. And every action they take during the years will be weighed by this question: What will this mean to our long‑range plans? Will it hinder or move us a step nearer our ultimate goals?

‑‑‑Howard B. Foshee, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., January 1962.

Long‑range planning is essential to prevent floundering in a sea of busyness. What is long‑range planning? In its broadest sense, long‑range planning is a systematic process of (1) taking an orderly forward look at responsibilities, opportunities, and work and (2) making an advance determination of the major courses of action to be taken. Long‑range planning involves making determinations about such factors as: 1. Objectives‑‑what we are trying to accomplish. 2. Evaluation‑‑what we are doing to attain our objectives and how much we are accomplishing. 3. Programs and priorities‑‑what we need to do in order to accomplish our objectives and more specific goals; which actions are of greatest importance and when they need to be completed. 4. Requirements and resources‑‑what we need to have or to provide in order to carry out our programs and attain our objectives.

-‑‑Howard B. Foshee, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., July 1962.

Planning leads people to work with greater diligence because the plans are theirs. Planning is deciding on priorities.

‑‑‑Howard B. Foshee, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., October 1963.

Planning is making things happen that would not happen without planning. Planning is choosing. Hard work is required for deciding proper paths to take during future years. Planning takes as much perspiration as inspiration. Planning can help future dreams come true. Planning gives a sense of purpose. Planning assures progress in areas where progress is desired. Setting goals is relatively easy. But planning gets beyond the mere setting of goals to assure that goals are achieved. Before sound plans for future advance can be established accurate information must be compiled on the present level of operation. The key question to ask is, "How well are we now doing our work?" Evaluation must be honest and objective. Only after this information is assured can effective plans be projected. Goals are milestones along the way that show progress toward reaching objectives. Goals are measurable. Goals may be measured in terms of time, quantity, and quality. Specific goals that represent significant advance are the heart of long-range or strategic planning. Organization is simply breaking big goals into small, manageable portions. There are different levels of planning. Long-range planning paints with broad strokes in order to give general direction. Annual planning provides more detailed guidelines. Operational planning is the co-ordination of day-to-day details.

---Howard B. Foshee, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., February 1965.

Things that "just happen" are not usually in the direction of progress. Is it not correct to say that practically everything worthwhile comes into being at all is the result of planning? Or to say it differently‑‑everything worthwhile that man has done or made has existed in his mind before it becomes a reality. Planning then is important. Planning makes for a balanced emphasis. When you plan a full year's work ahead, you can check it and carefully and deliberately put into it all of the elements that will make for a well‑rounded program. It gets things done. Many other things are accomplished by planning ahead. It justifies our leadership. It avoids conflicts and misunderstandings.

‑‑‑Harold E. Ingraham, The Sunday School Builder, Nashville, Tenn., May 1958.

Plans must speak to the real needs. Someone has said that efficient planners do things right; but effective planners do the right things. There is a danger that planners can become so enamored with their plans that they become more concerned about being efficient planners than about having effective plans. Both efficiency and effectiveness are desirable. Hopefully, effectiveness will not be sacrificed for efficiency. There is no virtue in planning itself. Plans exist to accomplish a purpose. Long-range plans consist of long-range goals for five to ten years, with strategic approaches for reaching the goals. Short-range plans include measurable goals for one to three years, with detailed actions for accomplishing the goals Long-range plans provide the framework around which short-range plans are built. Without long-range plans a [person] can drift from project to project without an overall strategy for achieving [his] mission. The [person who] has clearly conceived plans will be able to act to accomplish [his] mission rather than react to circumstances.

---Reginald M. McDonough, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., January 1969.

Long‑range planning is for the purpose of achieving action. It should be done with one motive in mind; to develop and use plans that will result in positive action. Planning demands an orderly forward look at responsibilities, opportunities, and work.

‑‑‑L.J. Newton, The Sunday School Builder, Nashville, Tenn., July 1964.

Without planning, a person is forced to react instead of act to situations or problems. With adequate planning, a person will have alternate solutions ready to move around the emergency. As a person develops details of a plan, he will recognize possible situations in which problems will arise. This will alert him to the fact that he needs to be observant at those problem areas and be ready with alternate solutions. More work is completed late because of inadequate planning than possibly any other reason, including emergencies, that delayed the work schedules. Development of an individual's planning ability is sure to increase if the discipline of planning is followed. Planning is a discipline that requires time and effort. Planning implies in its minimum dimensions (1) knowledge of, and strategic reaction to, goals; (2) objective estimate of resources needed; and (3) respect for precedent, and courage to break it. To prepare for the unexpected is to prepare against the unexpected. Ability to make judgments during the planning process will probably effect the results more than any other factor. Many plans fail because the plans were rigidly conceived with no allowance for error. There is a law which says: "If something can go wrong, it will." Be flexible enough to deal with problems as they arise. The four steps of developing a plan are: 1. Set a clearly defined goal. 2. Develop a logical sequence of actions. Once the goal has been clearly defined, you can then begin to develop in a logical order the actions to reach the goal. 3. Prepare an estimated timetable. You need to have an idea of the completion date for a plan. Then you can work backward with the actions to insure the completion of the plans on time. 4. Determine resources needed. If plans call for extra resources--money, leadership, equipment--steps should be taken to obtain these resources from the beginning.

---James A. Sheffield, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., May 1968.

One characteristic that seems to be prevalent in all good planning is that it is dynamic. It takes into account changing conditions and new developments and makes corresponding adjustments to accommodate changes. Flexible plans are those that are capable of responding or conforming to changing or new situations. Naturally, the longer the plans, as in long-range planning, the more flexible they should be. It is not enough merely to formulate a sound plan. There must be periodic review and revision of the plan so that new ideas, improved methods, and better resources may become a part of the planning and affect it for the more efficient pursuit of the .goals. Planning must be flexible to allow for changing conditions whether they be long-range or emergency changes. Plan in light of objectives and goals. Establish priorities for planned actions. Build periodic evaluation and review into the plans. Periodic, objective reports on performance in relation to plans help to keep them from becoming so flexible that deviation from them becomes casual.

---William E. Young, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., May 1966.

Long-range planning is concerned with four questions: 1. Where are we now? 2. Where are we going? 3. How do we get there? 4. What is our timing?

—Vance O. Vernon, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., January 1968.

Success is the accomplishment of our goals. Planning requires great vision. Planning is vision. Planning is faith. We get joy by accomplishment. We get our joy and happiness through achievement. Each day as we write down what we are going to do every hour of that day, and as we do them, we get joy and happiness out of achieving, every single hour of the day–and we need to continue on. Simplification means putting things first. Simplification means effectiveness. Achievement through simplification means joy. We must be strong physically, mentally, morally and spiritually–every way. ... Planning incorporates faith or the attitude of success. Make up your mind to be successful. The attitude of success is a quality of mind and spirit that will give vigor and strength to all you do. Let all of us make up our minds to be successful.

—Franklin D. Richards, Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year, Provo, Utah, Nov. 15, 1961.

Set a lofty goal; then move steadily toward it. Don't procrastinate the time you start toward the goal. You must begin if you are to reach it. It is essential that we conduct our ideals to earnest effort in our daily actions. Proper use of time cannot be overestimated as we press along the pathway to achievement. The hours of each day pass rapidly, and they must be planned to yield the best results. Don't overlook reserving sufficient time to do well the small as well as the important things properly. To do this you must have a fairly accurate idea of how much you can accomplish in a given period. Whether in a business, a profession, or a vocation, be methodical in your work. Each person has the same amount of time at his disposal. Some will use it wisely in performing good deeds, in upholding convictions, and in bestowing kindnesses. To these persons there is not enough time. Others use the moments unwisely, thus wasting them. Those in this category often find too much time on their hands.

‑‑‑Milan D. Smith, Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year, Provo, Utah, Nov. 3, 1953.

It would be a lot more fun if we planned for the future as seriously as we regret the past.

---Daily Idahonian, Moscow, Idaho, Jan. 23, 1941.

Hoping without planning is about as futile as waiting for a harvest without planting.

---Idaho Statesman, Boise, Idaho, Nov. 29, 1930.

Sluggishness, our reluctance to work hard, is mental inertia. Millions of men have lived and died, forming excellent ideas and plans. But they have lacked the energy to carry them out. A small brain, and small plans, with a will strong enough to make a reality of them, are more to be envied than a big brain, vaguely planning, never accomplishing.

---Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wis., Feb. 17, 1929.

Making plans for the future is all right if they do not interfere with the work of the present.

‑‑‑River Press, Fort Benton, Mont., Dec. 16, 1931.

How can we most profit by the twenty-four hours of each day? SIMPLIFY! Webster defines the word simplify: "To make simple or simpler; to make less complex, to make clear or clearer by explaining, to show an easier or shorter process for doing." First, we should ask ourselves, "Is this the only way it can be done?" And secondly, "Which way is the best in which it can be done?" By asking these two questions, we can learn to simplify. This simplification can be applied to everything we do throughout the day if we give it proper consideration. It follows the first step of planning. In this day of speed, with our desire to get somewhere, we should not lose sight of where we want to go. By keeping our planned objective firmly in mind and asking ourselves the two previously mentioned questions, we can arrive at our destination safely and surely. Let us remember that our simplification should be applied in wisdom and with purpose.

—R. Crawford Davis, Westate, Denver, Colo., December 1963.

No man is so sure of where he is going or what he is going to do as the man who has a clear mental picture of the thing he wants and the thing he wants to do. This is the first step in the attainment of any undertaking. Instead of idle wishing for this and that, the first thing is to agree in the mind deliberately just what is desired, exactly what is sought, whether it is right or wrong, whether it is ethical or moral. Get a clear-cut picture of it, so clear that its every detail can be seen. The engineer who builds a bridge, the architect who builds a house or a beautiful office building, the painter who paints a picture, the writer who writes a book, all have a definite plan before them before they begin. The plans are drawn, the outline formed, the idea fixed in the mind in its every detail. If a definite plan is necessary for a chicken house or a barn, how much more necessary is it for a human career?

—Emmett J. Lee, The Gazette, Farmerville, La., Dec. 7, 1938.

Some people get so much work done easily and in a short time that observers think they are lazy. These people who do work easily and get much done are usually the ones who plan their work ahead. They determine beforehand that they will do so much today and so much tomorrow and so much the day after. They have a schedule, a program, and they carry out their schedule even if they do not feel like it. They do not wait for an inspiration or for a more convenient time. They do the work in accordance with the program they have thought through. Doing this, they usually have time to spare.

—Grove H. Patterson, Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wis., Dec. 11, 1930.

All planning regardless how well and minutely performed is only of value if it is followed to achieve the worthwhile aims designed by such planning. The basis for success in planning, just as is the basis for success in leadership, is the degree to which those controlled by that planning can and will exercise the self-control necessary to make that planning an effective instrument in achieving the end result desired.

—Dale M. Valentine, El Animador, San Antonio, Texas, July 1971.

If you start out in the morning with a plan to do nothing, you will end the day with a feeling of futility.

—Phil Conley, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss., Feb. 27, 1949.

Make plans, but be sure to provide for necessary changes. Too often we decide that we cannot improve on our first plans. That is when we begin to make mistakes.

—Phil Conley, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss., Aug. 18, 1949.

Big plans do not balance small performances.

—Henry F. Cope, Chicago Tribune, Chicago, Ill., Jan. 31, 1909.

Plans do not work on themselves, but require attention and determination. Details must be worked out and must be carried into execution.

—W.W. Hamilton, Baptist Message, Shreveport, La., July 22, 1926.

Well-ordered plans enable all of us to work toward the most desirable goals with less wasted motion and haggling over details.

—Robert L. Lee, Baptist Message, Alexandria, La., June 16, 1966.

The essential purpose of strategic planning is to help an organization have control of and shape the future of the institution, rather than being tossed about by the winds of circumstance.

—Robert L. Lynn, Baptist Message, Alexandria, La., April 16, 1992.

The ability to plan wisely and then to project those plans into the minds of others with such clearness and force as to secure approval, is no mean power. It is the basis upon which has rested the success of the world's great leaders. To forge the links of a great chain in the furnace of his own restless mind, to weld them about the minds of large bodies of men and then to fasten the chain to lofty conceptions of duty and policy, to great purposes and grand projects; to infuse his own earnestness and enthusiasm into lethargic and unresponsive men; to anticipate objections; to surmount obstacles; to face hostility without and watch treachery within; to do all of these things and yet move on with unwavering devotion and unflinching purpose toward the end which duty selects and wisdom approves, is to possess in the highest degree greatness. Others have stepped to the front when the occasion was ripe and the exigency called for a leader, and the world has wisely accorded them a niche in its monument to greatness. ... Often when in the heat of battle someone sound[s] retreat, when disaster seem[s] traced in letters of ominous blackness on the banner which float[s] over his scattered allies, [such a leader] emerge[s] at the head of new forces and move[s] on to victory.

—L.M. Reynolds, Galveston Daily News, Galveston, March 7, 1898.

Much time and energy is often lost by not having all parts of the plan in readiness at the proper moment. Work done on one part of the plan, often at great effort, cannot be utilized for the next step when it is ready, because something else is not ready.

—Waldo Pondray Warren, Dallas Morning News, Dallas, Texas, Nov. 14, 1907.

The benefits of long-range planning can hardly be exaggerated. Through long-range planning, a [person] can: 1. Act rather than react. 2. Anticipate problems and work out solutions before the problems occur. 3. Make things happen rather than let things happen. 4. Make use of circumstances rather than fret about misfortune.

—Reginald M. McDonough, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., January 1968.

Goals should be attainable, but they should also be challenging. Goals are not a written record of predicted accomplishments, but they are an estimate of results that can be secured through effective application of available resources. Do not be too easy on yourself, but do not go wild either. ... Until you go to work, your plans are no more than organized good intentions. Do not delay action on your plans. Think about goals as you think about your destination on a trip. Think about your plans as you do a road map. Then go into action.

—C. Keith Mee, The Church Library, Nashville, Tenn., October-December 1966.

If you have no plan for your life do not blame someone else if you get nowhere.

—Roy L. Smith, Tampa Morning Tribune, Tampa, Fla., Feb. 25, 1931.

A life without a plan is like the track of a fly–always starting, never arriving.

—Roy L. Smith, Tampa Morning Tribune, Tampa, Fla., Sept. 23, 1938.

Planning is a serious effort to shape the ... programs of the future. Planning is a method of action. Planning is thinking ahead. Planning takes time. Planning is continuous. ... The proof of the planning is in the doing.

—Leonard E. Wedel, Church Administration, Nashville, Tenn., November 1961.

Let us take a close look at the definition of the word planning. Planning can and should be defined as "a method of procedure" or "to arrange beforehand." A plan is likewise a detailed method by which any scheme is to be carried out. Some of the synonyms which go and in hand with planning are design, purpose and intent. Design is an idea of something to be done. It includes the thing itself and the method of accomplishing it with the means at hand. A purpose is a thing resolutely and definitely proposed to the mind; its accomplishment depends on the proposer. Intention is a purpose, and circumstances as well as character may affect its outcome. Success comes through purpose and proper planning. When we plan, our actions have real animation and intent to succeed. We must all prepare beforehand, and design our approach to every goal for which we are striving. Planning is our means of accomplishing any great goal or worthwhile object in life. Let us follow several definite steps to success: First, DESIRE. Second, PLAN. Third, PERSIST. Fourth, PERFECT. When we follow these golden rules in our daily preparation, we shall reap the success which we are seeking. Assurance of success is proportionate to our ability to plan.

—Northern Lights, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, January 1962.

The foundation of all success is planning. The planner is the one who thinks, devises strategy and blueprints accomplishments. We clarify our thoughts when we write them out. We also impress them deeper in our minds when we keep them constantly before us in visual form. Most unwritten plans are not plans at all; they are only ideas and are easily forgotten. If we write our plans and set a definite timetable with a deadline for its accomplishment, success can be made easy and certain. Many excellent ideas will pop into our minds while the plan is being made. When you determine your definite aim there is a tendency for several additional success principles to operate automatically. The secret of getting things done is DO IT NOW! Now is the time to plan. Our assurance of success is proportionate to our ability to plan!

—Westate, Denver, Colo., January 1963.

Planning the day and having the success we've planned for will be of little worth unless we plan and follow up for the next day also. True efficiency will only come through planning for the tomorrows, night after night, consistently, until it becomes a part of every day. The important thing in planning tomorrow is to work our plans diligently. When we start altering or changing our plans as we go along, we will soon become as ineffective as if we had no plan at all. Make it a challenge to accomplish the plan you've made. You'll be surprised at what can be done. Then, using your experience of today's plan, change your plan for tomorrow accordingly, to become more and more effective.

—Westate, Denver, Colo., November 1963.

Through definite planning we conserve our most precious asset, time. Planning requires faith in one's own ability to plan and in one's ability to carry out the plan successfully. Yes, planning is a product of faith. We show our faith by our planning because by faith are all things possible.

—Westate, Denver, Colo., November 1963.