If you do not prepare for life, you may become a victim of life itself. More often than not, the reason why some people do not get something worthwhile out of life is because they have not prepared for it. You cannot live your life by chance and expect for things to fall into place for you. If you want something to happen for you, then your actions will be required to make it happen. Always remember that if you have not planned to succeed, then by inference, you have already planned to fail. This is why planning is a very integral part of life.
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I remember when I was in junior secondary school very many years ago, we normally had our inter-house sports once a term, then the grand finale usually took place at the end of the third term where the finalists will complete for the grand price. During the first round, I was chosen to represent our house in a particular sport. I thought I knew the sport so well and I would always deliver when required, so I did not put in much efforts to train nor planned towards it. During the training, I would be engaged in other activities that I saw worthwhile because, in my mind, I was already a pro in that sport.
When the game started, the first outing went south. I was beaten by someone that no one expected. In fact, I narrowly escaped being eliminated in the group stage. I was only able to move pass the group stage on point difference. By the time we moved to the disqualification round, my coach walked up to me and told me "disqualification round comes up next week and only you will determine if you will still stay in the game or leave." He went further to tell me that I can do better than I did and I was the cause of what had happened.
The words sank so deep in me that I quickly realized my mistake for not planning for the first round. For the next round, which was the disqualification stage, I trained extensively for it and planned for it with my soul. The round came and I perform excellently well. I went on to quarterfinals, then to semifinals and adorably, I saw myself in the finals. Who I was to meet was the competitor that beat me in the first round. However, because I was already prepared for what lies ahead, I went into the competition with confidence.
The competition started and a lot of people thought that I will be beaten again by the same competitor but the direct opposite happened. I beat him outstandingly well and became the champion. Now the question is, what changed? Same competitors but different result from what happened in the first round of the game. The only difference was that I planned extensively and prepared for it. This goes to show the power of planning and how it is instrumental to success. Whatever comes to you comes because you can take on it. If it overwhelms you, then it may be that you were not prepared for it.
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Sometimes in life, you may need to make plans for eventualities and also be ready for even the negative occurrences. It is true that you are to hope for the best, but it does not also mean that you should not make plans in case the worse happens. You will agree with me that challenges do not give prior information before they come, so you should anticipate it and be ready at all times to face it. You do not win the battles of life by getting ready on the day of the battle but by living and staying ready ahead of the day of the battle. It is said:
It is far better to be a warrior in the kitchen than a chef in the war.
Whatever you are doing in life, you have to know that you cannot escape challenges and oppositions, you can only prepare and face them or be cracked by them. If a builder wants to erect a structure, there is a need for an architectural plan to be taken, this is so that the building action will be properly guided. In life, not only does planning help you to brace against challenges but it also helps you to undertake better actions that will lead to success.
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