What is planning?  It can be a nebulous thing to define.  In its
essence, however, it is very simple: it's how we achieve our dreams.

Our days are filled with time, and hence with actions, whether they
be of a mental or physical sort.  But there are two kinds of
action: reactive and creative.  Reactive action is a response to
the environment, a reaction to stimulus.  Had we enough instincts
to ensure survival, we could live according to this kind of action
alone.  It is a mode of behavior we share with every living
species.

The opposite to reactivity is creativity, when we decide upon a
course of action that is a wholly a product of personal choice.  We
then make decisions as to the steps needed to make this wish a
reality.  This is planning.  Planning is essentially a creative
endeavor at every step.

First, create the idea, what you want to achieve.  Very short-term
ideas do not need much more than thinking about how to do it.  But
long-term ideas require planning, since the mind cannot contain all
of the details.

Second, decide how the idea maps into the circumstances you find
yourself in.  Some environments will assist your plan, others
hinder it.  But step by step, identify every barrier to the
realization of your idea, and devise a countermeasure to overcome
it.  Once you've mapped things out from beginning to end,
accounting for unknowables as best you can, you now have your plan.

Third is to break the stages of the plan into parts that are not
overwhelming in their complexity.  It is at during this phase that
a plan is turned into task items, each to be accomplished within
the span of one day's time.  If a task requires several days, break
it up further.  The smaller it is, the less your mind will recoil
from attempting it.

Fourth is to monitor your progress, identifying problems and
correcting for them as you go.  Some plans start out unachievable,
and remain that way indefinitely, due to a simple lack of
observation.  If nothing is working for you, change it.  Otherwise,
your plan is merely a well-crafted wish.

Fifth is just to do the work, and be patient.  All good plans take
a great deal of time, and *cannot* happen immediately.  The
groundwork must be laid for each step, or else it will rest on an
unsecure foundation.  If you follow your plan doggedly, applying
some time to it each day or week, it _will_ happen.  Remember the
story of the tortoise and the hare.

季札之初使，北過徐君。徐君好季札劍，口弗敢言。季札心知之，為使上國，未獻。還至徐，

徐君已死，於是乃解其寶劍，系之徐君冢樹而去。

從者曰：「徐君已死，尚誰予乎？」季子曰：「不然。始吾心已許之，豈以死倍吾心哉！」

上面的文字出自史记吴太伯世家,故事是,季扎出使北方,经过徐国,拜访徐君.

吴国铸剑在春秋闻名,所以徐君就看上了季扎的佩剑,但是又不好意思直要.

季扎也明白徐君的意思,但是作为使者,出使北方,不能不佩剑,

所以就没有立即把佩剑送给徐君,但是心里打算,回来时,一定把佩剑送给送给徐君.

等到回来时,经过徐国,准备送剑给徐君,徐君已经过世.

但是季扎没有马上离去,而是解下佩剑,系在徐君坟墓的柏树前.

从者说:"徐君已经逝去,这是给谁的呢?",

季扎说:"开始时,我心理已经打算把剑送给他了,怎么因为死而违背自己的心呢?"

心已许之,岂背吾心?

 季扎挂剑,吾心向往之!

 向往的不是其重诺言,而是其不违背自己的心愿的原则.

很多时候,我们会践行自己对他人的承诺,而忘记自己对自己的要求和承诺.

而对自己的承诺和要求,才是重诺的根本.

 也只有不违背对自己承诺和要求时,才能行为上的独立特行,才能剑及履及.

 真的猛士,不会违背对自己的承诺!

以此文,送给我心向往之的朋友们!

没有什么比内心的独立和自由更重要，没有什么比行动的独立和自由更壮观，没有什么 比实践独立意志更有魅力。内心的独立和自由，只会满地牢骚，文笔稍好者则可能成为先锋作家和谁也看不懂诗人，其余则为狂狷之士，牢骚之辈。真的勇士除了敢 于直面惨淡的人生，更能剑及履及。真的勇士除了内心的独立自由，更能实践独立意志。 遇到挫折逆境，勇士能克服心魔，自我完善，为所不能为，走出逆境。