Living for the present without overlooking the future…

My preview copy of The Art of Non-Conformity! (Photo credit: RowdyKittens)

For most of us at our first jobs life seems uncertain and the future takes the shades of a foggy and shifting character. The insecurity of our jobs or the uncertainty of what is it that we want for the future can make it hard to make decisions, trapping most of us in a state of inaction.

I could tell you that you should just…. take a deep breath and hope for the best! But that’s not a very realistic way to look a things especially considering that we’re not living in the most stable of times.

I would advice something slightly different…. something I would name of careful planning.

It’s actually a very simple concept. The idea is that you should plan for the best and the worst case scenario and no matter what happens you’ll be prepared, but this plan has one major problem, it has the ability to make you forget your dreams.

You see, when your planning for the worst case scenario it’s easy to believe that it will happen, that you’ll loose your job and won’t get that job that you wanted, that your personal enterprises will fail and everything around you will crumble into oblivion. When this happens you tend to let yourself go and say: why am I even trying! … the answer is a lot simpler than it seams. You try for the best because deep down we all want to to something more. So if you feel yourself loosing the energy to move forward stop for a minute put aside the worst scenario planing and dive head first in your best scenario! I promise you it will be worth it!

For planing your best scenario I have only one note. Make it all about you! I’m not talking about the contents but about how you get there. Don’t plan your best scenario based on a lottery ticket or some other random event outside of your control, plan it based on your hard work and skills! Not only is it more likely to actually happen, I guarantee you it will feel a hell of allot better!

If you looking for more guidance on how to plan for your life under your terms I advice the book “The Art of Non-comformity” by Chris Guillebeau, a great book with lots of practical advice! Also visit Chris’s blog which is filled with useful and engaging information.