Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail

Recently I had some serious lower back pain for the second time ever and in less than one year. It was so bad I could barely walk and when I did my torso was at a 30 degree angle to the ground (it was a little funny to look at). 
The first time I had the back pain, I was like “I’m about to turn thirty and I’m too young for this—it’ll never happen again.”
What I should have done the first time, was trace my steps back to find out how I got hurt. Then take notes every day I was in pain, figuring out what activities helped and what hurt. Finally I could have ventured to learn preventative measures against future back pain.
Days, months, and weeks are full of patterns that often repeat themselves. Instead of digging deep to create contingencies, crisis prevention plans, or damage control procedures—the idea that “this will never happen again so everything is all good” permeates.
Living in the moment is wonderful and a critical part of life; but planning for a future, whatever the outcome, is a must.
The good news is our primitive brains already know how to do this. You learned not to put your hand into an open flame, not to walk into moving traffic, and when to fight or fly.

But now it’s time to move past the primitive brain and take planning to a higher level—looking for patterns, refining the edges, and using the negative energy and processes against themselves. This is your Jedi training.