Planning is an essential part of achieving any goal. It helps us map out the steps we need to take to succeed, anticipate challenges, and allocate resources effectively. In this article, we've gathered a variety of quotes about planning.
These insights come from business leaders, philosophers, and comedians, offering both serious and lighthearted perspectives on why planning is crucial in different aspects of life and work.
50 Best Planning Quotes
1. "A goal without a plan is just a wish." – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
2. "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." – Benjamin Franklin
3. "Plans are nothing; planning is everything." – Dwight D. Eisenhower
4. "Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now." – Alan Lakein
5. "He who fails to plan is planning to fail." – Winston Churchill
6. "Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe." – Abraham Lincoln
7. "A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow." – Proverb
8. "Always plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark." – Richard Cushing
9. "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining." – John F. Kennedy
10. "Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning." – Thomas Edison
11. "Planning is a process of choosing among those many options. If we do not choose to plan, then we choose to have others plan for us." – Richard I. Winwood
12. "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." – Chinese Proverb
13. "In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." – Dwight D. Eisenhower
14. "Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small." – Sun Tzu
15. "You need a plan to build a house. To build a life, it is even more important to have a plan or goal." – Zig Ziglar
16. "Planning ahead is a measure of class. The rich and even the middle class plan for future generations, but the poor can plan ahead only a few weeks or days." – Gloria Steinem
17. "Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning." – Gloria Steinem
18. "To achieve great things, two things are needed; a plan, and not quite enough time." – Leonard Bernstein
19. "Plan your work for today and every day, then work your plan." – Margaret Thatcher
20. "An hour of planning can save you 10 hours of doing." – Dale Carnegie
21. "Planning is everything. the plan is nothing." – Field Marshal Helmuth Graf von Moltke
22. "The man who is prepared has his battle half fought." – Miguel de Cervantes
23. "Make time for planning: Wars are won in the general’s tent." – Stephen R. Covey
24. "Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential." – Winston Churchill
25. "Meticulous planning will enable everything a man does to appear spontaneous." – Mark Caine
26. "A clear vision, backed by definite plans, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power." – Brian Tracy
27. "Never begin the day until it is finished on paper." – Jim Rohn
28. "Success doesn’t just happen. It’s planned for." – Anonymous
29. "I always say, don’t make plans, make options." – Jennifer Aniston
30. "It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan." – Eleanor Roosevelt
31. "Plan your life like you will live forever, and live your life like you will die the next day." – Unknown
32. "Bad planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part." – Proverb
33. "Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up." – A. A. Milne
34. "A man who does not plan long ahead will find trouble at his door." – Confucius
35. "Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans." – Allen Saunders
36. "If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much." – Jim Rohn
37. "You cannot predict the future, but you can create it." – Peter Drucker
38. "Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes; but no plans." – Peter F. Drucker
39. "The more time you spend contemplating what you should have done...
you lose valuable time planning what you can and will do." – Lil Wayne
40. "Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." – Peter Drucker
41. "I like planning, and I like a structured life. It allows me the
freedom to focus on the important things." – Mark Zuckerberg
42. "The first step in business planning is to determine that you will make a profit." – Robert Kiyosaki
43. "You can't have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic." – Stephen C. Hogan
44. "Effective planning is about maximizing impact, not maximizing order." – Tim Ferriss
45. "If you don't have a plan, you become part of somebody else's plan." – Terence McKenna
46. "Strategy is a commodity, execution is an art." – Peter Drucker
47. "There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long range risks of comfortable inaction." – John F. Kennedy
48. "When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt." – Henry J. Kaiser
49. "Measure twice, cut once." – Proverb
50. "Planning is deciding in advance what to do and how to do it. It is one of the basic management functions: planning, organizing, leading, and controlling." – Charles T. Horngren
50 Inspirational Planning Quotes
1. "A goal without a plan is just a wish." – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
2. "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." – Benjamin Franklin
3. "Plans are nothing; planning is everything." – Dwight D. Eisenhower
4. "He who fails to plan is planning to fail." – Winston Churchill
5. "Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe." – Abraham Lincoln
6. "Always plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark." – Richard Cushing
7. "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining." – John F. Kennedy
8. "Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning." – Thomas Edison
9. "Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small." – Sun Tzu
10. "You need a plan to build a house. To build a life, it is even more important to have a plan or goal." – Zig Ziglar
11. "Planning is a process of choosing among those many options. If we do not choose to plan, then we choose to have others plan for us." – Richard I. Winwood
12. "In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." – Dwight D. Eisenhower
13. "An hour of planning can save you 10 hours of doing." – Dale Carnegie
14. "Make time for planning: Wars are won in the general’s tent." – Stephen R. Covey
15. "Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential." – Winston Churchill
16. "Meticulous planning will enable everything a man does to appear spontaneous." – Mark Caine
17. "A clear vision, backed by definite plans, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power." – Brian Tracy
18. "Success doesn’t just happen. It’s planned for." – Anonymous
19. "It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan." – Eleanor Roosevelt
20. "Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up." – A. A. Milne
21. "Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans." – Allen Saunders
22. "You cannot predict the future, but you can create it." – Peter Drucker
23. "Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." – Peter Drucker
24. "Planning is deciding in advance what to do and how to do it. It is one of the basic management functions: planning, organizing, leading, and controlling." – Charles T. Horngren
25. "To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe." – Anatole France
26. "Planning is everything. The plan is nothing." – Field Marshal Helmuth Graf von Moltke
27. "Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now." – Alan Lakein
28. "Never begin the day until it is finished on paper." – Jim Rohn
29. "I always say, don’t make plans, make options." – Jennifer Aniston
30. "Plan your work for today and every day, then work your plan." – Margaret Thatcher
31. "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." – Chinese Proverb
32. "Bad planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part." – Proverb
33. "The man who is prepared has his battle half fought." – Miguel de Cervantes
34. "Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes; but no plans." – Peter F. Drucker
35. "The more time you spend contemplating what you should have done... you lose valuable time planning what you can and will do." – Lil Wayne
36. "A man who does not plan long ahead will find trouble at his door." – Confucius
37. "If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much." – Jim Rohn
38. "Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning." – Gloria Steinem
39.
"Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning." – Thomas Edison
40. "If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans." – Woody Allen
41. "Measure twice, cut once." – Proverb
42. "Plan your life like you will live forever, and live your life like you will die the next day." – Unknown
43. "A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow." – Proverb
44. "Planning ahead is a measure of class. The rich and even the middle class plan for future generations, but the poor can plan ahead only a few weeks or days." – Gloria Steinem
45. "Effective planning is about maximizing impact, not maximizing order." – Tim Ferriss
46. "The first step in business planning is to determine that you will make a profit." – Robert Kiyosaki
47. "You can't have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic." – Stephen C. Hogan
48. "When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt." – Henry J. Kaiser
49. "The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today." – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
50. "You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going, because you might not get there." – Yogi Berra
These quotes highlight the significance of planning in achieving goals and realizing dreams.
50 Best Planning Quotes For Business
1. "A goal without a plan is just a wish." – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
2. "In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield." – Warren Buffett
3. "Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." – Peter Drucker
4. "Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now." – Alan Lakein
5. "Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes; but no plans." – Peter F. Drucker
6. "Good business planning is 9 parts execution for every 1 part strategy." – Tim Berry
7. "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." – Benjamin Franklin
8. "You need a plan to build a house. To build a business, it is even more important to have a plan or goal." – Zig Ziglar
9. "Every minute you spend in planning saves 10 minutes in execution; this gives you a 1,000 percent return on energy!" – Brian Tracy
10. "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized." – Daniel Burnham
11. "Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming." – Richard Branson
12. "Plan your work for today and every day, then work your plan." – Margaret Thatcher
13. "The first step in business planning is to determine that you will make a profit." – Robert Kiyosaki
14. "Strategy is not a lengthy action plan. It is the evolution of a central idea through continually changing circumstances." – Jack Welch
15. "In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." – Dwight D. Eisenhower
16. "A clear vision, backed by definite plans, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power." – Brian Tracy
17. "It's not the plan that's important, it's the planning." – Dr. Gramme Edwards
18. "If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else." – Yogi Berra
19. "Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." – Mike Tyson
20. "Planning is everything. The plan is nothing." – Field Marshal Helmuth Graf von Moltke
21. "Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning." – Thomas Edison
22. "Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing." – Warren Buffett
23. "The best way to predict the future is to create it." – Peter Drucker
24. "Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small." – Sun Tzu
25. "He who fails to plan is planning to fail." – Winston Churchill
26. "To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe." – Anatole France
27. "An hour of planning can save you 10 hours of doing." – Dale Carnegie
28. "I always say, don’t make plans, make options." – Jennifer Aniston
29. "Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal." – Cornelius Fitchner
30. "Measure twice, cut once." – Proverb
31. "Your strategy is your promise to deliver value; your business plan is the roadmap to deliver on that promise." – Steve Blank
32. "The man who does not plan long ahead will find trouble at his door." – Confucius
33. "Meticulous planning will enable everything a man does to appear spontaneous." – Mark Caine
34. "All human plans are subject to ruthless revision by Nature, or Fate, or whatever one preferred to call the powers behind the Universe." – Arthur C. Clarke
35. "Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential." – Winston Churchill
36. "If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!" – Benjamin Franklin
37. "You can't have a million-dollar dream with a minimum-wage work ethic." – Stephen C. Hogan
38. "The more time you spend contemplating what you should have done... you lose valuable time planning what you can and will do." – Lil Wayne
39. "Business is like war in one respect. If its grand strategy is correct, any number of tactical errors can be made and yet the enterprise proves successful." – **Robert
E. Wood**
40. "Strategy requires thought, tactics require observation." – Max Euwe
41. "In the world of business, the people who are most successful are those who are doing what they love." – Warren Buffett
42. "Always deliver more than expected." – Larry Page
43. "Effective execution is what counts and what delivers results." – Peter Drucker
44. "Simple can be harder than complex; you have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple." – Steve Jobs
45. "Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat." – Sun Tzu
46. "The best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today." – Elbert Hubbard
47. "You don’t need a new plan for next year. You need a commitment." – Seth Godin
48. "If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there." – Lewis Carroll
49. "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." – Charles Darwin
50. "The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do." – Michael Porter
50 Planning Quotes Funny
1. "I am very organized these days, and I keep my life in my handbag, like most women." – Anna Friel
2. "I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by." – Douglas Adams
3. "If Plan A doesn’t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters." – Unknown
4. "Always borrow money from a pessimist. He won’t expect it back." – Oscar Wilde
5. "I plan on living forever. So far, so good." – Steven Wright
6. "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." – John Lennon
7. "You can’t have everything. Where would you put it?" – Steven Wright
8. "Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes." – Jim Carrey
9. "I’m an excellent housekeeper. Every time I get a divorce, I keep the house." – Zsa Zsa Gabor
10. "If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?" – George Carlin
11. "I always arrive late at the office, but I make up for it by leaving early." – Charles Lamb
12. "My therapist told me the way to achieve true inner peace is to finish what I start. So far I’ve finished two bags of M&Ms and a chocolate cake. I feel better already." – Dave Barry
13. "A clean house is a sign of a wasted life." – Unknown
14. "If you're not failing every now and again, it's a sign you're not doing anything very innovative." – Woody Allen
15. "The best time to start thinking about your retirement is before the boss does." – Anonymous
16. "The only time I ever enjoyed ironing was the day I accidentally got gin in the steam iron." – Phyllis Diller
17. "A bank is a place that will lend you money if you can prove that you don’t need it." – Bob Hope
18. "Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." – Mike Tyson
19. "Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow." – Steven Wright
20. "I'm not superstitious, but I am a little stitious." – Michael Scott (The Office)
21. "My biggest regret in life is that I didn’t hit John Denver in the mouth while I has the chance." – Denis Leary
22. "I'm on a seafood diet. I see food and I eat it." – Anonymous
23. "I am on a 20-day diet, so far I've lost 10 days." – Unknown
24. "My favorite machine at the gym is the vending machine." – Caroline Rhea
25. "If the plan doesn’t work, change the plan but never the goal." – Unknown
26. "I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat." – Will Rogers
27. "I have a new philosophy. I'm only going to dread one day at a time." – Charles Schulz
28. "If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you." – Steven Wright
29. "To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research." – Steven Wright
30. "Trying is the first step toward failure." – Homer Simpson
31. "I’m not procrastinating. I’m doing side quests." – Unknown
32. "If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito." – Dalai Lama
33. "I used to sell furniture for a living. The trouble was, it was my own." – Les Dawson
34. "A day without sunshine is like, you know, night." – Steve Martin
35. "For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned." – Anonymous, likely never cleaned a garage
36. "Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive." – Elbert Hubbard
37. "Why do they call it rush hour when nothing moves?" – Robin Williams
38. "The road to success is always under construction." – Lily Tomlin
39. "I would like to die on Mars. Just not on impact." – Elon Musk
40. "The only thing that ever sat its way to success was a hen." – Sarah Brown
41. "I’m reading a book on anti-gravity. It’s impossible to put down." – Unknown
42. "If you don’t know where you are going, you might
wind up someplace else." – Yogi Berra
43. "Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please." – Mark Twain
44. "If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there." – Lewis Carroll
45. "My plan is to wing it, but with absolute confidence." – Unknown
46. "If you want to make an easy job seem mighty hard, just keep putting off doing it." – Olin Miller
47. "People who want milk should not seat themselves on a stool in the middle of a field in hope that the cow will back up to them." – Elbert Hubbard
48. "Not all who wander are lost, but I sure am." – Unknown
49. "I don’t have a bucket list but my bucket does have a list of things it needs to catch." – Unknown
50. "Life is like a ten-speed bicycle. Most of us have gears we never use." – Charles M. Schulz