Too many of us are stuck thinking about the short term instead of the long term, this is a crises that is not only seen in our personal lives these days, but in entire corporate structures as well.
Nearsightedness has cost far too many companies and people to declare bankruptcy and in 95% of these cases making a few decisions for the long term instead of the short could have dramatically changed their end result. If we find ourselves considering a decision that will bring us short term gains, we must always think about the long term consequences or gains of this action. A good example of this, is the fact that I would very much like to have a new computer, the pc I use is getting on in years, and you would think for someone who works in the industry I'd be up on all the current hardware. The fact is, as much as I'd like to have a newer and faster computer, I can't justify the cost of getting one because the one that I currently have does everything that I need it to do. In the past I was always a hardcore 'gamer' and because of this it was essential to have the latest and greatest computer to be able to play all the new games, but with most things in getting older I've moved past this stage in my life. Although the old habits of upgrading my pc are still there, I know that the money needed to upgrade the pc is much better used to help pay off the mortgage, or to invest and put to use working for me. Because the long term gains of doing this far outweigh the short term ones.

When you have free time to spend, what do you usually do? Watch TV? Play video games? surf the web? There is a good chance that the majority of people who visit this site are going to say one of the three. These are all items that would fall under short term gains, they might give you pleasure or happiness for a small amount of time, and they accomplish their task of using up your time. But before you start any of these activities you must ask yourself if there is something else that you could be doing that is a better use of your time? Most people will answer "Of Course, but I dont feel like doing it right now, I'll get to it later" but later never comes, does it? This is procrastination at its best and you should read my article on Defeating Procrastination. Procrastination is the cornerstone of short term thinking and is something that everyone does at some point. When you find yourself procrastinating you have to start thinking about the long term gains of what your doing, if there is none, then find something else to do that has some.

Every day I could do what the majority of people do, and sleep in until its absolutely necessary to get up, the reason I don't do this is simple. I'm a morning person, I have always got the best work done in the morning, so everyday I am up at 5:30, and working on my websites or doing something else constructive. I think of this as "Thinking Long Term" because I am up working on something that just might be a full time business in the future. I love writing these articles and If I could, I would do it full time (well, this and investing!) Sure I might get teased by my friends and co-workers because I'm in bed by 9:30 every night, but how I see it, is anytime after 9:00 I'm not going to get any productive work done, so whats the point of staying up? I might as well get my sleep and wake up early and be able to work with a higher rate of productivity.

Whenever you look at yourself in a mirror you should be thinking about long term goals. By exercising and eating right you are doing the best thing that you can for your future health. So start eating right, and exercising so you can live a longer, healthier and happier life. It may be hard to start, but the long term gains reaped when you eat healthy and exercise regularly is more valuable then anything else. I have made many changes to my diet and exercise routines in the past year, and I can say that where I am now is a much better place then where I was when I started. The physical ailments that I was suffering from are gone, and it can all be attributed to losing the extra weight I had put on. I have vowed not to let myself gain that weight again and I will try my best to keep that from happening again.

When starting to think long term you may not get many gains, but eventually all of your hard work is going to start paying off and you will be in a constant state of gains from your long term thinking and objectives. You can achieve so much more in life by thinking ahead and planning out your long term path then you can ever achieve with short term thinking. It might be hard to shift yourself into a long term frame of mind, but just remember that whatever you do now will affect what happens to you in the future so you might as well do what you can to make that future the best it possibly can be. So in closing, remember what I always say, the first step (or steps in this case) are generally the hardest, so get them over with and start on the road to a happier, healthier and more successful long term future!