Simple question: where will you be one year from now? Try thinking about it more deeply than something like "Probs still in school" or "Looking for a job." That's the kind of thinking that won't carry you to the places you really want to go, for the simple reason that you cannot possible shoot for the stars if all you're really shooting for is whatever tomorrow may bring you.

One-day-at-a-time thinking, as I call it, can be beneficial if you're immersed in a course that requires your full amount of concentration, for example BUD/S (the first step one must take to become a Navy SEAL, one of the most grueling training programs in existence). The rest of the time, one-day-at-a-time thinking is incredibly limiting. People who think in this manner live in a constant state of surprise, wondering why they're graduating with a degree they hate, why their friends are getting all of the good jobs and they're stuck performing average tasks, and (perhaps worst of all) why they suddenly retire with no savings in the bank and life seems to have gone right by them.

The great philosopher Seneca once said that life is long enough if you know how to use it. Unfortunately, nobody's born on this planet with an instruction manual (especially for the time after college), so most people go into lemming-mode and simply follow the beaten path down mediocrity lane. It's as if they're all wearing a set of blinders, ignoring the glowing opportunities that stand on either side of the road. If only they had some inkling of where that road was going, they'd be able to see more of those opportunities.

The most successful people on this planet (Zuckerberg, Gates, Bolt, Oprah) all found the one thing they're talented at and maximized it to the point that no one could compete with them. They had a vision, and they worked hard every day until that vision became a reality. How many of us even try to do something like that? How much talent gets wasted because we give up on the first try or because we focus on the wrong things? Do your best to stick to your plan, and chances are you'll surprise yourself.

I'm willing to bet that the biggest reason we end up in places we don't like is because we simply failed to plan ahead. People who live in unfortunate circumstances (and there are, sadly, many people who do) have a lesser amount of control over this issue, but those of us who are fortunate enough to attend college or enroll in higher education institutions need to take advantage of the amazing gift we've been given. College doesn't just mean you get a degree in four years (another one-day-at-a-time thought), it means you're surrounded by potentially tens of thousands of people who could open just as many doors for you. They can help you to plan ahead and point out opportunities you may have missed.

Yet most of the time no one visits the professors during their office hours (a golden opportunity to speak one-on-one and gain valuable career advice), few pay much attention to following their real dreams (what did you want to be when you were in kindergarten, and when did that change?) and even fewer plan out the next few years of their life, which are undoubtedly some of the most important years you'll never get back.

Don't let his be you. Make a long-term plan and do everything in your power to follow it. Before you know it, you'll be achieving the things you really want to achieve. At least, that's the model the truly successful follow.