The second in a three-part series.

We know planning is important. It can help us be better stewards of our time and money and be less stressed in the bargain. So why don't we do it?

1) It's always tempting to wait for the perfect moment — when you can start fresh — to begin planning. Unfortunately, that moment is being brought by a team of rainbow unicorns and they've been delayed by a 3 pot-of-gold pileup on the Leprechaun Highway. That's my smart-aleck way of saying that there is no perfect moment. There's only the moments you have. So use them.

2) It can be intimidating (and even overwhelming) to make lists of everything you need to do. Seeing it all laid out starkly can make you want to crawl back into your blanket fortress with a cup of cocoa. But, guess what? When the cocoa is gone, the tasks will still be there. And they'll have been joined by their friends!

3) A lot of people seem to think that time spent planning is wasted time. How can you take time to plan and prioritize when you have so much to do? First, planning need not take an inordinate amount of time. You don't need to hold focus groups and strategy sessions. You can work on it while you do other things — like cleaning or exercising or driving. Second, when you fail to plan, you leave yourself open to dealing with the latest emergency or the squeakiest wheel, running the risk of never getting to what really matters to you.

All of these reasons are real and we've all been waylaid by them at some point. But in this week's final installment, we talk about how to start planning, so that you'll put these obstacles in the rearview mirror.