ABSTRACT
Forecasts and plans are made to illuminate the next immediate action, for the more that is known about the future the more likely is it that the action decided upon will achieve the objective. A forecast is an estimate of the future behaviour of those factors that are beyond one's control. A plan is a forecast of one's own actions. Plans are usually a more reliable estimate of the future than are forecasts. The higher the proportion of the future that can be planned, by bringing it under one's control, the more likely is it that one's next immediate action will be successful in achieving the objective. A forecast and a plan should be made as far ahead as the next immediate action requires. To make this estimate it is necessary to determine how each action will affect and be affected by the future.
