Acharya Prashant addresses the question of having hope and expectations for the future. He clarifies that it is inevitable and necessary to look towards the past and the future. It is not only impractical but also unscriptural and unspiritual to suggest that one should not think of the future. Since we exist in the flow of time, whatever we observe belongs to the domain of time, making it impossible to ignore the future. The real question, he posits, is not whether to think about the future, but *why* one does so. There are two broad objectives behind having hopes and making plans. The first and more common objective is driven by the ego's desire for self-preservation. The ego, which exists in time, is inherently subject to change. Fearing this change, it looks to the future with the intent to arrest the flow of time and maintain its current state of comfort and stability, even if that state is flawed. This approach is rooted in laziness and inertia, where the purpose of planning is to prevent any fundamental change and keep things as they are. Most people look at the future not with an intent to become better, but with an intent to remain exactly as they are. The second, more spiritual, way of approaching the future is to see it as an opportunity for transformation. This mindset begins with the acknowledgment, "I am not alright as I am; I must change and improve." In this context, the future becomes a challenging opportunity for betterment, and planning is a part of this effort. This aligns with Shri Krishna's teaching in the Bhagavad Gita to work without expectations. When one takes on a challenge so immense that it demands all of one's resources, there is no mental space left for expecting, fearing, or consuming the imagination of success or failure. The crucial distinction lies in the intention behind the action. The question is not about the act of hoping, but about the actor—the intention. Is one hoping for self-preservation or for self-dissolution? The spiritual approach is to view the future as an opportunity to dismantle the ego and become dimensionally better, not just incrementally. When you pick up a challenge that is almost impossible, the tension dissolves because you realize it is beyond you. All you can do is surrender yourself completely to the task, dedicating all your resources, including your tendency to worry, to the great mission at hand.