I REMEMBER walking into a hotel for an interview a couple of years ago and a poster in the human resources office caught my eye.
The poster simply read: "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail."
I found it amusing and forgot about it but after returning from the World Cities Summit 2014 in Singapore recently, I am again reminded of the words on the poster.
Over 110 mayors attended the summit, each bringing stories of trailblazing initiatives, upcoming projects and successful policies.
Some of the cities shared their remarkable success in urban development, with cities such as Singapore, Suzhou (China), Yokohama (Japan) and Medellin (Colombia) among the most impressive.
What all these cities had in common was the comprehensive plans they had to develop their cities but more importantly, the fortitude and will to see the plans through.
Take Singapore for example, the Urban Development Authority has a draft and master plan to develop the island.
Its draft plan is reviewed every 10 years and charts development for the next 40 to 50 years while its master plan is reviewed every five years and charts development for the next 10 to 15 years.
The comprehensive plan doesn't just guide the density and accessibility to an area, it also takes into account every aspect of a future development and how it fits into the city's aspirations to be a place to live, work and play.
Long-term planning is not limited to infrastructure alone as Medellin has shown.
Once the "homicide capital of the world", Medellin in Colombia, is now a beacon of hope for countries around the world.
Medellin knew that the key to escaping its violent past was through education as it would give the poor a better chance of escaping poverty and the social issues.
It planned and developed social programmes from child-care centres to schools with extracurricular programmes, touching on areas of science, arts, languages and sports.
Infrastructure such as a wide network of public transportation, parks, libraries and more were then developed to complement its education goals.
The infrastructure was not focused on one specific area alone but all over with a focus on its poorer areas.
Twenty years since its violent days, Medellin has reduced its homicide rate by almost 87 per cent and is now home to over 30,000 university students.
Medellin is an important example to the world as it shows that it is never too late for change.
Closer to home, Kuala Lumpur folk, especially homeowners, wait with bated breath for the KL Draft City Plan 2020 to be gazetted.
While we wait, the city is changing at a rapid pace.
Historical treasures like the century-old Hundred Quarters in Brickfields, which is home to civil servants, will be making way for yet another new building with no historical value.
To make matters worse, we continue to see ridiculous development proposals popping up around the city that threaten the quality of life of nearby residents.
A 21-storey luxury condominium in the heart of a housing estate in Taman Yarl in Old Klang Road is a good example.
If approved, the project will have severe effects on the density, traffic congestion and privacy in the area.
Similarly, proposed condominium developments are also a cause for worry for residents of Taman Salak Selatan, Taman Naga Emas, Awana Puri in Cheras and Vista Angkasa in Kerinchi, just to name a few.
Time is running out for Kuala Lumpur in its quest to become a world-class city.
Historical landmarks are being demolished, green lungs like Bukit Kiara are being threatened and population density is increasing.
How does all this fit into the vision of a world-class city?
If we fail to plan, then we most definitely are planning to fail in this quest.