The aim of planning is to provide you with an overview of the essay content, so you can select and order your points in the most effective way. Because your current approach doesn't incorporate planning, you are missing out on the opportunity to find the best way to structure your material. The essay plan can be in linear note form, a thought map or on index cards, but whatever the format, it will provide you with instructions for selecting and ordering the content of your essay draft. The first step to using plans effectively is to identify the type of planning that best fits your approach to writing.