EXPLANATION

Your ego-based mind wants to be in control. It masquerades as you, and you unwittingly go along with this.

The only time that you have any real power or control is in the present moment, the NOW. The mind wants you to spend as little time in the NOW as possible, so one of it's very effective tactics is to keep you focused on the past and the future -- the realm of the ego-based mind.

Perhaps you can relate to this story:

A man started a new job and his boss mercilessly piles more and more work onto the growing mountain on his desk. For days the man looked at the ever-growing mountain thinking "How long will it take to get all this done?", "Where do I even start?", and "Will I ever finish?".

For days he sits at his desk, staring at the pile. Paralyzed, he does nothing but stare, does no work, ruminates, and complains to his friends, family and co-workers about how over-worked he is and how eager he is to find a new job.

His boss noticing the pile and that nothing has been done grabs one assignment, puts in front of the man, and says do this, then when you're done, do the next.

The man, with great resistance does the assignment, then goes on to the next. Soon the "mountain" is down to a "mole hill" and suddenly his job didn't seem so bad anymore.

When the man was ruminating and fretting over his pile of work he was living in the future -- he was taken over by his ego-based mind, lost control himself, was torn away from the present moment, and became paralyzed. When his boss stuck an assignment in front of his nose, he returned to the NOW and regained control, and soon the pain was relieved. 

Worrying or dreading a future event  

Like the story above, this kind of thinking can paralyze you, turn you into a very negative person, and most certainly it will waste your time and keep you away from the NOW.

This type of thinking can be addictive. It seems productive and responsible to "plan". It isn't. All the planning your ego-based mind does for the future is based on it's own take on past events. The future has a way of surprising all of us. You'd get much more done doing something NOW than planning.

Endless planning will waste your time and keep you away from the NOW.

This type of thinking can be very addictive. It seems harmless to daydream and "wish" about the future. It isn't. All the anticipation your ego-based mind does for the future is based on it's own take on past events. The future has a way of surprising all of us.  As hard as it is to tear yourself away from this type of thinking, it is worth it, because it will only  waste your time and keep you away from the NOW when you can actually have pleasure.

All, I repeat ALL, thoughts about the future and past are a complete and utter waste of your time and energy, and they can cause quite a bit of misery. The mind is very clever and seductive, but it is also very limited. See this list and you'll begin to see the limited and destructive effects excessive past and future can have on you Now.