Planning

I've just read this article:

http://www.chess.com/article/view/typical-chess-mistakes

I clearly make a LOT of mistakes, otherwise my rating would not have been frozen at 1600+ as it has been for, like, three years. One of the mistakes listed here is 'playing without a plan'. Please could someone define for me what a plan is in chess? Is it a verbal thing? At what point do you start planning? I don't understand :( 

I think that's a very good question, I'd like to hear what the good players say. With diagrams, please

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_strategy

http://www.angelfire.com/journal2/chess/planning.html

http://chess-training.blogspot.com/2006/11/common-plans.html

http://www.chess.com/article/view/planning-in-chess

There are plenty other links, and few good books as well.

Thanks Dragec. That's my morning sorted! 

I'm just reading the chess.com article now:

"A player who simply makes the moves he likes and hopes to win by random tactics usually succumbs to the opponent who has a plan behind his moves." 

There, in a sentence, is a description of my chess career :( 

If you did not already, be sure that you look at  Natalia's game, and read the annotations, as she describes her plan there.