Hello and welcome back to “Make a Fresh Start.” All month long we are talking about ways to kick off a successful year.
Today I have another tip for jumpstarting your lifestyle: embrace planning! I know that this has been a crazy season, and one in which planning has been (and still is) particularly difficult. However, planning is less about having a rigid schedule of tasks and more about creating a productive and flexible framework. Having strong planning skills means we will be better at responding, pivoting, flexing, and reacting in the face of whatever the day may have in store.
Planning comes down to establishing a process for capturing two key categories of information:
- Your calendar commitments (appointments, meetings, phone calls, pick-ups, drop-offs, webinars, deadlines, etc.)
- Your “to do” list (tasks)
These buckets of information work in tandem. Therefore, a strong planning system should capture all the items that fit into both categories. You can read more about how they should work together here.
The best planning tool is one you use and trust. You need to record it all.
There are limitless tools available for recording and tracking your plan, digital, paper, or a mix of both. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, and it comes down to personal preference.
Planning is an intentional habit that you form. If you are just getting started, you will need to PLAN time to plan! I suggest you set aside time each morning to plan your day, and then review your progress at the end of each day. Once you get onto planning, you will likely find that you refer to your plan and track your progress throughout the day. Since best laid plans are often interrupted by unanticipated developments, you will periodically need to adapt and adjust your strategy as the day goes on. That is both normal and healthy. Any tasks left unfinished by nighttime can be rescheduled to another day.
If you would like more specific instructions on how to do this, you can read more here .
Do you faithfully use a planning tool? Is planning a part of each day? What might you do differently to be a better planner?
I could do better with this. I have improved in many ways but I still have a long way to go. Your suggestions are very helpful and I plan to follow them. dI never seem to have enough time to do all I would like.
Hopefully a little focused planning will help you be able to “fit it all in!”