Have you observed how you react when you start a day, a week, a month without a specific plan and goals? Hmm.. Yes it is this frustration! To avoid this unnecessary stress and unwanted tensions, you better start planning!
This blog will provide you with smart tips on how to do the planning process smoothly and effectively.
Planning is the process of organizing your goals and priorities for the day, week, month ahead. When you plan beforehand, you will have the time to design a plan to fit in everything that you wish to achieve. Learning how to plan your week helps you target the important work, make clear action steps and work with intention. Planning your day, week, month is important to make sure the time you have is spent in the most efficient way.
Start using these 7 tips today to optimize your day and use your time most effectively
Know your goals
It is important to review the long term goals before planning. For example, when you are about to plan your day, first review your week plan and so on. This will help you plan accordingly to your long term goals and fit your plan in the bigger picture. To have effective planning, you must have clear goals, and align the bigger ones with the smaller.
Review your priorities
As you have first checked the bigger plan, now you can decide which are the most important priorities you have and plan accordingly. You can proactively block time for things that are the most important, they can be related to your work, to your personal life or any other activity you may have. Try to stick to 3-4 priorities and not overwhelm yourself.
Set a specific time for the planning
Create a routine around planning. When it comes to planning your month, you can reserve the evening of the last day of the previous month to make your review and then plan your priorities, your goals for the next one. For weekly planning, you can always set aside 30 minutes every Sunday and make your plan. For daily planning, you can include the planning in your morning routine.
Schedule the most important first
Either you are planning your day, your week or your month, always schedule the most important actions and/or obligations you have. Add the most important dates as well, the due dates of assignments, bills and as well birthdays or anniversaries. It will help you for the rest of the planning if you first reserve the important slots.
Save time for leisure
Make sure to save some time for your downtime. It is equally important to plan a time for your self-care, for your amusement or for your personal growth activities. They should have their own space in your planning. Planning is not dedicated only to your work or to your performance.
Do not overplan
As mentioned above, planning your day, week or month ahead will help you reduce your stress levels, but there is a common misconception that you should plan every minor detail. No, you should not. If you overplan you will end up feeling that every minute has an opposite effect and you are most likely to fail having an effective schedule.
Have a dedicated planner
Having your schedule on a planner, either in digital format or printed will help you manage your to-do list effectively. This ensures you block out time to work on your priorities and while writing them down will help you have a visual understanding of how manageable it is. It will help you eliminate distraction and increase your focus.
Remember that in order to have a successful plan, you need to create a manageable list. You don’t need to push all the tasks at once, better plan smartly to help you have an effective schedule. After setting all your priorities, and breaking them down, then you can use an online calendar like Google Calendar to put all the tasks, with colors, reminders and details in the notes section.
Plan is everything when it comes to success. Follow these tips and you will create a great schedule to help you achieve your goals!