Do you need help learning how to plan your day? In this blog post, you can learn how to plan your day to be productive. I will teach you several tips for planning your day that will help you be successful.
Why Planning is Essential
Have you ever thought that planning is the backbone to your day? If you are wanting to accomplish goals, planning is involved. You can wake up and have no plan at all, but chances are you are going to fill less fulfilled at the end of the day. Planning your day ensures that you have structure to your day. With structure, you achieve success.
You’ve probably had structure and planning in your day since you were a child. There was a probably a standard time when you ate and slept. Then, you went on to daycare and then elementary school. Both daycare and elementary school have planning involved, which provides structure. In school, the schedule of subjects and/or activities is also known as your daily plan. Do you see what I mean? You’ve had planning in your day since you were young. Maybe you weren’t the one planning, but someone was.
Now you are older and maybe you aren’t in your prime of planning, but you can get there! With simple daily steps, you can make progress and achieve so much. You have to be willing to put out effort. Effort is one of the biggest keys to planning. If you aren’t going to put out the effort, then you aren’t going to see your ideas come to life. My process below can help!
How to Plan Your Day
Step 1: What are You Wanting to Accomplish?
Make a realistic list of what you think you can accomplish in your day. Can you do a lot or do you have time restrictions? Think about how much it would approximately take to complete each task you are wanting to complete. If you can’t accomplish everything you are wanting, make a list of what can be accomplished and move the others to another day. A good way to distinguish your tasks is by prioritizing the tasks by importance. Make sure that your more important tasks are scheduled earlier in the day to ensure chance of completion.
Step 2: Use Your Favorite Planner
Another key factor in successful planning is to use a planner. I have had planners since I was young. My planner preferences have evolved over the years. Pick a planner that you are attracted to. Seriously! If you don’t like the look of your planner, you won’t use it. I have tried several planners over the years. It’s like the story of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” Some planners were too overwhelming and some were underwhelming. Find what you like and use it!
If you are new to planning, take it one day at a time. Don’t put unrealistic demands on yourself. If you aren’t familiar with using a planner, it will take some time to get comfortable with it. Take your time, there is no rush.
Also, I always leave my planner out and open to the current day. This makes it so easy to check my daily plan.
Step 3: Focus on the Outcome You Desire
Now that you know your tasks and have your planner, it’s time to focus on the outcome you want. Are you working on small goals or big goals? Either way, you have to make small goals. I don’t think anyone has ever planned something great with one step. It’s going to take a step-by-step process to reach a large goal. Also, make sure you give yourself some break time. Stepping away from what you are doing allows your mind to have a break. You will be able to focus better by scheduling in breaks as needed.
Step 4: Plan According to Your Level of Energy
Are you a morning person or a night person? When do you produce at your best potential. Pay attention to your mood and how you feel at different times of the day. Then, plan your schedule based off of that information. If you are exhausted at 1 p.m., you probably aren’t going to accomplish what you want then. Schedule that time as a break time. Make sure you listen to your energy levels and plan according to that.
Step 5: Use Time Blocking
I am a big fan of time blocking. Blocking out your time is like blocking your time for a hair or nail appointment. You know exactly what you will be doing at a specific point in time. By knowing exactly what you will be doing for your scheduled time, you are more likely to achieve good results. A to-do list doesn’t have a specific time tied to it. Without planning when you are going to specifically do your tasks, there is no guarantee when your to-do list will be accomplished.
Step 6: Plan Ahead of Time
Always plan in advance. For example, I plan a monthly overview prior to the first of the month. Then, I plan a weekly plan based off the monthly plan on Sunday, prior to the week. And finally, I plan a daily plan the afternoon or evening before the next day. I’ve had great success with doing this. It’s a three step approach to planning out each month. Every month I do this, and I see positive results by using this method. Give it a try and let me know how it works for you!
Conclusion
Planning your day should be an enjoyable process. Why? Because if you don’t enjoy planning your day, it will be more challenging to achieve what you want to achieve. With my six-step process above, you will see good results. Again, take small steps and you will get to where you want to be. Give yourself time and you will be on your way to planning your day and sticking to it!
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