A Timely Guide to Planning Your Week

Most of us normally attack the week one day at a time.  We go to the office on Monday, track down a cup of coffee, and then try to figure out what all is going on.

Consider how things could better work out if you have a whole week’s plan for your life before you wake up each Monday morning.  Planning for your week, not just for work-related items, but plan everything else too. Find out what things to be done and prioritize those items.

Take control of your life. For your best results, avoid living life as it unfolds. Taking control of your life means you will increase your confidence, stay ahead of your work, and find more free time to do whatever you like. Immediately, give it a try for a month and see if you enjoy the benefits.

Follow these guides to create a plan for the week:

1. Have a weekly planning session. Sunday is the best time to do this. You’ve decompressed from the previous week, but everything is still fresh in your mind. The workweek starts in just one day.

• Make a list of tasks for each area of your life – include work, personal items, and family. Your items will vary with your unique lifestyle.
• An example: WORK
• – complete marketing project with George
• – interview applicants for the marketing supervisor position
• – contact packaging vendor to discuss printing issues
• – find a contractor to repair the floor in the production area

2. Decide which are the priorities among all of the tasks. Give yourself an allowance. Assume that you can’t get it all done. Which tasks must be done and which can be put off until the following week?

• Assign one of three levels of priority to each task. You might use 1, 2, 3, or A, B, C, or Red, Yellow, Green.
• Start with your number 1 priorities and complete all of them before moving on to the number 2 and 3 priorities.

3. Schedule these tasks in your calendar. Begin this process no later than Sunday evening and know how you’re going to spend your Monday morning. Try not to wait until your alarm clock wakes you up.

• Do not over-schedule. Once you fall behind, it becomes impossible to catch up. Leave room for the inevitable emergencies and requests from the boss. Schedule 50% of your time and leave the rest free.
• Write them down using a planner to allow you to move all these responsibilities out of your head. Now, you should do this part as soon as possible before you forget them.

4. Get busy as soon as you can on Monday morning. It will be great if you can work ahead! Keep your plans fluid. What you’ve written down in your planner is your best guess, but you have to start somewhere. Remember that things will change as the week progresses.
5. Review each evening. Spend just a few minutes every night making necessary adjustments. As projects are done, you’ll have the flexibility to move things around. Practice this and perfect your new plan of attack each night. Make this an enjoyable habit. Either you do it before leaving the office or do it in the comfort of your living room. Just ensure it gets done!
6. Have a weekly review. Checklists could be – What did you do well? What could have been better? How well did your weekly plan work? What improvements can you make to the process?

• Reviewing your week and making adjustments is one of the most powerful ways to improve. Afterward, address your mistakes and recognize your successes.

By planning and prioritizing, you can hit the ground running and be assured of getting the most important things accomplished. Start next week by making a plan and following it religiously. Your life will change for the better.