Create Your Own Planner that works for YOU!!
 
 
Let me share the basics with you here.
 
Remember - EVERYTHING in ONE notebook! - You pick the size - but it will be with you most of the time - so make it easy to toss into your backpack or tote that is your "mobile office". Loose leaf is nice to let you move things around and add pages where you want- lay flat style makes it easy to have open on your desk. (mine is a flex cover that gets thicker as I add weekly and daily pages throughout the year - but it never bulges over the 1" rings).
  1. You'll want to do periodic BIG Planning that will include carefully determining YOUR priorities for the year - not just for work, but your personal and family priorities as well - so I use a bright color of paper for those pages.
  2. Then, you want an overall plan of the year - a page that has each month as a vertical column with the right number of days - this allows you to do some big overview notes of those dates or activities that must be part of your life! Put critical things that need to have dates confirmed - like vacations on mini-post-its, so they can be moved into position as they are finalized, but they are always part of your planning.
  3. Add a calendar page for each month - to allow more detailed planning for the month - don't forget birthdays and anniversaries that are HIGH PRIORITIES on these pages, and any days off like holidays that are critical to you or your family.
  4. On the other side of the monthly calendar pages -- create your own format that allows you to fill in-
  • A box for each of Your 3 top priorities for the YEAR - with space to list a goal towards each one for the month and 3-5 specific actions to reach THAT goal. Add target dates for the actions to plan out the progress.
  • A box to make note of Things you are in charge of - that you can delegate out - but need to stay on top of
  • A box for CHALLENGES you expect to face and how you plan to address them
  • A box for YOUR MANTRA for the month -- to keep your attitude in the right place
  • A box labeled "INVESTIGATE" for those things to come up during the month that may help you solve problems
  • A box for FOCUS of the MONTH --this is your place to really identify the mindset you want to keep as you move through the business of all the above stuff.
  • Include a white space for noting any expenses you paid out and for what - so you can quickly compare with those CC receipts at the end of the month and identify things.
Tip: This sounds overwhelming to divide up a page to include all that - but if you start with landscape 8 1/2 x 11 and divide it in quarters across the top and in 1/3's down the side and lightly draw in those lines - you will have a good grid to work with and you can get it all in.
 
5. Next you will need a single page for each Week as you move through the year. Weekly pages should be set up to allow you to:
    • quickly track anything that you have to report at the end of the week or month - AND that shows your activity that is necessary to accomplish your goals (for example - if you need to make 10 new contacts, or you need to check the status of something daily)
    • Have a spot to quickly note anything you need to regarding a day of the week- General schedule - basic thing to work on THAT DAY - or something that happened and you need to recall it.
    • You should have a limited place to add TO DO's that you need to note- to either delegate or plan for
  • Then - You need to use about 1/2 of the page to REVIEW the week.
    • Was progress made toward goals?
    • Struggles that occurred and WHY?
    • How can I overcome those in the future?
    • Strengths that helped me this week. Lessons learned. How I grew.
    • Then for each of your 3 top priorities of the year - ASK...did I take action on this priority this week? Why or Why not? How did the actions go?
  • Finally -- CELEBRATIONS and how you are rewarding yourself.
I leave the backside empty on Weekly pages - to allow a place to make any notes I need to - and/or have a place to "think thru" any issues that need re-thinking or sorting out.
  1. Daily Pages: I use a single page (front and back) to handle 4 days - 1/2 page for each day. Here is what I need to keep track of my days.
  • Warm Up: (this is a quick checklist of things that start my day right - ie. a gratitude note to someone, a public high-5)
  • My TOP 3 Priorities for TODAY --- one long-term, one urgent, and one that applies to things I am passionate about
  • Reminders: (those things that pop up in the midst of something else - but I need to go back to)
  • Celebrations: (I often forget to notice the GOOD things - so noting them helps me see how much got done)
  • A space to note how I generally used my time  (it is a resource I don't want to waste)
  • 3 or 4 questions to help me recognize how I lived according to my Motto and values today
  • A space for ideas I want to remember- think on
  • A space for what I want to do differently tomorrow
  • A space for something I want to do in the future -- like 3 new contacts I want to make, or How I CHOOSE to be Tomorrow
I end up with a 1/2 blank page at the end of a week- so I can use that to expand on anything that I didn't have space for on my daily pages.
  1. To close out a month - you need a review page - this will have a bit of a checklist and summary of your month - as well as 1/2 page plus the backside for Journaling about the month - any additional or expanded reflections you need.
The checklist should include:
    • review of goals for the month and how you did on reaching them
    • review of the strategies you used - how effective they were
    • review of your rewards and Celebrations -- are you taking note of your progress and embracing it?
Summary questions to address:
    • What goals did I reach?
    • What is going well and why?
    • What is my biggest challenge?
    • How can I turn it into an opportunity?
    • What is one thing I can do NOW that will create the biggest results in my biz?
    • What fears are holding me back and how can I overcome them?
    • Who inspires me? and how can I model them to succeed?
    • What am I happy about RIGHT NOW?
Summary of the TARGET GOALS that I have to do consistently each week to get to my overall goals.
 
Brainstorming Section -- for issues and actions to move forward better.
 
 
Why this method works for me...
  1. This method builds in the planning and reflection time I need as I go through my days, weeks, and months - yet keeps it quick.
  2. My notes are all in one place - so I don't lose track of the history I need or have to look for my notes.
  3. As I plan my month and weeks - I am keeping my priorities Front and center - and it is EASY and QUICK to review them.
  4. I can add extra pages anywhere if needed to accommodate a special situation or add background info or research needed to support a thought process.
  5. I have all my info together to quickly do team reports for the week or month.
  6. I have info noted where I can find it - so I can quickly confirm expense reports.
 
KEY TIP:  The one thing that was hard to resolve was keeping my online calendar that my Team needs access to - from interfering with the time I needed to accomplish my TOP Priorities. But we figured out how I can "TIME BLOCK" my calendar to set aside the time I needed as uninterrupted- and the time that was allowed for my TEAM to set up appointments. Exceptions happen occasionally, but it is so much better than it used to be!
 
 
Does this feel overwhelming?
If nothing is solving your problem right now - and here you are in February already struggling to remember your priorities, find your notes and feel like your TO-DO list is just getting longer - not shorter... Then email me. I'll be glad to share my templates to get you started. By next month you'll be tweeking them to fit YOU a bit better -AND you'll be on a path of actually keeping track of the things YOU need to - AND keeping YOUR priorities front and center daily, weekly and monthly.
 
 
Don't let this be overwhelming to you. My templates and your printer will get you moving. Then you adjust them to fit YOUR style and needs. 
 
 
PS. Didn't do any priority planning lately?   We can fix that - Let me know by emailing and I'll share my templates for a SIMPLE but effective exercise to walk you through creating your priorities for this year. You can't get somewhere if you don't know where you are going. So let's create your map!