How to plan out your week

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail…”I don’t think there has ever been a truer phrase that’s ever been uttered… like ever. (And of course, I’m saying this on MLK Day, so… I might be a bit wrong here…)But, in all honesty, if you aren’t being intentional about planning out your day, your week, your month, or your year (anyone else just start singing the FRIENDS theme song?!), you are truly NOT setting yourself up for success.So, I wanted to take some time to really teach you how exactly I go about planning out my week.I can honestly say that Sunday nights are my absolute favorite nights of the week. Yes, I LOVE me a good Friday Family Movie Night and sitting in bed with the hubby on Saturday nights, watching LIVE PD, but for my Type A, 9w1 Enneagram type… Sundays rock my WORLD.The first thing you need? A PLANNER. Y’all, I don’t care what type of planner you have… I tested out 5 different ones last year until I found one that I absolutely LOVED and have stuck with. I absolutely LOVE my Day Designer planner (totally not an ad - I just LOVE it that much), but find something that works for YOU. But, you HAVE to have something that allows you to write down everything on your schedule. I’m talking…

• Appointments
• Phone calls
• Lunch dates
• Work time
• Your daily run
• Your OrangeTheory class
• Your daughter’s gymnastic lessons
• Your son’s soccer practice
• What times you need to be home to get your kiddo off the bus

It ALL needs to go in your planner! My personal preference is a daily planner with hourly time slots. I like to see everything in one spot because it’s easier for my brain to function. I can see my entire day mapped out in one spot - everything I NEED/HAVE to do and the open times I have as well.So, this is where it gets a little more complicated. I also like to have a monthly calendar so that I can set appointments up down the road. The ONLY time I am writing in my weekly or daily pages is during that week. Therefore, my personal planner MUST have a monthly calendar option as well.Full transparency: I use both a paper planner and a digital planner to keep myself organize. My digital planner (I LOVE Google Calendar) is more of my “this is what is coming up and all your recurring appointments” type of planner. It’s more of my long range planner. My paper planner is for my daily and weekly stuff. EVERYTHING goes in both, because who knows if - or really when - I forget my phone and need to have my paper planner as a backup. Just my 2-cents… this is NOT necessary, but it works well for me.Then, pick 1 day a week to do your weekly planning. I used to do mine on Thursdays because it really helped get me through the end of the week. It was something to look forward to and got me prepared for the following week. Now that I set my own hours with my job, I like to spend Sunday nights preparing for the week ahead so it is all FRESH.I go through each individual day, looking at my week ahead against both my paper monthly calendar + my Google Calendar. Here is exactly what I write in:

• My workouts
• Kids’ dropoffs
• Phone calls or team meetings
• My work time
• When I’m going live
• Kids’ pickup times
• Any appointments we might have
• Dinners (this is how I meal plan for the week)*
• My husband’s schedule*

*Those last 2 have a special section in my planner on my daily page, but I still write them down because MOM BRAIN.This stuff all goes in my HOURLY time slots. It maps out my day for me and I can add in when I’m specifically working on my MONAT business or when I am working on client projects, or marketing, or whatever. It gives my BRAIN a linear view of my day, and I can pencil in (OMG, PENCIL IS LIFE) anything extra I want to do, like getting that oil change that I continually forget to go get, or taking Miles to the library, or having lunch with my mama.Then, I write down ALL THE THINGS that I NEED to get done in the next week. This gets a little complicated for me because sometimes my clients have 1 thing I do every week, and others have 15 different things I’m working on. If it’s one thing, I put it on the list. If it’s multiple things, I put down Client Name Tasks so I know I have multiple to work on. You can put this in a notes section in your planner, or for me, I write it down EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. (Another reason I love the Day Designer - it has a to-do list on EVERY daily page.)And the best part…GETTING TO CHECK THINGS OFF MY LISTOh lawdy… there’s just something about filling in a box or crossing something off your list that is just so rewarding. I just LOVE it! And it gives me that feeling of accomplishment for sure!Now, don’t get me wrong here. I BELIEVE in planning and having plans laid out, but I also believe that in order for that plan to be SUCCESSFUL, you have to be willing to be FLEXIBLE. Things are going to come up unexpectedly. If something throws off your schedule, that’s OK - and exactly why I write in PENCIL. Be OK with the unexpected. It happens and you’ll figure it out, I promise!So, to sum it all up…Get a planner (or 2… or try several out)Pick a day that you’ll planWrite down your entire day, hour-by-hour, for the entire week aheadWrite down ALL your tasks for the week (I do this DAILY)CRUSH LIFEAny questions?!