How to create a schedule that works for YOU

Have you ever looked at your schedule or your to-do list and gone…“How in the WORLD am I going to get all of this done?!”Girl, I FEEL ya…There was a time in my life when I literally needed an extra 8 hours in my day in order to get everything done.  I was completely overwhelmed, and when I get overwhelmed, I tend to completely break down. I get depressed and start questioning EVERYTHING in my life.(I also might be a little dramatic.)But, this past year, I made it a priority to figure out HOW I could get everything done on my to-do list without losing my head.  And guess what? This is SO easy to do + implement that you can get started doing this with your schedule ASAP so that you beat overwhelm + stress before they beat you!It comes down to 2 simple strategies:Time Blocking + BatchingDon’t let those words scare you… I promise they are very simple.  Let me explain exactly how these 2 things can help you in YOUR life…

TIME BLOCKING.

I’ve apparently been doing this since college but didn’t know what it was or that it even had a name until this past year.  What time blocking entails is managing your schedule to get certain things done in time blocks so that you can easily focus on ONE THING AT A TIME.I’m going to tell you something that you might not believe and want to throw your phone or computer as you read this, but I want you to know the truth - the REAL truth.YOU ABSOLUTELY, 100% CANNOT MULTITASK.Let me give you a prime example of how I try to multitask that my husband constantly makes fun of me for…Every night when we are getting ready for bed, I stick a toothbrush in my mouth and proceed to attempt to put away laundry, get my clothes out for the next day (for my run + for the day), and get ready for bed.  And you know what doesn’t happen…BRUSHING MY TEETH!If I would just take 2 minutes to brush my teeth without being distracted by everything else I want to do before I go to bed, I’d get it all done twice as fast.You can totally call me on this if you want, but I promise you, if you would focus on the ONE TAB you have open on your computer without checking your texts, messages, emails, etc., you’d get your work done in HALF the time.But, I digress… Basically, what I am saying, I want you to look at your 24 hours in the day and figure out when you are going to work on certain things.  Here’s an example of my time blocked day…During my POWER HOUR, I am solely focused on getting those tasks done during that hour.  That is strictly a business focused time where I am doing multiple different things, but one thing at a time that help me move my business forward (following-up with people, checking + responding to emails, checking in on my clients + ads, etc.).During my work time, I am strictly focused on WORK.  My phone is put away (in fact, I keep in on Do Not Disturb all the time), my email is hidden, my Facebook is closed.  I want to be as productive as possible during that time and I want to limit all my distractions.During our family time, because I’ve had focused work time, I can be as present as possible with my kiddos. My phone can be put away (most days - sometimes I struggle with this still) and we can hang as a family + play.In my 24-hours in a day, I am able to be SO much more productive!  And my schedule doesn’t have to be like your schedule. If you work full time, your day is going to look a lot different, but I encourage you to block out the times when you’re going to do certain work tasks, lesson planning, business tasks, family time, etc.  And really, truly FOCUS your efforts on that thing.

BATCHING YOUR TASKS.

This has been LIFE CHANGING for me.  Like I said, I can get super distracted by all the other things that are happening in my house, on my phone, on my computer, etc.  And when I have a long list of client tasks or business tasks to do, it is hard for me to figure out where to start and what to do on those certain days.So, instead, during those time blocked areas, I have a specific focus on what I am working on.  I have one day dedicated to phone calls, either coaching calls or discovery calls. I have one day dedicated to creating content.  I have one day dedicated to working on larger client projects and launches.If you’re a mom or work fulltime, this might look different but is still totally possible.  We dedicate one day to running errands, one day to going to the library, one day for outside fun, one day for a “field trip”.  There are seriously an unlimited number of ways you can batch your tasks or block your time, but the ONE THING that I do want you to do when it comes to setting up a schedule that works for YOU…BE FLEXIBLE.As much as I want to stay to my daily timeline, things happen.  A call might run over or something takes longer than expected. And that’s OK.  Don’t beat yourself up if you have to move some things around. I even dedicate a day to catching up on Fridays, just in case I don’t get to something during the week.Try it out and see if it works for you!  You might just find that you’re getting a shit-ton more done and freeing up a TON of time on the weekends!