Planning Made Simple: A Practical Approach to Time Management
What can I say about this?
I’m someone who thrives on planning. From daily to yearly, I’ve got it all laid out. It keeps me grounded and calm.
Also, time management is one of the things that I have figured out in the past three years.
First thing: everybody is different. You have to be willing to experiment and see what works for you.
There is no right recipe.
But I have figured out a way that works for me. Right now I am juggling a job, university, this blog, dancing, and social life. I get to exercise, eat, and sleep enough hours, and I even get a rest day (imagine that!)
I will show you my planning process.
How did I figure this out?
I had some time when I did not go to university or have a job, but I wanted to do something. The first month, or even two, of free time is great — no responsibilities, all the time in the world to do whatever. But after a while, it gets exhausting and boring. Your sleep schedule gets shot to hell, and you do not do anything productive.
This time to myself made me learn to plan and know myself. It was a long time till I figured out what worked, mostly because I had no structured way to see what was working and what was not. I was just flailing around.
Sometimes I was productive, sometimes I did nothing. I had no idea how I got from one state to another.
How have I planned my day?
First, I figured out what I wanted to do. For me, it looked like taking a CS50 course and going to choir practice and dancing. Sometime later, I learned other things, like math for university.
So…
How do you structure your day when you have all the time in the world and it is just you and your discipline and motivation to do things?
Or alternatively, how do you plan your day when you have a lot to do and you also want to rest?
You make a planning strategy by trial and error! I have tried many things, but mostly what works for me is…
Brain Dump
What do you really want to accomplish this time?
What do you want in life?
Or what do you already have to do?
What are your commitments?
Goals?
Think big, think small — just dumb all that you have to do, that you want to do — all that comes to mind. Just write randomly.
Put it all out there.
It does not have to look pretty. You just have to get your brain empty so that all that you are thinking is on the page. It brings you clarity and peace. The anxious thoughts that go on and on about how little you are doing go away, and you can see what exactly is going on.
You can do this brain dump as often as you like.
I do it at least once a week, even if I already have a strict schedule and plans. It just gets me out of the panic and anxious mode to actually do something. Sometimes I use brain dumping more than once a day — I forget to do something and I write it down so that I do not forget later and my brain is not cluttered with the things that I do not need at that moment.
Actually, a tip: when you are trying to concentrate on something but keep getting distracted by thoughts, write them down. At first, it may seem like a waste of time, but trust me, after a while, you will have a clear and focused brain and can finally do the thing you need to do.
Brain dumping is, in my opinion, the one thing you should get away from; it helps so much.
If you are like me and have very high expectations and standards for yourself, this is also a way to see if you have not given yourself too much to do.
It comes with practice — to realistically figure out what exactly is too much — but this is a good way to find out what you are already doing and planning to do.
Sometimes I have a bit too much planned and I do not even know it, and I ask myself why I did not do everything or why exactly I do not have any energy left to read in the evening. After reading what I wrote down, I realise that I have probably taken on too much.
So now you have written down everything in your brain. What do you do next?
Task lists
After brain-dumping, you have to figure out your tasks and commitments that you have written down — little ones and big ones.
I write them out on different lists.
Some of it I just discard as not important right now. For example, if in the brain dump, you get distracted about 10 years in the future goals, then it does not need to be on the list (if it is something relevant right now, then by all means, write it down).
After that, you have a list of things that you can start ordering based on their importance and time frames. There are probably things you have to do today, this week, this month, and bigger things this year (or 3–5 years).
I usually make these lists for the next week — the things I need to do. Then I delegate them to each day, when I know I have free time blocks around my other commitments, like lectures. Then I make a list of the things I need to do the next day so that when I wake up, I know exactly what I need to do — I do not need to think.
Then every day I use my planner and time block. Write down everything I need to do, what the priority is, and when I am going to do it. I also time-block breaks and meal times and write down what to do if I have some free time.
For example, I have the non-negotiables that I need to do that day.
That is one or two things a day, but with a “+” sign, I add some tasks that I could do if I have some time left. Usually, these things can wait or are not that important, but I want to do them or I know that it would make my life easier if I did them. These could be, like, tidying up my desk, which would make my life easier, but I do not need to do it right at that moment.
I also use a calendar on my phone. I record social events, important deadlines, appointments, and some plans; for example, I have a record of everything I am publishing as a deadline in my calendar. It makes me not miss anything. The moment I have some created date that needs to be saved, I write it in my Google calendar.
I do not write any lectures, for they are repetitive and do not change (if something changes, I write it down). I do not time block in my calendar, for I think that clutters it, and I want to be able to see the important things at first glance. I also use color codes: for school things, blue; for jobs, purple; for deadlines, red; for blogs, yellow; and so on.
So you have lists that you need to do and a time-blocked day or week.
How do you not lose yourself in the everyday routine and see that you are going forward with your goals?
The way I know how I am going forward and how to improve is that I do monthly reviews. I write down what I have done that month and what I learned.
The most important thing is that this is the only time I reread what I have written in my journal, notes, and plans for that month. I write down ideas I missed and the things that I did not do and reevaluate if I want to do them in the future.
This helps me keep track of what direction I am going and how I am feeling about it.
Someday I will write in detail about how monthly reviews have helped me.
They are one of the best practices I have used. It gives me a new start, no matter what has happened in the past.
So in summary, the way I plan:
- Brain dump every day, every week — as much as you need.
- Make lists out of these brain dumps: month, week, and day.
- Record every important date in a calendar as soon as you get it.
- Time-block everyday.
- Do a monthly review of your progress and plans so that you are on track with your goals.
In the end,
One of the things that you will have to experiment with is:
What time of day are you most energized?
When can you concentrate the most?
When are you the most creative?
You will need to figure out by trial and error how much time you need for tasks and learn to plan realistically. With that, I mean that you need to plan more time than you think you will need, plan for rest, and plan for unexpected things.
Also, I have to say, the calendar is not your enemy.
Do not plan a day that you do not want to do; plan fun activities, social things, and rest. Of course, you need to fulfill your commitments, and I realize that is not everything you want to do, but the trick is to do what you need to do and do something you want to do.
Balance both of them.
And be simple.
Do not start an elaborate bullet journal that will take so much of your time to even set it up every day (but if it works for you, great, continue it!).
I hope this helps, and I wish you good luck! :)
Thank you for reading!
