This has been a highly requested blog post for awhile and I’m just getting around to putting it all together for you! Time Management and Daily Planning are a love of mine – weird, I know, but I juggle a lot and in order to get (most) of it done each day, I need some intentionality with my day and tasks at hand. So today, I’m sharing How I Plan My Day with you! I’m also sharing a peek over on Instagram of my actual physical process of planning each day, highlighters and all, so be sure to check out my latest reel!
I’m often asked what I do for a living and to break it ALL down for you – I co-lead Fervent Church with my husband Mike who is the Lead Pastor. What does co-lead mean? Well, a lot of the time, he’s the vision and I’m the logistics, but I’m growing in my role and speaking more, I oversee all of our Collectives (how we do community at Fervent) and a bunch of creative stuff, admin stuff and event planning. Let’s just say, I do a lot. Along with that, I work for our denomination’s NJ/NYC district office as an admin for the PEAK Profile which is a tool we use to measure church health and growth. I also do a little social media, marketing and training within that role. THEN, I have my own personal business/brand which includes this blog, brand partnerships, collaborations and more. I have my Stella & Dot business – coming up on five years actually AND I do some freelance design and social media. Along with that, I’m also a mom of two very busy teenage boys so to keep it all straight is beyond difficult at times, BUT I have some time management and daily planning tools that I use to get it all done!
Today, I’m just going to touch the surface of how I plan out my day bc I don’t want to make your head spin. In fact, a few weeks ago, I sat down with Mike and helped him organize his week, what he does when and how to manage it all and it’s been a game changer for him! Anyways, here’s the simple steps I take to organize my day!
Make A List
So the first step is making a list of what you need to do for the day. I actually prefer to make a list for the week and split it up, but thats for another post! So once you have your to-do list, write it down in your planner, notebook or on a sheet of paper! (Scroll down for a freebie to help with this!). This list should include any personal or work tasks. I include my health and fitness goals as well as house chores when creating this list.
Check Your Calendar
I personally love my Day Designer planner bc it has time slots from 6AM to 8PM on it in half hour intervals. I will write down every meeting, practice, zoom call, sports activity, etc on it. I also include when I’m going to workout and when I’m going to eat my meals.
Grab Your Highlighters
Then I designate a color for each line of business – for example, Personal stuff is pink, Fervent stuff is blue, Personal Business is green and District work is purple. I draw a box around each task in its designated color. Then, I block out my day as to when I’m going to work on that line of business’ tasks. After that, I set alarms on my phone when each timeblock starts and when I eat my meals – Fervent stuff starts at 9:30, Personal Business at 11AM, Lunch at 12, more Fervent work at 12:30, more Personal Business at 2:30 and finishing up my day at 4:30. (BTW, this is not a typical day for me. Hunter was graduating this day so I had to shorten my work day) Now, here’s the kicker, when that alarm goes off, I am only doing that colored tasks in that timeblock. Nothing else. I’m turning my phone to Do Not Disturb mode, I’m closing out my texts and emails on my MacBook and I’m focusing on just those tasks and starting with any that fall in the day’s Top Three (three most important things I need to do) followed by any 5-minute tasks just to get them done with. I also track when I start my day. Most days I’m working from home and my goal is to start working by 9AM.
Start Crossing It Off
As I finish each task, I cross it off my list! I love the feeling of checking something off, its amazing! I’m weird, I know… If I finish a specific timeblock’s tasks before my alarm goes off, I take that time to get up and move around or knock off a house chore that’s on my list. I have a 50minute focus method that I use, but again, that’s for another day – let’s focus on the basics today!
Prepare For The Next Day
Before I close out my day, I write my To-Do List for the next day, color code it and set my alarms for the next workday. There’s nothing better than sitting down at 9AM and having my day already planned out. It feels like I’m ahead of the ball for the day and there’s no time wasted figuring out what I need to do!
I hope you’ve found this helpful bc its really a game changer for me! Day Designer Planners tend to be a little pricey, but I’ve luckily been able to find their affordable version at Target! If a new planner is not in your budget right now, I’ve created a Daily Planner Printable for you below – just print it out and start your day!
Keepin It 100: My daily scheduling process is something I’ve created based on reading multiple books and listening to numerous podcasts. I purchased my Day Designer Planner and everything else pictured in this post with my own money. However if you purchase the products in this post with the affiliate links I’ve shared, I do earn a small commission on your purchase at no cost to you.
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