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How to Prepare for a Productive Week

I used to dread Mondays. It was a hard transition from the weekend to having my head back in the game for the upcoming week. But I can honestly say that I have a good relationship with Mondays and the days that follow. How? I simply plan the week the Sunday before and have the opportunity to face the busy days before they are upon me. Here are few ways that I plan for the week:

  1. Make a List- Lists are my holy grail. I download everything that I believe needs my attention for the week. This includes household chores, extracurricular activities, projects, bills due, work tasks & activities, etc. When I take a look at my list, I schedule the task to designated days to focus my attention.
  2. Use a planner– I make sure that I have clean daily/weekly pages for me to fill in. And, as things come up for various days, I schedule them in my monthly calendar so that I can use as a reference to fill in tasks for specific days.
  3. Make sure I have my supplies– This is a personal preference that helps me get in the mood for planning. Some of my favorite supplies are my sticker book, washi, a small notebook, the best writing pen, correction pen, scissors, and a ruler.
  4. Plan in a great atmosphere- I typically plan best where I can relax and that special place is my home office. I turn the tv on to a binge-worthy show, light a candle, and dress comfy to make my plain planner pages light up.
  5. Look at my goals-As I fill in the week’s tasks with daily happenings, I keep my goals near by so that I can be inspired to add tasks that will help me get closer to reaching my goals. I strive to include a task each day that is directly related to my goals.
  6. Take a step back and look at my planned week. Once I have the week’s main tasks and reminders filled in to my planner, I take a look at what all is scheduled. To avoid overwhelm, I will rearrange tasks, if necessary. I plan my days for a peace of mind, not to bombard my mind.

It’s a good feeling to see where I’m going at the start of the week versus losing all sense of control because I didn’t plan or layout what was required of me. Because I do groundwork before Monday begins, I’m able to embrace Monday and the days following.

Hope this inspires you to plan your week before it gets it here.