Kickstarting your day the right way sets the tone for a productive day. In this article, you’re going to learn all about how to plan your day to be productive including tips on how to create a productive to do list, how to plan your week, how to balance a productive lifestyle and more.
Productivity tips are all over the internet.
“Wake up at 5 a.m.”
“Make a to-do list.”
“Invest in a planner.”
We get it.
But, how do we actually implement these “basic productivity tips” into our routine? Hi, I’m Marissa. I’m a chronic planner, an over-achiever, and I’ve been balancing multiple jobs and goals my entire life.
When I was in college, there was a point in time when I was working two assistantships, waitressing, practicing real estate on the side, I was in an accelerated MBA program and I somehow got everything done and managed to have a social life??
Let’s chat about some tips on how to plan your day to be productive that are balanced, realistic, and attainable.
This Post Is All About How to Plan Your Day to Be Productive
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Productive Lifestyle Tips – The 8 Steps to a Productive Day
1. Plan Your Week Ahead of Time
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
– Jillian michaels
Sometimes, “planning” our days might feel too restrictive or like we’re not living spontaneously enough. But, the truth is that planning our days and our weeks actually gives us more freedom in our schedules to do the things we love.
How to Plan Your Week
My number one tip for a productive lifestyle is to plan your week ahead of time. I do my weekly planning on Sundays. If Sundays are your rest day, take some time on Friday before the weekend to get ready for the following week. This way, you can enjoy your weekend without the frazzled feeling that comes with a lack of planning.
Here is a list of ongoing to-do’s I am always thinking about:
- What upcoming projects do I have due and when?
- Which days of this week will I take time to get these projects done?
- When will I work out this week? What days will be my intentional rest day?
- Do I have any upcoming events or date nights that I need to prepare for?
If you want a more detailed breakdown of how I plan my weeks step-by-step, check this YouTube video:
2. Simpler is Better – Planners
Additionally, another tip (and a rather basic one) that helps plan my day for success is a planner. But, not a basic planner. I believe when it comes to planning, simpler is better.
Here are a few “planners” that help me stay on track throughout my days.
iCalendar
I am an Apple girl and I literally live by my iCal. I love that it syncs across all of my devices and I can access my schedule anytime. I use my iCal to track upcoming events, meetings, bills, and repetitive monthly errands (i.e. pick up a prescription)
Reminders App
I use the reminders app on my iPhone to track time-sensitive to do’s. This might include something personal that came up (i.e. return an item) or something more prominent (i.e. update website banner). Regardless, these items are time sensitive and must be performed asap to stay on track. On the contrary, my iCal tracks scheduled events.
I keep my Reminders app on the home screen of my phone so I never miss a time-sensitive to-do item! I also keep my calendar there so it is easily accessible in the event that I need to add an event to my schedule.
This will not only help you efficiently plan your day, it also helps with planning your weeks and months.
If you are more into digital planning on a device such as your iPad, a YouTuber I follow known as Flourish Planner makes amazinggggg digital planners at such an affordable price on Etsy.
You can check out her links here:
Flourish Planner – Digital Planning Tips + Planners
3. Create To-Do Lists
Similarly to the above, I am a strong believer in to-do lists to help increase productivity. Recently, I have been using my Reminders app (above) as a time-sensitive to-do list. But, another great tool is the notes app on your phone. I am an iPhone gal, so for the sake of this tip, we will be using an iPhone app example.
The iPhone notes app has an awesome feature that allows you to create checkable to-do lists. I find this particularly helpful because you can see the items that are completed and the items that need to be done.
I love using this app feature for grocery shopping! So, instead of taking a paper list into the store, you can take your phone in with you and check off items as you find them, or purchase them online.
4. Time Blocking
I am a huge believer in time blocking to manage my busy schedule. Here are a few basic life events I time block to help alleviate stress and save time:
- Cleaning. I always wash my clothes on Wednesday evenings and I wash my bed on Thursday mornings. This helps me plan certain days of the week to keep up with laundry! I also always sweep the house and dust on Thursdays so I don’t ever have to worry about missing a week or forgetting.
- Rest Days. I am a strong believer in planning self-care just like we plan everything else. I know that my busiest days are Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I always plan for these days to be active rest days for my fitness routine. Meaning, if I don’t get movement in, I don’t feel bad about it because I know those are not planned exercise days. If I so happen to get a walk in or a game of pickleball, that’s for leisure and I consider it a bonus “workout”!
I find that time-blocking certain events will help you plan your day and stick to it because you know what days require what activities ahead of time. This also helps you keep up with weekly reoccurring tasks.
Here’s an example of what a time-blocked day might look like:
5. Dedicate Days to Related Activities
If you’re a business owner or you’re self-employed, this might be more applicable to you. Another awesome tip that helps me stay productive is dedicating certain days to certain activities. If you’re not a business owner, this is an awesome strategy to help plan your workouts. This is also known as split training.
For example:
Work Day Planning Tips:
- Monday: admin day
- Tuesday: filming day
- Wednesday: emails + content creation
- Thursday: fulfillment + marketing
- Friday: catchup + content creation
Work Out Schedule Planning Tips:
- Mondays: full body workout
- Tuesdays: rest day
- Wednesday: rest day
- Thursday: cardio
- Friday: legs + bitt
- Saturday: arms + abs
I find that having certain themes on certain days, regardless if it’s for work, your fitness routine, or even your personal life, helps me stay on track.
Small habits lead up to big results. I truly believe that we are the result of the things we do over and over again. By planning my days using certain themes, I am able to knock out large goals, step-by-step, one day at a time.
6. Weekly Goals vs. Daily Goals
There’s a saying that goes:
“We overestimate what we can do in a day, and understimate what we can achieve in a year”
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How true is this? Sometimes, it can feel like we’re not taking any steps forward toward our goals, but when you look back over a longer period of time, you realize that you’ve come a long way.
This is the difference between weekly goals and daily goals. When you take into account sleeping, eating, normal human functions, travel, and everything in between, there are not many hours in a day for us to truly be productive and that’s okay!
I truly believe we were not born to work like dogs (which I find to be a hilarious quote because my dog is spoiled and seriously has never worked a day in her life, lol!). Making your day productive starts with being realistic with yourself about what you can truly achieve in a day’s time.
Here is an example that highlights the difference between weekly and daily goals:
Daily Goals:
- Workout
- Make a healthy dinner
- Outline a blog post
Weekly Goals
- Workout 3-4 days this week
- Meal plan + get groceries
- Write x2 blogs + publish the posts
Do you notice the difference in time that it takes to complete each event? Daily goals are simply small tasks that make up a much bigger goal. Set big goals for yourself at the beginning of the week, and execute small tasks every day to achieve those goals.
7. Plan Your Meals Every Week
This is such an underrated task that will help you not only plan your day but stay on track with your fitness goals!
Likewise, if you’re not in charge of grocery shopping, you live at home, or you do not have access to a full kitchen, this might be a little trickier.
I find that some weeks my family does a really good job at meal planning, and other weeks it goes down the drain. Overall, the more we plan meals, the less likely we are to spend money eating out, and the more healthy choices we make!
I personally love knowing exactly what I will be eating for dinner on what day or having a general idea of when I’m cooking at home and when I’m eating out. This will help you stay on track with your fitness goals, make better food options, and plan how long it will take each day to make a meal.
8. Plan a Rest Day!
In case no one has told you:
Self-care is productive.
I am a huge believer in planning rest days and self-care days. I try to completely unplug on Saturdays and consider this my self-care day and rest day. My alarm clock goes out the window, my morning routine is non-existent, and I just live my life that day in whatever way feels authentic to me.
I love incorporating this into my daily routine because it’s not only a great way to reset, but it makes me appreciate the structure of my routine that much more.
Here are a few ideas of some self-care activities you can do on your rest day!
Self Care Ideas:
- Go for a nature walk in the park
- Catch up with a friend over a lunch date or coffee
- Have a movie night with your sister/friends
- Go on a long bike ride with a good podcast
- Stay in and watch movies all-day
I truly believe a self-care day should include whatever self-care means to you. My best tip for planning your day of self-care is to not have a plan at all! I’m a strong believer in planning, but sometimes, it feels good to just go with the flow.
There you have it ladies, 8 steps to a productive day. I hope you feel inspired to kickstart your productive lifestyle and plan a day that at the end of the day, you feel good about!
This Post Was All About How to Plan Your Day to Be Productive
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