Plan Today for a Great Tomorrow - 3 Ideas to Set Yourself Up for Success
Make each day your masterpiece. --John Wooden
Effective productivity is rooted in intention and planning. We have already covered several topics that can help improve your productivity skills. Getting ahead and looking ahead is a part of the planning process and ultimately a key ingredient to your productivity success. Everyone wants tomorrow to be as good, or better than today. What many people fail to realize is that your day begins before you wake up. Effectively closing out today can have significant benefits for tomorrow. Here are three things you can do close each day strong and ensure a productive start for the next.
Close Out Today
Build time in at the end of each day to bring closure to everything you have been working. That doesn’t mean that everything must be fully complete. Just bring closure to it for the day. Review what you have accomplished on your project or throughout the day. Think through what else still needs to be completed, if necessary. But close out what you are doing today, then let it go. The next step will talk about what you can do with those items that are left over. You should feel some peace in knowing that today is done and that you have a plan for what comes next.
Plan for Tomorrow
Review the priorities you have on your calendar and assess what, if anything, was left over from today. Plan out the critical priorities for the next day based on your schedule. Identify what you will get done first, second, and third. Ensure that your biggest, most difficult, time-sensitive project is completed first. That will free you up to focus on the other things you want to accomplish as the day wears on. You do not want that ‘big thing’ lingering over you while you work on other projects.Having this plan and list of priorities will allow your mind to relax and even start working on those items ‘behind the scenes.’ You may be amazed after doing this for a while at how much more energy you have for those items the next day. Or, better yet, how many new ideas you have to solve them. It will also allow you to enjoy the end of the current day knowing you have captured the open items you need to complete tomorrow.For steps one and two, I would recommend that those get completed as you are wrapping up you ‘work day’. Schedule yourself for 20 - 30 minutes to complete your close out and your plan for tomorrow activity. Then ‘shut down’ the work part of your day. Today is closed. Tomorrow is planned. Be fully present with your friends or family for the rest of the day.
Reflect on What You Are Grateful For
Take a few minutes to think about what you are grateful for today. It can be anything - no restrictions on this one. Feel free to write these down in a journal, especially if you are already keeping a daily journal or diary. Adding two or three things you are grateful for in your life is a nice way to end the day. Take time to think about what it means to you and how it makes you feel. Is there a better way to prepare for sleep than to think about things that make you happy and feel fortunate to have?Today is closed out. You have a plan for tomorrow. And you have reflected on what you are grateful for. Make this part of your daily routine. This is a nice recipe for ensuring a restful night’s sleep that will give you the energy to take on the next day. You have already made tomorrow better by what you have done today.What will closing out your day, planning for tomorrow, and reflecting on what you’re grateful for mean to you? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
Here is a simple tool to help get you started on reviewing what you accomplished today, what you need to complete tomorrow, and what you are grateful for.Download the Daily Reflection and Planning toolWant to capture your information on your phone or tablet, here are a few recommended apps that can help you with that.Recommended apps:Day OneEvernoteOneNoteMomentoBearJoin other retail leaders in continuing their development journey with Effective Retail Leader.com. SUBSCRIBE today to receive FREE leadership tips directly to your inbox and monthly newsletters that provide many tools to help further develop your leadership skills all at no cost. JOIN NOW!No spam ever - just leadership goodness.