Today’s Homemaker

[New to this series on Getting Things Done? Start at the beginning!]

Alright people. Today’s the day. Today we’re going to put all of this together, and your hard work is going to have paid off.

The beauty of the daily plan that I use is that it’s flexible, yet structured. I do not have a “to do” list for the day. I have my on-going “Next Actions” lists, but those are not daily “to do” lists. Okay, okay, I’ll just show you what my daily plan looks like, and then I’ll explain.

• 8am - 10am: Home
• 10am - 12pm: Computer
• 12pm - 2pm: Personal (in other words, do whatever the heck I want, including but not limited to, eating lunch, reading, dancing around the house singing “Baba Lou”…whatever.)
• 2pm - 4pm: Computer
• 4pm - 6pm: Family
• 6pm - 8pm: Eat/relax
• 8pm - 10pm: Hang with John
• 10pm - 11pm: Office
• 11pm: Bed

During my “home” time, I do whatever is on my “Daily Activities” list under “Home” and/or whatever is on my “Next Actions: Home” list. It’s so simple. I make my daily plan every night during my “office” time (which, by the way, is one of the items on my “Daily Activities” list under “Office.”) It takes hardly any time at all, and I change it up according to how much I need/want to get done in each area.

Yesterday, I really wanted to chill. (It was Friday, forgive me!) So I made sure I had a lot of personal/family/relaxation time penciled in. Mondays are my most productive days, so I want have much of that in there.

Having your daily plan arranged this way does several things for you. First, it helps you to be confident that you are doing what you are SUPPOSED to be doing. No more guilt that you are relaxing when other things need to be done. You penciled it in. You’ve given it priority. That relaxation time is yours to do however you please.

Second, it makes sure that you are on track each day, doing the things you need to be doing. You’re focused because you have specific action steps. You’re not wandering around doing things that are just not important in the grand scheme of things.

Last (and I’ve said this before), it allows for flexibility within a structured environment. This means that you are less likely to burn out when you have a lot of energy. You are free to live in the moment instead of trying to get everything done on a big “To Do” list. You can enjoy doing what you’re doing. This is huge.

Well, I’ve got to get out of here (gotta spend time with my girls!) but I’ll be back tomorrow with some more specifics on how to process the “stuff” that comes at you every day. In other words, how to keep up with this whole system in a seamless, stress-free fashion. This is a system that requires a lot of thought on the front end, but once it’s in place, it’s going to free you up to accomplish more with less stress than you ever thought possible.

Yep, I’m a believer. See you tomorrow!

GTD day eight: Processing your life >>