exciting
futures
Part 3 Plan and schedule
Plan and schedule
A little planning saves a lot of time.
14 Identify WHAT you are going to do and WHEN (this is rough planning and scheduling). List what you are going to do and identify any particular deadline associated with each task. You might find it helpful to use a table like this:
WHAT and WHEN table with some imaginary examples. This is a "Rough plan and schedule".
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Projects, activities and tasks (Only important things go in this column! Why would you consider things you are not going to do?) |
Deadline and timescale |
| Write report on the Delta project. | Email to Ilyas by June 15th. |
| Update spreadsheet on costs for Dianne. | Maybe around late June. Certainly before end of July. |
| Telephone Pat about the email I received yesterday. | 12th am or 13th pm |
| Plan Epsilon project with team. | Take first step by end of week. First team meeting by early June. |
15 Use a diary and a planner. Put the information from your rough plan and schedule.
16 Do the following everyday. These are the "secret six".
Spend five minutes in the morning revisiting your rough plan and schedule and your "to do list".
Allocate "emergency time".
Give yourself private time.
Relax for one hour.
Take two and a half uninterrupted hours for eating. (Not all at once!)
Do some exercises for ten minutes minimum. (Exercises could be gentle stretching).
17 Make a "to do" list at end of each day that sets down what you will be doing tomorrow Your "to do" list comes from your plan and schedule. Write this list in your diary on the appropriate page. At the start of the next day you work through the list. Make sure your "to do" list respects the "secret six".
18 Write A, B, C or D against each item in your "to-do" list.
| A Very urgent and very important. | Give these your best time. Pull out all the stops to do the best you can with the time available. But be realistic. |
| B Very important and moderately urgent. | Don't rush at these. Quality first. These count so why rush them? |
| C Very urgent and moderately important. | Do them, but don't kill yourself Be co-operative but don't do the work of others. Use the "Fit for purpose" quality standard - "good enough". |
| D Low importance and low urgency. | Drop these. Do them if and only if they have some importance and only if you've got a spare minute or two. Don't extend your day to do these. Don't reduce your energy to do them. Dropping them is most often the best option. Drop them. |
19 Schedule your day to achieve your goals
Do As and Bs in "prime time". This is when you are at your best, your freshest, most enthusiastic etc.
Do Cs when you have to but do them quickly. Do them to the standard required. Nothing more.
Make sure you do your As and Cs by the end of the day.
Not completing Bs means they'll become As. If your day is full of As you move into crisis mode where the only strategy is survive. Start an hour earlier tomorrow to get things back on track if you don't achieve your Bs.
SO, PLANNING AND SCHEDULING ONE MORE TIME MEANS YOU:
Write down your main tasks with deadlines - in your diary, or a "to do" list or a simple table.
Allocate priority to each task - A, B, C or D depending upon urgency and importance (they are not the same!).
Allocate your time and energy according to the priorities - quality time on quality tasks.
Look after yourself - plan time for yourself as well as the tasks.
| LESSON ONE | LESSON TWO | LESSON THREE | LESSON FOUR | LESSON FIVE |
| ELIMINATE TIMEWASTERS | SET YOUR PRIORITIES | Go to the top of the page | EXPEDITE THE URGENT | DEVELOP SELF- DISCIPLINE |
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