A while back, Brooke Castillo of The Life Coach School taught me one of the best tools for time management I’ve ever encountered. I know, I know, the topic sounds tedious…and b-o-r-i-n-g.
You may think time management sounds like restraint, or being over-scheduled, or a never-ending series of meetings. But it doesn’t have to be! There’s so much FREEDOM to be had with proper thinking around time and how we structure it.
After exercise/weight loss, this topic is probably the most talked about at the beginning of any year, so I want to revisit time management and pass on some of these tools as we start our 2021 adventures. Getting organized can bring so much peace and clarity!
When we examine how we use our time and prioritize things that matter to us, we take back our power. Choosing and making decisions ahead of time creates less stress, less overwhelm, and prevents decision fatigue.
So on Monday morning, or even Sunday night, sit down and calendar your week. I like to do it on Friday. As a start, carve out personal/free time. Say whaaat? Yep, you read that right.
Do not skip this part! It’s so important for stress-free productivity. Sleep time, yoga, taking a walk, lunches, napping, doing nothing at all, catching up with friends—whatever it is, put in in first and honor it.
Next calendar your basic work hours, such as time teaching a class, working with clients, or administrative tasks like emails, billing, or budgeting. Then make sure to schedule focus time—taking time to create.
During focus time, make sure to turn off notifications or even your Wi-Fi! There should be no distractions in this zone, where you can work on business or your life instead of just in it.
Maybe you need to improve your systems, set goals for the future, or strategize around THE BIG PICTURE. Whatever it is, make time for intense focus, or you’ll end up thinking about it at 3 am when you could be sleeping.
Lastly, do not forget to make space for overflow and to-do lists. This is the space for giving yourself a lot of grace. Because, to be real, you’re going to stumble a lot at first.
Most of us are bad at estimating exactly how long specific things take to accomplish, and—well, life always happens. But we can build in time to catch-up.
Remain flexible, be willing to pivot as needed, and you’ll be more productive than you ever thought possible.
The Monday Hour One Process Template
Just to recap, to do the Monday Hour One process follow these steps in planning your week:
Carve out your personal/free time
Add in your basic work hours
Plan your focus time
Allow for overflow and to-do lists
Make sure to have a place to house your to-do list, whether it’s digital or a simple notebook. Otherwise, you’ll spend lots of brain energy trying to remember all the things you need to do, and some stuff will fall through the cracks (they will regardless, but that’s just how it goes).
Pick a system and obey your calendar—it’s your boss now! The “Monday Hour One” process has helped me and my clients beyond measure. Here’s to a wonderful 2021, and I hope you reclaim your time by planning then doing what’s most important to you this year.
