How I have a successful day-Part 1

April 9, 2019

I don’t know about you, but some days I feel like I’m trying to play catch-up and I’m not living as intentionally as I want to. On those days I might feel more like this. HAHA!

Unfortunately, I think this happens to all of us! And I know for me, the days go by too fast to let them slip away.

I love to fill my days with routines and simple plans. I even like planning to have no plans. Either way, I love to wake up in the morning and know I have a beautiful day ahead that’s planned for moments to be made, memories to be had, and a small simple list of must-do’s and want-to-do’s.

So I’ve created ways to help me live more intentionally, simply, and, yes, successfully, each day.

Tip 1: Start the Night Before

Spend 5 minutes in the evening planning. That’s all! Just 5 minutes! And if you can’t do that, make it 2 or even 1 minute.

I totally understand that this can be really hard. On many days, I feel like this…

Who am I kidding? I feel like this everyday and I only have a 13-month-old!

But when I do pull myself together and take 5 minutes to plan, I like to sit down with my daily planner, Google Calendar (on my desktop), and my Daily Brain Dump sheet.

I set a timer for 5 minutes on my phone or our Google Home.

And I fill in my Daily Brain Dump sheet.

I start with a good brain dump. This helps me to get my thoughts out. I always feel less overwhelmed when I see what I actually have to do instead of having the thoughts circling around my mind.
From the brain dump, I write my must do list.
- I look at our family’s Google Calendar and the brain dump to guide my must-do list.

After making my must-do list, I jot down anything I want to do, like go to Ikea, the zoo, organize photos, call a friend, etc.
Next, I look at my daily planner and begin to fill in the time slots and lists.
- I write appointments in the time slots and things like laundry, post office, vacuum, etc., on the list side so I can check it off throughout the day.

Finally, I review my brain dump sheet, cross off the brain dump items making sure I assigned each item a place, and jot down any other random thoughts.

These small steps rarely take 5 minutes. So in the time remaining, I check what I planned for dinner and mark any food items I might still need.

When I wake up, I know I have a blueprint for the day. All I need to do is glance at my planner, fill in items I might have forgotten, and I’m ready to go!

Planning 5 minutes in the evening is just one way I have learned to make my days successful, simplified, and full of intentional living.

Life seriously goes by so fast—I don’t want to think back and see a blurred day that felt unintentional, unaccomplished, and messy.

I encourage you to try this for a week and see how it affects your life and the ones you love. So grab your: