I am someone who lives by my calendar and to-do list. If I do not have it scheduled, then I will probably forget to do it. This is how I make sure that I get everything done on my to-do list and make all my appointments.
Week in Review
For me, the beginning of the week starts on Monday. Therefore, on Sunday evening, I spend some time doing a Week in Review. The first step in doing this is going over the past week, including how I felt, what I accomplished, and what I struggled with. I will usually write it in my journal so that I have it written down somewhere. I will then look at my calendar and write a Weekly Master To-Do List for the upcoming week. I then put them into Google Tasks as an all-day task or on a specific time.
I also go over my monthly goals and what I need to do in the upcoming week to make sure that I can complete them on time. I will add them as tasks if a monthly goal on my Trello board doesn’t already have a due date that I need to reach.
Tools
- Google Calendar – I have been using Google Calendar for almost 20 years. I have a calendar for each life category that also corresponds to my goals, as well as my to-do items, my son’s school calendar, Trello Board and TripIt calendars. My day job uses 365, so I use Microsoft Flow to copy work events over to Google Calendar so I have a view of all the appointments and meetings that I already have planned for the week.
- IOS Calendar – On my phone, I still use the IOS Calendar. I tried switching to the Google Calendar app, but I prefer the IOS Calendar because it has a feature where I can enter the address of a location, and it will actually estimate the time needed to travel there. My kids still prefer paper planners so you can also use those if you prefer.
- Google Tasks – I have tried a lot of different to-do list apps. Google has been making huge improvements on Google Tasks, and it is starting to integrate with Gmail and Google Keep. I even converted my Google Reminders to Google Tasks. There are still improvements that they need to make, but I feel they are getting there. The best one was that you can now create recurring tasks. I tried the app, but it doesn’t have sound alerts (it is probably a defect that Google needs to fix). Therefore, I still use my IOS Reminders for those one-off tasks that I need an alert so I don’t forget to do it. I especially use the location reminders that allow me to be notified when I arrive or leave a place.
- Paper Journal – I tried switching to an online journal, but I prefer writing in a paper journal. I have a huge obsession with stationary and writing instruments. You never want me alone in a store that sells those items.
Time Commitment
This should take no more than an hour. Maybe the first time it will take a little longer, but that is normal with anything.
Daily Review
I try to do this the night before the day begins. I look to see what is planned for tomorrow and how today went. If there was a meeting or task that needed to be pushed to the next day, then I do that by looking to see what time I can squeeze it in. I usually write it in a to-do list that I created and will be sharing below. Writing it down on my paper before breaking it down in my Google Tasks helps me stop and think about what I really need to do the next day to be successful.
Tools
- To-Do List – Please download and use it every day to help you complete everything on today’s to-do list. I also included a Weekly Review template!
- Google Tasks – It will usually be moving around existing ones because they should be in the Weekly Master To-Do List. However, it could mean adding one or two additional ones.
Time Commitment
This should take no more than 15 minutes.
I hope that this helps improve your productivity and on your way in achieving your goals. One last thing to highlight is that you should always prioritize your to-do list. Not all tasks are the same, so every day, you should make sure to do your top three. If you get those done, then if you aren’t able to do some of the ones on the bottom of your list, then you should still feel proud of yourself for accomplishing those.
