Module 3 – Basic planning

Planning is the key to success in many regards, and time management is one of them. Because you are interested in time management, it is clear that you have a lot of things to do. That’s why, in this module, we will show you how to plan your activities so that you can complete as many as possible in the time you have available.

Likely, over time, you have noticed the effects of Parkinson’s Law in some situations. This means the way you did a certain activity unfolded in such a manner that you finished it in all the time you had available, though it was clear from the beginning that you didn’t need that much time.

And if you think that, you could have done other things during that time…

In this module, you will learn how to use three elements of basic planning: to-do list, calendar, and someday tasks list. This will help you use your time efficiently. First, we will review the three elements listed above. At the end of this module, we will exercise their applicability in practice.

To-do list

The basic element of planning is, of course, your to-do list. It includes everything you have to do in the next period, for the longer or shorter term depending on your specific situation. This list will help you remember what you set out to do.

When preparing it, you must, first of all, take into account that the to-do list is a dynamic, constantly changing list that you must be able to easily access, edit, and update whenever necessary. This will be the case from now on, many times a day.

Crafting an effective to-do list goes beyond simply listing tasks. By incorporating these key elements, you can transform your to-do list into a powerful tool for efficient time management and productivity:

• When you prepare your to-do list, take into account the priorities you have already established, and order the tasks according to their importance/urgency, as you learned in the previous module (CHAPTER II Module 2, Prioritization).
• The way you write down your tasks in the list should be concise but at the same time very clear. That way, later, at a glance, you will know exactly what it is about. Include the necessary details but without burdening the task description.

Set the start date, time and the estimated (or exact) duration for each task. These elements make a big difference between a to-do list used for planning and time management, and a simple shopping list. When you don’t know the exact time required, approximate it as accurately as possible. To do this, rely on prior experiences linked to the activity being performed.

Tasks should be editable and easy to organize according to several parameters based on your needs, such as date and time, importance, belonging to a certain project, client, etc. You must be able to see the big picture from any point of view that interests you.

Here are some additional elements that will be very helpful in creating a truly efficient to-do list, tailored to your specific needs and preferences:

• Edit only the Description of your to-do item
• Initiate time-tracking
• Set the item as “Done”
• Clone
• Edit
• Delete

Calendar

The next element that offers the necessary support for time management is, of course, the calendar. You already know what a calendar is, so we will not discuss that, but we will emphasize the connection between the to-do list and the calendar.

This is the “secret” of simple but effective planning: use the calendar to prepare your to-do list.
By doing this:

• you see the big picture of your schedule when you plan, and you avoid overlapping tasks or overloading your daily schedule;
• you reduce the time allocated to planning because you no longer initially prepare the to-do list in order to later plan the activities; instead, you complete these two steps in one step.

In the video below, you’ll see how to use the calendar to prepare a to-do list, as well as some calendar features that are very helpful for making your planning more efficient.

As you have seen, not only can you create your to-do list directly in the calendar, but you can also edit it there. This way, you make sure that your list is always updated. In addition, you can change the viewing mode (monthly, weekly, daily), which helps you get the overall picture of the time interval that interests you.

At the end of this module, you will undertake hands-on exercises related to a tangible example, specifically, considering the planning for taking this course.

Someday tasks

It might seem odd that someday assignments are included in a course addressing effective time management. You will notice, however, that if you use them exactly as we show you, they will be very helpful.

Likely, you have often had wonderful ideas but not at the right time to implement them. However, that doesn’t mean you have to give them up or write them down somewhere and then forget about them.

Using a someday tasks list helps you get those activities off your mind for the moment so you can better focus on what you need to do now or in the near future. At the same time, you ensure that you can access those tasks at any time and implement them when it’s the right moment to do so. In other words, stick with it, but don’t sweat it.

The short video presentation below will help you understand how to use the someday tasks list to your advantage. You will see how easily you can transform these tasks “for someday” into to-do list items and, later, into time tracking lines. Also, if it is necessary to give up a planned task for the moment, instead of deleting it (because you might resume it someday), you can turn it into a someday task for the time being with a single click.

Practice for Basic Planning

We will put the practical aspects of this module into use directly in the application

As additional materials, you will need the data you used to fill out the table in the Course Schedule section of CHAPTER I. If you saved the table in an editable format, now you can easily copy and paste the information to prepare your To-do list.

Before adding course-related tasks to your to-do list and calendar, carefully evaluate their importance and urgency using the Decision Matrix introduced in the Prioritization Module.

Additionally, if you have tasks that you would like to complete eventually, consider adding them to a dedicated Someday Tasks list.

The video below shows you step-by-step how to create your To-do list directly in the Calendar. You’ll also see some of the features that are available throughout the program, which can help you work efficiently. These features include: creating new Clients on the fly (similarly for Projects or Activities), cloning, or drag-and-drop.

Thank you for practicing!

Join us in the next module, Advanced Planning Techniques, where you’ll learn about the time blocking and the SWDH method, which will empower you to craft seamlessly efficient plans, both short-term and long-term.