The days are finally starting to warm up (or at least they are here in Austin, TX…), which means it’s time for some good ol’ spring cleaning. But refreshing your home isn’t the only thing you should be thinking of, when it comes to a little springtime reorganizing. Check out our top eight tips designed to help you spring clean your schedule, from choosing the right planner to using it the right way!
Spring Clean Your Schedule with These Tips
1. Choose the right planner or planning method.
Reorganizing your schedule starts with finding the right tools. Whether you’re the type to use a physical planner (I know I am!) or the type who prefers a more focused approach, like the Cascade Planning Method, instead, finding the system that works for you is a must. Many Educators swear by physical planners like the Erin Condren Teacher Planner, the Scholastic Less Stress Planner, or the Plum Paper Planner. But, if you’re more likely to follow your own, unique organizational system, you may benefit from keeping a bullet journal, which can be as simple or in-depth as you desire!
2. Add important dates, events, deadlines, and appointments as soon as you know them.
The biggest way to stay on top of looming deadlines, upcoming events, and important dates is to update them in your chosen tool, whether planner or journal, as soon as you confirm them. This also includes sitting down now and adding all recurring dates like birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and anything else you do on a yearly basis. Then, make a habit of adding new dates into your calendar as they arise, so that you don’t have to deal with the stress of a forgotten appointment down the road.
3. Set clear, achievable goals and break them down into smaller tasks.
A big part of scheduling for many people, educators and otherwise, is goal setting. But, when setting goals for an entire year, that can feel super overwhelming. To set yourself up for long-term success, break those larger goals into smaller, short-term pieces. For example, if you want to read 10 books during the upcoming school year, set yourself a goal of one book per month from August to May. If that’s too much to bite off, do some math ahead of time and plan out how many pages per week or even per day that you would need to meet that goal. Scheduling goals out in a bite-sized way is proven to help you feel successful and fulfilled throughout the year.
4. Use color-coding or symbols to categorize different types of tasks and events.
When you lead a busy life and things get hectic, it can be easy to skim over or entirely miss things you thought you’d so carefully written on your agenda. How can you combat this? Bring attention to key categories with color-coding or special symbols! Choose a highlighter or pen color for each area of your life, like work, family, personal, or special dates. Then, make sure to stick with the same system month after month. An added bonus: this makes your planner way more fun to look at (speaking from personal experience!)
5. Create task lists, prioritizing items based on importance.
In the same vein of breaking down your goals, creating daily and weekly task lists can help you stay on track with even your loftiest goals. Start with things that need to be done right away so that you don’t run into a time crunch later, like important deadlines. Then move onto necessary tasks, like picking up groceries. Finally, add in all the things that it would be nice to do if you had time. This is usually your social activities, which are still important to a balanced life. Keeping track of these lists will help you ensure that you have time to strike that balance and feel more stable, even when things get busy.
6. Implement time blocking to allocate specific time slots for different activities.
Have you ever sat down with the intention of getting some quality work done, only to be bombarded with additional tasks or miscellaneous asks? Yeah, I have too… Enter time blocking! Time blocking is where you set aside a specific increment, or block, of time and dedicate it to doing a specific task. This could boil down to work time, family time, or even personal time. Some people swear by this method to simplify their workdays and feel less overwhelmed. In fact, I might even try it myself!
7. Establish a consistent planning routine, such as weekly planning sessions every Monday morning.
While you’re setting up your newly revamped schedule, you’ll want to incorporate regular maintenance to keep yourself on track with your goals and overall workload. Whether it’s first thing on Monday mornings or on a slow Sunday afternoon with a cup of your favorite beverage in tow, pick a weekly time to sit in reflection on how you can improve your week and limit your stress surrounding planning.
8. Regularly review and adjust your schedule to maintain flexibility.
What good is a planner or planning method if you’re not using it? Make sure to regularly check back in to ensure that 1) your chosen method is still a good fit, 2) you’re actually using it and following the steps for success you’ve laid out for yourself, and 3) the methods you’ve chosen are sustainable long-term.
Remember, it’s never too late to try something new with regards to the way you plan your days. Planning your schedule is so personal that no solution is going to work for everyone. Try out some techniques and let us know what you’re doing to spring clean your schedule this year in the comments below!