When do you sleep? This is one of those questions I used to hear a lot when I tell people what I do with my time.

Between raising children, writing, running + building a business and creating art it can look like that my day is nonstop busy. But until I developed the habit of taking a time out, I struggled with watching television and not do anything else.

It really is one of those things I didn’t use to be good at – but healing from trauma was key but that’s for a different post!

These days I make it a habit of taking time off from not only my business but also from being the only one running this household – because it’s not just me. And I still get a lot done that needs my attention but certainly with a lot less stress.

In past years, I attempted some rigid scheduling but one of the challenges that my personal life required flexibility as my youngest child had lots of doctors’ appointments at one point and I never knew when we would end up at the doctors or even the emergency room. Since then I have explored various tools and modalities of scheduling things to get work done.

I write in my journal of all the things that need tending and then add them into my planner/schedule in order of priority as well as pending what I got going on for client work and such.

But I thought it might be helpful to you if I shared how I do things if you are struggling with being in the habit of getting things done and taking a much needed break.

Beginning of the month

I review the projects that I want or need to work on. I list all my tasks, events, study time, and research topics. From here, I prioritize what needs to get done in the first week, the second week, and so on. I allow myself days for batch content creation and break down the bigger projects too much more suitable steps. I schedule in the blocks that I am leaving open to clients, a fun time, and self-care time.

Weekly:

I review my progress on my projects and set the intentions for the week. I cross them off as things are done on my list.

Daily:

Every evening I sit down and go over what I need to do the next day. I go for 10 actions a day which is usually a combination of to-do’s, events, and other tasks such as writing time.  I give each project a time frame helping me focus on what I am trying to achieve. If I have a client or an event the other 9 actions will be much smaller than on days where I don’t meet with anyone.

At the end of the month

I review my list from the beginning of the month and cross off everything I got accomplished. Whatever did not get done carries over, and sometimes I even have repeat projects or things to like you know the dreaded laundry. Allowing me to plan my month in increments gives me the opportunity to plan for work and fun without the burnout.

I think it’s important that we get in the bait of planning ahead instead of waiting to the last minute and such so that we can start feeling more successful and less like a failing!