Summer is a great time to take a look back at how those most productive moments (the school hours for most mom’s) have been productive for you, and to plan ahead for the upcoming months. Keep your summer planning for consistency!! It’s a season for sunshine, relaxation and a chance to recharge before we dive into the fall season again. But if you want to be more consistent in your planning, now is the best time to get started. You will more than likely have a slower few months, so a great time to put planning at the front and center and get consistent.
Let’s talk about some steps that we can take to help you get summer planning for consistency:
Define your Goals: Before we can really start putting together a summer plan let’s talk about some things that you want to accomplish. What do you want to achieve in your planning during the summer? What would you like to learn? What experiences would you like to have, time spent with family, opportunity for fun? When you take time to define your goals you will be able to stay focused and make the most of your summer.
One way that I have found to work on my goals is to use a Goals Insert to get the planning done and then using the Goals & Habits Tracker for tracking work through each step and hold myself accountable.
Creating a schedule: Once you know what you want to accomplish with your goals, let’s think about creating some kind of schedule that will help you meet those goals. If you have littles at home, having a schedule will benefical to them as well. On your schedule should include all the things from work to social to personal and FUN!! And by all means schedule down time too. It’s okay to sit on the couch and veg out for a few hours, to let your brain and body rest.
A planner or organizer can be an invaluable tool in helping you stay organized and on track with your summer planning. There are many different types of schedules options available. Choose the one that works best for you and use it consistently to stay on top of your schedule.
- Daily Layout
- Weekly Layout
- Calendar Overview
- Family Command Center
Break down your tasks: If you have big projects that you want to tackle over the summer, this is a great way to practice breaking down the BIG project into smaller more manageable tasks. If you have read Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy or The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington, then you will remember many different ways that they walk you through how to break down your goals. If you haven’t I highly recommend them!! Great reads on goal setting.
When you are taking your goals into bite sized pieces this can help you stay motivated and help avoid the feeling of overwhelm that comes with big projects. When I think about projects during the summer I think about gardening, home improvements, building things. All things that my family and I like to do at home, but it can definitely be any kind of big project.
Make Time for YOU!! Self care is super important for staying healthy and motivated during the summer. If you don’t feel good you will have a hard time keeping to your schedule which means you will fall short of using your summer planning for consistency.
Review and Adjust: One thing that you should have a little more time for in the summer, because you won’t be doing the daily grind of school and sports and such (fingers crossed, if you are one of those moms that do club sports my heart goes out to you), is taking time to review and adjust your schedule. You can review your goals and know how your schedule is effecting your goals, ensure that you are on track or make adjustments when you have fallen off the path and adjust your plans to reflect the changes you want to make for the priorities that pop up during your summer.
Summer planning can be a great time for learning and building consistency. If you are lucky enough to have some time off during the summer, think about what your schedule will look like going into the fall. Try setting some small summer goals and walking through the process. Determine what kind of schedule works best for you and your family. Break your BIG PROJECTS into bite sized tasks that are more manageable. Make time for you and FUN this summer. AND…know that it is okay to change the plan by reviewing and adjusting to make your schedule work for you and your family!! All of these things together will help your summer planning be more consistent!!