Want to have your most productive day yet? Check out our new article on how to plan for success!

“A plan combined with the desire of a 6 year old can create magic each day .” - Major Williams

Wake Up to a Productive Day: A Guide to Planning and Goal Setting for Success

This is going to be a short article but one with information on how to have your best day tomorrow.

It is a practice I have been using for about a month and I have started seeing more and more productive days.  I still have some things to work out. There is a distinct difference in my productivity when I do not follow this plan. I had a recent experience that perfectly illustrated the practices I have been following.  

My niece and nephew, who are twins, love to go to the park and swing, climb, slide, or simply run around. Although they also enjoy playing on their iPads, they’re willing to put the electronics down in an instant to explore the outdoors. During our last weekend together, they were eager to go to the park, which is only a short walk away from our house. As soon as they got settled, they asked, “can we go to the park?” My wife unknowingly implemented a strategy I had been experimenting with to improve my productivity. 

This is how it went. 

My wife told them we could go to the park tomorrow.  After completing a list of age-appropriate chores. Then she listed out the tasks, and before bedtime she went over the order we'd follow in the morning. She said “Uncle Major usually gets up first, so when it is time to do chores, he will wake us up.  We get dressed, go outside and complete the chores, then we go to the park.  My nephew immediately said,  “I get up early too.  What if I wake up before Uncle Major?  Then you will have to wait until Uncle Major gets up to start the process. They were seeking clarity. 

The following day was surprisingly calm and efficient, with the twins. We normally have to deal with a lot of arguing, grumbling and disappointments in the morning. That is just from me. Not counting what the twins do in the morning. Usually the twins just want to know when they are going to the park.

I was up first. I waited for the sun to rise before waking everyone up. While they slumbered, I was writing an article (not this one). My nephew woke and came into the room, delighted to find he was the first one up, after me. He asked when we'd start tackling the chores. I explained we needed the sun to come up. While we waited we had a glass of water and talked, then I finished the article I was working on and he started on his tablet. When the sun peeked over the horizon, he asked if he could wake up his sister.  I was given the task to wake up my wife.  Soon we were all up, dressed and ready for chores. 

The chores started without a hitch.  It took a few hours to complete all the tasks.  Not one complaint the entire time, there was a little distraction time for all of us.  I mean who really likes doing chores. But we finished the tasks and the trip to the park followed.  It wasn’t until being at the park for some time, the kids noticed they hadn't eaten yet.  This was unintentional and I got in trouble for it but, the point is.  They are usually adamant about eating breakfast in the morning and avoiding any work whatsoever.  But this morning they woke up and could not wait to start chores.  By eleven o'clock, the whole process was finished, including breakfast. The rest of the day went smoothly. Normally, we would spend most of the morning with the 6 year old twins asking questions such as "when can we go to the park?" and other typical queries. When they don't get answers, there is often a feeling of rebellion. However, this time we planned our day the night before, clarified our plan and defined the goal (e.g. going to the park), the day took care of itself. 

How can you use this to have your best day tomorrow?

Follow these 4 steps tonight before going to bed:

●     Identify the most important goal to accomplish tomorrow 

●     Plan and write down every step needed to accomplish the goal 

●     Go to sleep at least 7 hours before your start time 

●     Follow the plan 

 These steps will move you to having the most productive day you have ever had.

Here are some extra tips:

Set Realistic Goals

We assigned the twins tasks within their ability to complete.  Don’t set a goal like writing a book in a day. It would be better to set a goal to write 2000 words for your book.

You should be able to complete the task in roughly 90 mins.  Your mind will start playing tricks on you, if you try to go longer than that.

The goal should relate to your why

The twins love the park, they love it so much, they were willing to get through all the chores. They did it effectively and efficiently with little instruction because their why was big enough to justify the work and the plan was clear. I mean they really love going to the park.  Your why has to be big enough to go through the hardship of work to get to your goal.  If you are unclear on your why, start working on that.  It takes a while to become clear but, starting to think about it is a good first step.  Don’t be ashamed to ask for help.  Sometimes it is hard to truly analyze ourselves. We are perfect after all… Right!?    

Give it a try and let me know how it works for you.

I have been living it for a little while.  That’s how I have been writing these articles. I was applying the principle to myself for a little while, consistently. When I saw how it impacted the twins, I decided to be more consistent with it.

Consistent small steps towards our future self is what it is all about.

Until next time…