Personalizing Your Schedule and A Simpler Plan

PERSONALIZING YOUR SCHEDULE

Joyce Meyer is noted for telling the story about feeling overwhelmed with her very busy schedule and how she was complaining to the Lord about it. She tells furthermore, of how in the midst of her quandary, He quickly responded back to her with “Well, don’t complain to Me about it! I didn’t make your schedule - you did!” Almost immediately, the crowds break out into laughter, as does Joyce, because everyone can relate!

Scripture tells us we will stand before Him one day, and give an account. Certainly, that includes our time.

It makes one think, doesn’t it? While we do not know all the days that He has planned for us, we do know the necessary tasks that must be done in order to sustain our flow, and the activities of daily living. Or do we?

Busyness can remove clarity from our sight in an instant! For some, in the midst of their circumstances, it may be the momentum of “maintaining” or “surviving” that is keeping it all together! Others may have simply lost sight of the “necessary” items, and sacrificed them for other deeds and “responsibilities” that were, perhaps, never even theirs to carry in the first place!

Then again, our memories may be good, but just short, and in the shuffle of activity we forget. It could be that it needs to be made more tangible; that it just needs to be written down, so that one can actually see and work through the list. Learning styles and personalities can make a big difference in the approaches taken, when it comes to scheduling, housework, and routines! For example, goal-oriented people love to see a list with checkmarks or lines stroked through, in order to feel they accomplished their “to dos” for the day. (Tip: You many want to find out what “personality types” are in your household, and what their learning styles are. It may just give you some new inspiration regarding approaches to the tasks and the motivation to do them! There are some great books with a more Christian-based approach that are available on the market. Also, be sure to check out our very own CWTR groups, such as Purely Personalities!)

It could be the simplicity of implementing routines to change a “scattered” approach to life and work, which is needed. For those with illness or random care-giving duties, this may be harder to pinpoint, but the idea is to have a starting point, so there is strength to tackle the day.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Phil 4:13 KJV) But, what are all the things?

The starting point is your schedule. It is the undisclosed, secret weapon of “knowing” what needs to be done and when. It will give added fuel, strength, and clarity as to what needs to happen, and will aid you in “keeping it all together.” (Your second key tool is a list, but we will get to that one later.)

Find yourself a binder. You will want to keep all your work in one place. If need be, it will be accessible to your household, and it will also make your project “household portable. In case of an emergency, this will make it handy to see what needs to happen! This is especially useful, if you are doing your planning tasks while waiting for your children after school, at the doctor’s office, or on your lunch hour! It can be new or old. There are some who no doubt, have one hidden in a pile of clutter in the basement or garage, so see what you can come up with. (Tip: Have someone watch for the castoff binders from their company’s discontinued training manuals! The companies are often thrilled to see them recycled!)

You may choose to do your initial planning layout on the computer, but once it is down, I would recommend printing it for easy accessibility and then putting it in a binder! (Tip: Page protectors are a wonderful preservative for sheets that are handled often!)

If you want, personalize your cover and make it your own! As an artist, I love to create fibre-art, but I know there are tremendously talented scrapbook artists who can do the same thing! (Remember though, as your “household notebook”, it will probably take a lot of wear-and-tear, so laminate it, or use a protective covering if you want to preserve your creation!)

BONUS TIPS! It is “back to school” time and the binders are on sale! You can find some neat ones with organizers built into the cover, to hold your calculator, pens and sticky notes! Remember, it doesn’t have to be fancy. It just needs to keep you organized! Don’t forget the page protectors and notebook dividers - there are some amazing plastic ones that far outlast the old cardstock versions! You will want at least one package to start! Sticky notes are another handy item and they came in all sorts of colours! As a “visual” personality, I use different colours for different things!

Did you do last week’s challenges on “Where to Start: Where Does Your Time Go”? If so, let’s take the next practical step. This will take some time, so feel free to spread it out over the week - it is not necessary to try to attempt to do this all in one fell swoop!

Most importantly, before you start, don’t forget to pray and ask God for the wisdom and clarity needed as you lay this “planning stage” out! We want Him to lead our steps, and we want to work with Him!

If you haven’t done them already, do make yourself a week’s worth of 24-hour time charts, in 15 minute increments for a week. If you have different weekly schedules, do a months’ worth! Another helpful tool is a monthly calendar for those monthly commitments and appointments that you will be able to see at a glance. (Don’t run out and buy a bunch of calendars! We will be looking at that issue later. Remember we are still in the planning and organizing stages!)

Utilize your computer, or grab a pencil and eraser, and we will now take it one step further. You will be doing a lot of cut-and-paste, or erasing and moving things, at this point. (Tip #1: A calendar-program or spreadsheet on your computer can work quite effectively. Tip #2: For planning, some sticky notes on a wall that can be moved around will work, as will a dry erase board. Or, you could use recipe cards on the biggest expanse of floor that you can find! Tip #3: This could be a great take-along task for doing in the car while you are waiting, or in a waiting room, over the course of this week. Do what works best for your organizing style!)

Attempt to first break it down into general time segments for your own “individual” household. This may change over time, so don’t get stressed over it! For example: I initially segmented mine into early morning (5-9, since we are up at 5 due to hubby’s early work hours, and I have a lot on my list “to do” list), morning routine (9-12), lunch hour, afternoon routine (1-4), before supper routine (4-5), after supper routine (5:30-6:30, as I usually have meetings in the evenings), evening (7- 10) before bedtime routine, and bedtime routine (depending on the day of the week and my meeting schedule). This is where I discovered my schedule-calendar meets “the need to be very personalized”, and why a standard calendar-format type of planner doesn’t work for a very “visual” and “colour-coding” me! I also have lists that are way too long for the little, teeny spaces that most calendars provide, and the little “stickies” help for my one-time details. Again, this is where designing your own “personalized” calendar/schedule/binder comes in handy - and why your own “household notebook” will be “evolving” for a short while!

Initially you may see where events will run over the top of your natural time segments, but that is okay, as it is part of seeing where things fall! This is not about “knowing” what you “do automatically”, but about “seeing” how to make it all work! This is where your own calendar becomes unique and personal!

Enter your “mandatory” activities and “priority” commitments first. (Tip: Be sure to separately show the required amount of travel time that is needed before and after events. People often forget to do this and wonder why they can’t seem to make it all work! And if the event is cancelled, for some reason, it is easy to locate those extra chunks of free time!) Blocking or framing these time segments in a different colour may be helpful for seeing where things are falling. Church time on Sunday is one example. Homeschooling hours during the week, are another. Figure out what your own “blocks of time” are - they may include your job, your alternating custody slots with your children, family time, after-school routines, homeschooling hours, study time, regular hobbies, weekly visits, volunteer hours, church, bible study time, prayer meetings, and whatever other “goals” and regular items that you may have. Those “to-do” lists will come later! Just block out the time zones for now!

Save some time here, and check and see what nights you need to plan for meals that need to be eaten earlier, later, or on the run. (Remember you are still in the planning stages so make a note in another colour on your calendar, or on a separate “Meal Planning” page, so you can find this info later on.) We are living in a different day and age and sit-down dinners are a common rarity in most households. (Tip: We will be addressing this in the near future, but do consider making it a scheduled part of your time zones on your calendar, if you do it now. Some families are happy to accomplish this feat once a week or on specific days, while others insist on it daily.)

Now, look at your normal, monthly household calendar. What is not part of your regular schedule, but part of your customary events? This where you should be writing down vet appointments, doctors, dentists, and car tune-ups! Be sure to include those “every second Tuesday” and “every fourth Wednesday of the month” meetings, and your children’s extracurricular activities. Appointments are only noted on the monthly calendar at this point, unless they are a recurring and regularly-slotted event. (Tip: If you are a visual person, like myself, I like to jot appointment reminders on brightly coloured sticky notes and add them to the pages in my dayplanner, as well. This ensures that I don’t overlook something!)

Now, let’s see where the time goes, and what is left over after that. Not much time left, is there? This is the point where people generally begin to realize they may be overcommitted. If you are feeling that way, see if there is some weeding-out of the activities that is required, or even possible. You may have to re-evaluate what is important to you, and what is not!

Do you need to make any necessary changes to your “plan” based on what you see? Have a family meeting, with those in your household, and see what changes are feasible. Don’t forget to start with prayer! Delegating certain tasks, and hiring outside help for a season, may be solutions to those dilemmas. It will help you to discern the things that have to change or be added.

THIS WEEK’S TIP: Grab your binder, which we will call our "household notebook" for the time being, and write down a list of all the things you need to do the next day. Do this every night for the week and note problem areas. Review it daily, in light of your newly planned schedule. Keep the two together! Hang onto them! It will help you with the next steps!

WHERE TO START: IF YOU WANT A SIMPLER PLAN

For some the need to “keep it all together” is just learning to organize an area of their life - for others it may be a desperate need to gain control of their life, because it is spinning out of control! Some may simply need encouragement to face daily tasks, and others may need to get out from a mountain of clutter! We are all unique, and so are our situations and our households.

If you feel you are not in need of the detailed kind of evaluation or help above, and/or just need a simpler version of what we are trying to accomplish, this will be the place to look!

Last week’s challenge was to identify where your time was going. This week’s assignment is to aid you in regaining sanity in a schedule that may be out of control! Get into the habit of writing all your appointments on a large calendar. Post it in a very prominent location so your whole household can see it. Have everyone write their appointments on it. Each person can use a different colour so they can see it at a glance. You can even add special notes to your family calendar on “stickies”. Sticky-notes can also be helpful in noting specific tasks that you just need to do and toss! Find the way that works for you!

If you want to get a head start on your day, start the night before, and wake up ahead of your household. For example; set the breakfast table, have the food ready to prepare, lay out clean cloths and towels, put items to be returned by the door, make sure the children’s backpacks are ready, lay out your clothes, gather your laundry, set your alarm early and go to bed earlier. The items you need to do will be unique for each household. Make sure to write out your list of all things you have to do on the next day so you don’t forget anything. Then, do your best to do them and cross them off the list!

Gain a few minutes of quiet time for yourself and wake up earlier than your household. This permits time for prayer before you start your day, and gives you a chance to get a head start on those morning activities!

THIS WEEK’S BONUS TIP: Be sure to check out the summer sales at the local dollar and discount stores! Those appropriate summer toys make great items for those Christmas Shoeboxes, for programmes such as Samaritan’s Purse! Often shipped overseas to tropical countries!

My editor had some interesting comments regarding my column this week! If you haven’t joined our group over at CTWR, HERE, be sure to check it out and let me know what you think!

See you next week!