#08: Daily overview: How to make the most of it?
First of all, we put our hand on our heart and have to tell you right away: there is no right or wrong use. Linear, drawn, scribbled or neat - your regular day planning is primarily meant to serve you and help you become the master/mistress of your time. However, we have prepared some advice that will help you navigate your daily planning and make the best use of this section.
How the day is laid out in the Journal
You may have used only the main space with rows until now. However, each element represents one of the things we believe could be part of balanced time management. It encourages creativity, prioritization, smart planning and systematic time management . We didn't forget about gratitude, one of the strongest human abilities that can strengthen and encourage you every day - even if that day wasn't the best.
So what does it look like in practice?
Ring at the top of the page
The empty ring at the top represents a creative challenge: Can you do something different with this ring every day until the end of the year? PS: the stickers aren't a scam at all, but don't be afraid to challenge yourself to do something with it without the help of pre-printed ornaments. :-)
Do you want to know how Journalists in our community use the ring at the top of the page? Then be sure to join our Facebook group and read the comments below this post . And don't forget to leave your comment, even with a photo, so we can see how creatively you handled this challenge.
Priority of the day
Setting goals and tasks is one thing, prioritizing them correctly is something else entirely. Think about it this way: It doesn't matter how much you got done during the day, if what got done wasn't really important. Don't forget your goals and values here - are they also reflected in your daily planning?
Therefore, start with the Priority of the day . Even if you didn't manage to do anything else, you just have to give this.
If you follow our tips, on Monday you chose several of the biggest priorities for this week. Link them with the Priority of the Day so that for each day you prioritize one of the most important tasks of the week.
You'll learn that you don't need to overdo it with priorities when planning weekly. At the same time, you will start each day with an amazing feeling of productivity. What could be better than having the most important things done in the first part of the day?
Daily planning and notes
Mark tasks and meetings on the prepared lines .
In the lines, you can draw dots or dashes for tasks , exclamation marks for priorities , circles or squares for meetings. Don't be afraid to experiment. You can also find some of our tips below in the Legend. However, how you choose to fill out this section is really up to you - and yes, we need to emphasize this for a simple reason. Any diary or app is our helper. We don't serve them. They serve us. So use the Journal so that it helps you on your way to success.
There are no limits to creativity and your comments
Did you listen to an interesting podcast or read a few pages from a book today? Did you think of a new creative idea during your train journey? Did you have a stimulating discussion with a colleague or just an ordinary meeting that resulted in a bunch of new ideas? Use the dotted space to write them down. Whether it will be notes, notes from meetings or lectures, mini drawings, sketches or stickers, it's up to you.
Do you want to improve your visual thinking and the way you take notes? Then let us guide you through the art of sketching. You can learn more in the Exercise book called Sketchbook here.
You will move on with gratitude
Spend a few minutes in the evening thinking about the things you are thankful for that day. Even if today is Friday the 13th, try to remember at least two pleasant little things . Thanks to this, over time you will start to realize positive things and become a happier person.
BE INSPIRED BY THE LEGEND OF JOURNALISTS:
George :
"I separate all the tasks according to the time sequence, with the fact that I write the events first, since they are fixed in time. I use my own tags similar to the Bullet Journal method. For example, like this:
🔲 task (empty square)
F🔲 frog of the day (frog square)
❗️🔲 task with final DDL
⬛️ task completed (full square)
❎ unfulfilled task (square crossed by x)
🔲> moved task (square and arrow)
⭕️ event, event with a specific time (circle)
🔴 completed event (full circle)
🎵 podcast (sheet music)
🎥 film (camera)
💡 idea (light bulb with the letter I)
⭕️ T tool, tool, app (letter T in a circle)
John:
"First of all, I try to write tasks that are tied to time, I mark them ⭕️. I put them roughly where they are during the day.
Then I write specific notes for the given day, I mark them with 🔲, but if they would take up a larger block of time, I use a different mark and [ ] take up a larger part of the page.
If I don't fulfill any of the instructions, I don't leave it on this page, but move it straight to the next free day to the next free area (I'll mark it with an arrow → )
If something is still being planned, e.g. meeting with friends, I mark it as ⭐.
The most important thing for me is to close each day and not have forgotten notes hanging there . Therefore, when I have it closed (mostly in the evening) and everything is finished or moved, I make an X-ko over the name of the day and I know that I have nothing left there."
Veronica :
"I use the lined part of the daily report for tasks. I proceed from the first lines when it comes to work things and from the bottom when it comes to personal tasks. I make sure that I only have things written for the given day that really have to be done on the given day I have all the other tasks written in my electronic to-do list . If I have all the priorities for the day, I choose one of these tasks and meetings as follows:
❏ An empty square is an unfulfilled task. If I manage to fulfill it, I will color the square. If not, but I'm moving it to another day, I'll add a tiny arrow inside. If it is not fulfilled, but I will not move it, it will make a cross (X) inside.
An empty ring works similarly in my planning. The only difference is that the ring indicates a meeting and thus has a specific time assigned to it.
— I mark notes or smaller parts within one task with a dash."
What do you say, will you start using your Journal more regularly now? If you have been using it for some time and have your own system that works for you in daily planning, share it with us and other Journalists on Facebook.
