How Do I Create and Stick To a Daily Schedule?
A daily schedule can help you achieve long-term goals by ensuring you’re regularly working towards them. This article explains why a daily schedule is important, describes how to create one, offers tips for maintaining your routine, and gives an example daily schedule for maintaining a routine with priority tasks.
Why is a daily schedule important?
A daily schedule helps you prioritize your wants and needs efficiently and offers structure to support your productivity.
Cluster similar tasks
Determine if there are similar tasks you can group or optimize efficiency by finding similar tasks that require some of the same supplies and take place in the same area of the house.
Optimize Your Tasks
Determine if there are areas or tasks you can simplify or optimize to save time.
- Consider moving the task to a weekday or moving it to another day if it is not on your to-do list that day
- Do this with days that seem particularly full of activities.
Continue to use your daily schedule
It takes time to build a habit. Endeavor to purposefully follow your schedule for several weeks. It will become second nature with time.
- Adjust your schedule as needed.
- Visitors, vacations or other schedule disruptions can be a challenge. Make an active choice to return to your schedule after these disruptions.
Identify Priorities
Use a highlighter to visually organize your priorities by work, personal, wants and needs
Daily schedule example
Morning: Make the bed, eat breakfast, answer emails, journal, meditate, write, etc.
Note the frequency
Write down the frequency you want or need to complete your tasks
Make a weekly chart
Fill in daily and weekly personal and work needs, and identify where it makes sense to complete tasks that recur weekly to keep your schedule as open as possible
Daily Schedule Template
A template that can be used to make your own daily schedule
- Morning (X a.m. to X a. m.): Task 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
- MIDDAY (Xa.m.-X p.m.): Task 2,3, 4
- Afternoon (X p-m.- X night): Task 3,4, 5, 6
- EVENING (X n.p.- X m.p.) =====
- A combination of morning, afternoon, and evening
Write everything down
Think of all the things you want to accomplish during a normal week. Focus on brainstorming and not editing or organizing.
- Include tasks that you complete intermittently, like changing the sheets on the bed or mowing the lawn, and everyday tasks like making breakfast.
Order the tasks
Create a loose hourly schedule for each day’s tasks.
Stay flexible
It might take a few weeks for you to establish a routine that meets your needs, both personal and professional, so be patient
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