The Power of Planning

Planning: A basic management function involving the formulation of one or more detailed plans to achieve optimum balance of needs or demands with the available resources (Business Dictionary).

To many, planning is considered as the preliminary step in any project, assignment or task. To those who take full advantage of its potential, planning is one of the easiest ways to bring an idea to life!

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The Best Planning Tips:

USE. AN. AGENDA.

Paper, online or on an app. At the end of the day, as long as you record your tasks somewhere that you check frequently, and stick to completing these tasks, you can’t go wrong.

Don’t leave ANYTHING to the last minute!

Nothing! Zero. Leaving any task, big or small, makes it harder for you to accommodate doing the job into your schedule later on - which can result in a poor final product, a lack of sleep and added stress.

Break it down

Often, large tasks seem impossible and overwhelming, one may not know where to start! Break down large tasks well before needed (ex. If you need to start a huge project, break it down into sub-tasks today, instead of the night before it’s due) so you can allocate time to finish each part of it, well.

Create exam schedules EARLY

When studying for exams, start outlining each unit and the material that you have to review or study for, well in advance (up to a month). If you do a little bit each day, the workload will be much less overwhelming - and you’ll have time to fully understand and ask questions about lessons, past notes, or course concepts.

Unit Keys

During the course of any unit, keep a lined piece of paper at the back of all of the notes for that particular unit. After the day’s lesson, write down the main subject or overarching idea you learned that class - and you will be able to generate a “log” of lessons or concepts learned over the course of the unit, effortlessly creating something you can use as a checklist when studying for the unit test or exam! (If you’re ready, you should be able to explain or have went over everything on that list, unless otherwise stated).

Just… don’t forget

“It’ll get done eventually” and “I’ll take care of it in an hour” can be some of the most detrimental statements used when it comes to actually completing a task. If you forget about it, it may never get done! Make sure that everything you are responsible for completing, or want to do, is written down somewhere (perhaps, in your agenda!). Not to forget may require a sticky note, sending yourself an email that you haven't opened yet (unread emails can serve as a reminder), or setting a reminder on your phone. Whatever it takes!

When carrying out the following tips, you’ll be able to fully realize and acknowledge the power of planning :)