You know what that means? I have a new free printable insert to share with you!
This months freebie is not just an insert, but a productivity strategy I like to use as often as I can to ensure I am completely on top of my task management.
It’s the Power Hour!
How to Perform a Power Hour
A Power Hour is a dedicated block of time where we intentionally work on completing tasks that we have been putting off. Maybe these are tasks that have fallen through the cracks of our weekly schedule, they could be tasks that we end up deferring day over day because of higher priorities, or they’re tasks that for one reason or another we have been avoiding.
Whatever the reason, if these tasks need to get done, we have to focus and knock them out. The Power Hour concept is one that can encourage us to get the work done by setting a block of time that makes it easier to get started.
Step One: Set a block of time for your Power Hour where you can work uninterrupted.
Step Two: Compile a list of tasks to work on during the time block.
Step Three: Set a timer and get to work! Often setting a timer ignites a sense of focus and intention that we don’t normally have otherwise.
Feel free to perform this Power Hour strategy as often as necessary to stay focused and productive!
And don’t forget to download the FREE Power Hour Insert to help you keep this entire process organized for you!
And of course, if there is anything you need from me, any questions you have for dealing with your productivity or life during this challenging time, please let me know how I can support you and bring you the solutions or resources to make things a little easier for you!
In todays video I want to walk you through how I create my business marketing plans. Specifically what I want to show you today is my complete marketing plan for august, the process I follow to create the marketing plan, the tools I use to do so, and what the final outcome looks like.
If you’ve been following closely to my content, you may know that in the month of August I set out a new content schedule for my business. So every single day I am posting content to one or another of my platforms. That includes my Youtube channel, my blog, instagram and my email list as well.
So that is a lot of content to generate, outline and create. But, content is the major marketing strategy that I use to grow my audience, attract my ideal customers and of course sell my products!
Of course, all my plans are kept neatly organized inside my planner, so, lets jump into an overhead view so I can show you the exact tools I am using to create my marketing plans, plus the process I follow to get the end result of all the amazing content like this video that you get to enjoy from me!
First, let’s talk about the planning tools I use for my business marketing process.
It should be no suprise that I use the inserts from the CEO Strategy Planner. Specifically, we are going to be looking at the marketing plan set of inserts.
The first step of my process for creating my marketing plan is to do a content brainstorm.
So using my Content Brainstorm pages, I highlight the month the brainstorm is for, then I fill in the content categories I want to create for. My content categories as you can see are Planning, Business and Energy (which refers to mindset and manifestation content).
Then I will start coming up with content ideas for each category as it pertains to the 5 content outcomes listed down the side of the insert. So the outcomes or subtypes of content are Educate, Entertain, Inspire, Inform and Interact- all content should fit into one of those subtypes no matter what your brand or message is and I think its a best practice to come up with a range of ideas that fit all 5 subtypes in order to grow a steady and engaged following.
So I literally go through these types one by one and start generating ideas.
How can I educate my audience on planning this month? How can I educate them on business this month, and the ideas go in their appropriate box.
Then, once I have lots of ideas generated and filled up this spread, I can start creating the marketing plan itself.
Again, using the monthly Content Planner Insert I select the month, and then fill in the boxes for specific things I have going on in my business.
So, for products, I like to fill in what products I am focused on selling for the month. Now obviously, its great for me to sell all of my products, but I can’t talk about everything everyday, so this helps me focus on perhaps what’s new or what’s on sale or what is timely. For August, I was focused on 2021 Inserts because they were new and timely, and also the CEO strategy planner because I ran a sale on it in August so it would be good for my content this month to be focused on those things.
Next opt-ins I am focused on. Some businesses have only one or a few opt-ins, I have a lot, so I like to list the ones I am focused on promoting in the month here.
Then, campaigns. What organized marketing efforts so I have to execute this month? So, for me, August was all about my new posting schedule and as part of that, also a live weekly email. So, that work was a priority and the campaign I was working on.
Then we get to the Platforms and Content Section of the insert.
So here I list out the platforms I create content for.
I have three columns listed because its a great business strategy to use 3 different platforms, but if you use less or you use more feel free to adjust as needed.
So I fill in here, Blog, Youtube and IG/IGTV.
My new content schedule has me blogging twice a week, tuesday, thursday, posting one video a week to youtube on saturday and then posting three days a week to instagram , monday wed and friday with one post on wed being an IGTV post. I don’t normally worry about planning out IG stories or the new reels because they are less of a focus for me right now but as always plan what you need to plan do what works for you.
So referring back to the content brainstorm, I will pick out posts topics and decide which content is best suited for a blog post, which a youtube video and which for IG. Then I just listed out my selections for my editorial calendar in each column. I make a little checkbox with my highlighter and I add the date for myself for reference as well, but that is all of my content planned out for the month.
Now in addition to these two steps, I also like to track my content on a Content Tracker Insert. I have one for each platform where I will list out the content title and keep track of what work I have completed for it. this is great for when I am bulking work which I normally always do, it helps to know what steps I have competed and what I have left as I do my work.
Then finally, I will also sometimes, but not always use a Content Outline Insert to organize my ideas. Now, because my work is all done on a computer, I normally write everything out on my computer, but sometimes I just like to see plans for content, especially youtube videos, mapped out. It just makes it easier for me to create an outline sometimes if I can organize my thoughts like this ahead of time.
These outline pages have space for three pieces of content and have a place for title or subject, sate, the key points I want to make, the call to action, any opt in I might be sharing and a place to list out additional media I need to include.
So, one more little piece I would like to show you us how my marketing plans fit in with my overall Monthly Business Plans.
My Q3 Business Plan Insert lists the big picture Focus, Marketing and List Building activities for each month. So, then I have a break down of my Monthly Business Plan for August where I map everything out including my content schedule, important dates and events and the key business tasks I have to complete.
So, that is how I create marketing plans for my business and the tool I use to get the job done, the CEO Strategy Planner.
The final thing I want to drive home with this video before we wrap up is that although I make my plans and set them up and outline content, etc, I am not afraid to change my plans as needed. I might map out all my content for my editorial calendar but later in the month I might switch a post out because I have something more important that has come up for me to say. So I want you to know that just because you make a plan doesn’t mean it can’t be edited, but overall, I think its a great practice to outline your business plans like this and make a solid effort to stick to it.
So many people starting a business right now make plans and when they don’t see immediate results they change the plan and still don’t see results and then they get frustrated that planning doesn’t work. Planning does work but you have to stick to your plan more often than not and above all stick to the same strategies consistently to see results. Just because one of my youtube videos for the month might not get the attention I hope for, doesn’t mean I stop making videos. I don’t ditch the strategy entirely. Progress and results with business planing come from sticking to the right strategies and learning what examples work and don’t work within the frame of the strategy itself.
And thats why I love the CEO Strategy Planner, because its giving you a framework for online business and digital marketing strategy and then you have the flexibility to play with your marketing and test out and try new things. But at the end of the day you know what you are doing and why because have you have a line of sight to your objectives!
So I hope this information has been helpful. If you want to purchase your copy of the CEO Strategy Planner, remember these are strategic business planning inserts and worksheets you print at home from a PDF file you purchase from me. Purchase your copy today and get started making your marketing plans using the same strategies that brought my youtube channel to nearly 100,000 subscribers and close to 10 million views, my Blog to over 1 million page views annually, and my Instagram to over 25k followers.
I hope you enjoyed this video and I would love to hear about any other planner trends you would like me to cover in future installments of this series!
It’s been ages since I posted my last productivity playlist here on the blog, so let me quickly reintroduce the series for those of you who might be new or completely forgot about it!
Productivity Playlist is a series here on StrangeCharmed.com where I share a playlist of music I have been listening to while I work. Research shows that listening to music, specifically music without lyrics, can help increase your productivity by providing white noise as a background sound to drown out other random noise. For this reason, classical music is often touted as a brain and productivity booster, but it’s not the only option. So, from time to time I like to share a collection of music that I have been listening to in order to give you some new beats to help you whistle while you work!
In this fresh installment, I am sharing a new musical obsession with you, Lo-fi hip-hop. Don’t let the hip-hop term fool you, it’s nothing close to what you might be thinking. It’s just seriously some of the most chill and good work vibe music I have come across. No lyrics, just music and the occasional vague echo of a voice. So, without further ado, here is the playlist for you to enjoy.
I hope you enjoy this playlist and I would love to hear about what you have been listening to while you work, so please do leave me a comment and tell me about it!
In today’s video, I am showing and teaching you all about Discbound Planner Systems. I will be covering why they are my most used system, the different branded systems, the essential elements you need to know about and how to put everything together to create your own custom planner.
On and off throughout the years, my planner binding method of choice has been the discbound system. If you are not familiar with the disc binding concept, it is similar to the idea of a spiral notebook, but instead of a solid metal spiral holding the notebook together, you have metal or plastic discs that can pop in and out of a cover. These discs being removable means that you can add and remove paper to your disc bound system as you like, so long as the paper has been punched with a disc binding punch.
As you may already know, the current planner I am using was created with the help of the disc binding system and I want to teach you more about the system so you can see just how easy it is to customize your own planner or notebook organization system. I will of course be leaving resources to as much as I can throughout this post to help you get started.
First, lets talk about he BEST Features of a Discbound System
Customization: The main reason I love using a discbound system as my planner is because it is completely customizable. I can create my own custom planner inside the binding and add and remove items on a whim. I find the disc binding to be very secure, but also easy for you to add and remove elements at the same time.
Interchangeability:The next feature I love about discbound system is that they are interchangeable for the most part. In just a moment, I will outline some of the most popular discbound planner systems to give you an idea of the options available, but with each system the discs, refills, accessories are interchangeable so you can pick and choose what you want to use from one collection or another to build your perfect system.
Flexibility:The final feature I love about discbound systems is that they fold over onto themselves like a spiral bound notebook. I love this flexibility because I am someone who does like to fold a notebook over to write. Although my personal discbound planner is kept inside a notebook cover, I frequently remove my planner portion from the cover to write in it, and of course I fold the system over like a notebook when I do!
Next, let’s talk about The Most Popular Discbound Systems
As I mentioned earlier, there are a number of discbound planner systems out on the market currently. Here is a list to help you browse some of the most popular systems to find the right elements to help you build your perfect system.
I will also include MAMBI Happy Planner from Michael’s, Hobby Lobby etc. in this list, although, to be clear, dispite being a discbound system, many of their inserts and some of their accessories are set to a proprietary sizing which isn’t compatible with the other interchangeable systems mentioned.
Now, let’s talk Discbound Planner Essentials
Discs:The major element of a discbound system are the discs themselves. Across the different branded systems you can find a variety of sizes, colors and materials like plastic or aluminum.
In terms of disc sizes, across different brands they range from 1/2” to 1.5” diameter
½ inch discs hold 50 – 70 sheets of paper
¾ inch discs hold 90- 120 sheets of paper.
1 inch discs hold 110 – 150 sheets of paper.
1½ inch discs hold 140- 220 sheets of paper
Now, in terms of materials, you can get discs in either plastic or aluminum and they come in a variety of colors and finishes. Plastic discs tend to be the most affordable option, however, I prefer aluminum because I find that there is a smoother page turn with aluminum rather than plastic.
Also, in terms of ease of use, I find that smaller discs are easier to turn the pages on, but thats also what I’m used to using. With larger discs I find I need to be more deliberate when I flip through pages, but I do still use the largest size discs with some notebooks because I need the increased capacity.
As with everything in life, there are benefits and drawbacks to each option that you choose.
Front/Back Covers: Each different branded system for discbound has a variety of different binding covers from thin plastic covers that make simple notebooks to thick leather covers with built in organization elements. Even Etsy and Amazon sellers now make personalized or custom covers for discbound systems, so you can find a style that fits your personal preference.
Even if, like me, you are using a slip style cover, you still need to use a hard cover to anchor the system into the cover.
I’d also like to mention here that with the majority of discbound systems (not including Mambi’s Happy Planner) there are two main sizes of planners and covers. First, is Full Size Letter, which is also compatible with A4, and the second is Junior Size which is Half Letter and also compatible with A5.
The Happy Planner has 3 proprietary sizes of covers and pages:
The Classic Happy Planner covers are 7.75” x 9.75” and the pages are 7” x 9.25”
The Mini Happy Planner covers are 5.125” x 7.5” and the pages are 4.5” x 7”
The Big Happy Planner covers are 9” x 11.25” and the pages are 8.5” x 11”
So, please keep this information in mind when purchasing Happy Planner covers, inserts or accessories- the brand is not 1 for 1 compatible with other discbound planner systems on the market.
Punch:Of course, if you are interested in creating a customizable system like me, you are going to need to get a discbound punch. I recommend getting one from the system you use most. I personally use the Arc version and love it because although it is a bit larger, it has wonderful guides to help you punch a variety of sizes of paper. When it comes to choosing a punch, I recommend choosing a sturdier punch even though they can be more expensive. My arc punch was maybe $40-50 but it is at least 6 years old so that was an investment that held up for me. If I had to purchase again, I might choose the levenger punch, because its also very sturdy and perhaps a little more compact. But avoid the travel size punches, i’ve not heard the best feedback about those.
Cover:Although there are a variety of discbound system covers as mentioned earlier, I also use a leather notebook cover to protect my system. My current cover comes from Chanel and is no longer available, but I also have notebook covers from GiGi New York or Graphic Image NY, and I’ve even removed the rings from a Filofax to create a cover for my discbound system. The key with using covers is that you need one that has a back slip pocket to anchor your book to.Unless you are using a cover like this discagenda by dokibook, that actually anchors to the discs themselves!
Other accessories:There are many other accessessories available to help you create your custom discbound organization system. Things like, page markers, dividers, pockets, etc. I recommend browsing the selections of each brand to see all the fun extras you can add to your system to make it personal to your needs and desires.
How to Create a Custom Planner with the Discbound System
Another very necessary element of a discbound system are the inserts or refills you use. Now, as you may already know, I use the Master Plan System of inserts from my own shop to create my planner system, but most of the major brands already mentioned also sell calendar, project planning and note taking pages and refills, so if you are not into creating a custom planner with printable inserts like I do, you do have some options. More and more, however, I see that sellers on Etsy are also giving the option to purchase pre-printed and pre-punched discbound compatible inserts, so you have that option as well. Just make sure to check the size compatibility for your inserts with the system you are using before proceeding with this option.
If you are interested in a creating your own custom planner using the discbound system, here is a video tutorial I created that walks you through the very simple process. Definitely check out this video and the links I’ve left in this article to help you find the different elements of your ideal planner system so that you can build a planner that is all your own and custom to your needs!
So that is everything I think you need to know about discbound planners to get you started. I hope this information has been helpful to you as you evaluate the option of a discbound planner system for yourself. Of course if you have any other questions about the system, feel free to leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you get the information you need to create your perfect planner system!
At the start of quarantine there was a popular video challenge making its way around the internet in places like Instagram and Tiktok, in which a parent would leave their young child alone with a bowl of candy or some sweet treat for a short period of time and record how the child reacted while the parent was away. It was a cute challenge and in most of the videos I saw the kids were able to wait for the parent to return to get their treat. So obviously this was a popular challenge because cute kids seeming to have self control, I imagine it made the parents feel good about their kids to see they were obedient, but every time I watched one of these videos I cringed a little bit because this challenge wasn’t actually an indicator of the childs self-control mechanism, in fact, it was what I would say was a poor knock off of a real life series of experiments that have come to be known as a real indicator of future success and self-control in children.
So I want to talk about that experiment today, the parameters of what it was about and how the results of that experiment have taught researchers a lot about the importance of self-control or delayed gratification as a predictor of future success and productivity.
First, let’s start with the real life experiment that I think in the inspiration for that self-control Tiktok challenge. It was known as the Marshmallow test and if you are curious to learn more there is a book you can read all about it, called The Marshmallow Test. My OG followers may remember, I read this book I believe back in 2017 and I did find it fascinating.
Okay, so the first thing you should know about this experiment is the parameters of how the testing was done. Roughly speaking here, what they did was took young children (and they experimented with a variety of ages) and put them in a room where a researcher, NOT their parent- this is kind of important- offers them a single marshmallow on a plate. In different renditions of this test it was chocolates or other candy or treats, but the original test was a single marshmallow. The child is offered the marshmallow freely, but before they accept it, a condition is offered to them. If they can wait alone in that room for the researcher to come back in 5 mins, if they do not eat the marshmallow, they will get two!
So, the test is about instant gratification vs delayed gratification, in a situation where there is a clear benefit for exerting self-control, and yet, there is no negative pressure associated with them eating the single marshmallow immediately. I think this is an important difference that the Tiktok challenge missed. One because it was a parent or guardian who was giving them the direction of “Do not eat this until I come back”– which was a pressure by someone they love and trust, as opposed to an offer of you can have one now or two later, it’s your choice, do what you think is best. So, in the true experiment the child is being asked to make the decision, not simply follow the direction of their parent.
Now, that was just the first part of the marshmallow test, because the most important information that experiment gathered was not how many kids ate the marshmallow and how many waited for two- but rather, the researchers followed up with those same children years later into adulthood to see how successful of a person they became and there was a very strong correlation between the children who waited for the second marshmallow and who were successful in life, vs the children who didn’t have the impulse control were far more likely to have made a string of unsuccessful life decisions in the future.
Now, I have no intention of diving deep into the metrics, if you are curious, definitely read the book, they go into amazing statistics and demographics, but the point I want to focus on that was learned from the experiment is that self-control, delayed gratification, impulse control- that is the most significant factor that goes into the general success and productivity of a person in the future.
And this is a belief I have seen work out in my own life and in the lives of others I have been close to. Speaking for myself, I clearly see how my ability to distinguish between and frequently choose between actions that would bring me either short term gratification or long term gratification have been the key to success in my life and the key to my productivity.
For me to be able to choose over and over to take action on my plans and do the work, when perhaps I could easily be distracted by other more immediate or more instantly gratifying activities is absolutely why I am where I am in life. And this manifests itself in a number of ways.
To give some examples:
The choice to stay in and do my college work instead of go out partying
The choice to develop a side hustle while I also had a 9 to 5 and use my free time to work instead of play or relax
The choice to save money, to intentionally live on less so that I could save more, instead of shopping all the time.
The choice to execute on the tasks I lay out for myself in my plans as opposed to focus on something else or watch Netflix
The choice to eat the healthy meal as opposed to getting take out
All these little choices, almost micro decisions we make on a day to day basis, when you are choosing from a place of being very clear on what the short term benefit is vs the long term benefit, if you choose that long term benefit more often, you are going to be in a better position in the future. It’s about making a short term sacrifice so you have an even greater outcome in the future.
And I feel like self-control or delayed gratification isn’t always discussed so much in the topic of productivity. And I can understand why because it’s a hard factor to account for. People often ask me how I get myself to do things, and I have shared different hacks to help trick your brain, or develop routines or how to bribe yourself into stick to your plans. All of these tactics are simply ways to get you to control yourself and your decisions.
So, I want to lay out a method for you that is simple, but by no means going to be easy to execute.
If you believe you struggle with impulse control or delayed gratification- if you see that you too often choose the option with the short term benefit to the detriment of long term plans and outcomes, this is my suggestion for you.
First, before you make the choice itself, you need to be self-aware and mindful that a decision point is happening. I think for many of you, you experience this feeling, likely has a sense of concern or anxiety. You know you are being faced with a choice that may temporarily derail or delay progress towards a long term outcome you desire.
So, when you get this feeling, you need to force yourself to pause. You need to stop what you are doing and get quiet inside your own mind to work out the choice.
I think this is often the first mistake people make is that they get the feeling that they were making a bad choice but instead of stopping for a moment to consider it, they bulldoze right through it. And I get why- because sometimes you are in a situation where there is a level of chaos around you. Easy example of this is your choosing dinner for the night and your kids are screaming that they want pizza- I can imagine it’s hard to be mindful in that moment. But it’s important to find a way to pause, even if you have to run to the bathroom and chill for a minute to get clear on making the right choice.
Okay, so once you are paused, you need to look at each option. Option 1 is the option that will bring you a short term benefit and option 2 is the one that will give you long term success. When you stop, you need to literally spell it out for yourself what each option is and why. So option 1 is to lay on the couch and watch a movie because you are tired and would like to relax, but option 2 is to sit back at your desk and write that article for the blog you always wanted to start. What happens to you if you choose option 1? You get to relax, sure, but you also yet again delay work on that project you really wanted to start. What happens to you if you choose option 2? You actually accomplish something you’ve been wanting to do but you might be very tired later or the next day. Which would you regret more? That’s a key question to ask yourself. I don’t like to dwell on regret or what might have been, but in this situation, if you are someone who chooses instant gratification or short term wins over long term ones, you very likely deal with a sense of regret a lot. It’s probably taken a toll on your confidence and self-esteem to some extent.
Okay, so you get to that choice point, you pause, you stop to evaluate your options and then you choose. That choice point could be an excellent opportunity for you to reach out to someone like an accountability buddy or someone who is aware of your objectives and struggle, to get their feedback. I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I want to buy something and I think it might be an impulse purchase I will often tell on myself by asking the opinion of someone I know will say not to buy it. But eventually the choice has to be made, so hopefully this pause gave you time to reflect on the better choice, and hopefully you made the better choice. If you didn’t, if you choose poorly, the final step to this process is to forgive yourself and remember this situation for future reference. Perhaps you can keep a page in your planner dedicated to recalling these situations for future, or maybe you can write it out on the notes app of your phone, or perhaps you have a conversation with a trusted person that you can reach out to in the future when faced with the same situation and hopefully they will jog your memory. Because sometimes I think it’s easy for us to forget. In fact, I know this is true. The human brain is a wonderful machine that often forces us to forget important information, like that we made a poor choice in the past, so that we can live with ourselves. So, if you can find a way to document the experience, I think that will go along way to helping you remember and helping you to reflect in the future when faced with a similar choice.
The last thing I want to say about this whole process though, is that something you will notice if you start this process and start making more of those better long term decisions, is that it will actually become easier for you each time. There is a certain momentum and confidence that comes from being aware of the decisions we make and why and how they are positively impacting our lives. So, the more you make those better choices, the more you are stepping into the reality that you are a more put together, successful person who does what they say they are going to do. And there is a tremendous amount of powerI believe in being able to honestly say, I am someone that gets things done. I am someone who can trust my choices, I am someone who knows how to make good choices for myself. Building that momentum, will bring you to that mindset and ultimately that mindset completely changes a persons life. So, expect big things from this shift.
Well, that is everything I wanted to share with you about self-discipline and success and productivity. I hope you found this information interesting and of course actionable. I would love to hear your thoughts and how this process works for you once you are able to give it a try.
Have you been curious about the CEO Strategy Planner but haven’t made your purchase yet?
If so, you can consider this post your sign that now is the time to secure your copy of this ultimate business planning tool because now thru August 16th, you can take $25 OFF the CEO Strategy Planner with the code CEOPLANS.
BUT, if you are still on the fence on whether or not the CEO Strategy Planner is for you, here are some things for you to consider:
#1. The CEO Strategy Planner is the BEST business organization tool for paper planner lovers on the market. Get your ideas out of your head, onto paper and get down to business with the peace of mind that your objectives are organized into one elegant system.
It’s time to finally get your business ideas and plans mapped out and streamlined to make your life and your business the best it can be.
xoxo,
P.S. If you missed it, yesterday I posted a video on YouTube all about discbound planner systems. If you haven’t seen it yet, click here to watch, but I use a discbound to hold my CEO Strategy Planner and so I can definitely recommend it as a great option once you make your purchase 😉!
In today’s video I am walking you through my monthly functional planning process. Watch as a plan my month and share exactly what functional planning principles and guidelines I integrate into my monthly calendar.
When I first developed the methodology of Functional Planning back in 2016 I defined a set of parameters to use as a guideline to ensure your planner and the way you were using it were functional. I assigned 3 roles to the functional planner:
1st is to Schedule Events 2nd is to Track Tasks 3rd is to Plan Actions
Now, in the way I execute on the Functional Planning methodology, the Monthly Calendar Spread is the way I choose to keep track of scheduled events and items.
Here are a few popular types of events you might want to ensure you are scheduling into your planner, specifically on the monthly calendar.
Reoccuring Events:A scheduled event that happens on a consistent frequency
Things like bill due dates, trash days, paydays, events with a predictable pattern- for myself as a content creator, this may also mean using my monthly calendar as a place to map out the days content will be posted so that I remain on schedule with those items.
Now with reoccurring events, a major tip I always share is that although it might be nice to schedule everything in your calendar- unless you need the information for reference or because you are taking a specific action related to it, I think less is more- especially in a monthly calendar spread where space is usually limited.
Appointments: A non routine event that takes up a block of time in our schedule
Things like doctors visits, classes, meetings, anything that will take up time and you may also need to prepare ahead of time for. You will keep the schedule in your monthly calendar, but then any associated tasks or prep should go on a master task list for the month or directly into the daily or weekly spread you use.
Special Days:Holidays, birthdays anniversaries etc
I know some people might keep a list of holidays or birthdays on a separate reference calendar, but I think its good to transfer that information to your monthly especially because its much more functional to see those days in your calendar so you can plan accordingly. I can’t tell you how many times I missed a special event because it was on some other list I wasn’t in the habit of checking regularly!
Due dates:If you have projects or work with specific due dates, I also think its important to keep these on your monthly calendar. Again, you will likely keep specific task information on your Master Monthly Task List and transfer it to the day or week it belongs to as well, but having that big picture view of your month is important.
And I want to be clear, it doesn’t matter what type of monthly calendar you are using. Here I am using a Month on 1 Page, but, these parameters still apply for Month on 2 page as well. You will still be tracking the same types of events, but depending on your spread, you may have more or less room for detail- choose the monthly spread that works for you, and use whatever means works for you to mark down information on your monthly. If that means writing in appointments or using highlighters or color coding to indicate things wonderful. I use some stickers to help me indicate specific things on my calendar. Just do what works for you and what you like. As long as you know what everything indicates create whatever shorthand works for you.
Of course, in terms of the monthly spreads I use that are designs from TheCharmedShop.com my monthly calendar is always followed up by a Master Task List for the month.
Like I mentioned earlier, task tracking is essential to the functional planning methodology and on a monthly basis I make sure to compile a full list of tasks that apply to the month and transfer them to this master monthly task list. The tasks that go on this list may be individual tasks but they may also be projects taken from my project planning or business planning inserts. Sometimes with projects there are really too many tasks to list out on the master list individually so I find it acceptable and still functional to list out the project itself so long as you have those individual steps of the project broken out somewhere for reference.
I’ll also make sure to populate a top 3 priorities for the month as well. The concept of prioritization is also a major element of Functional Planning. Not only do we always need to know what is on our plate, we need to have some sense of hierarchy. Having a monthly top 3 gives me clarity throughout the month that no matter all the little tasks or projects I might touch- I am clear on the fact that the priority ones deserve the most attention to ensure they are completed.
So that is how to create a functional monthly plan. I hope this information has been educational and inspiring. If you would like to purchase my Monthly Calendar Inserts, I will leave you a link below. Of course you can expect that I will be creating more content on functional planning in the future that walk through weekly and daily planning as well as project planning and more.
I hope you had a wonderful and productive month of July. I know I, yet again, took a step back from the blog last month in order to focus more fully on completing and launching my 2021 Planner Insert Collection, but I am back and I have amazing news for you!
Last week, I had a TREMENDOUS BREAK-THRU! And it has to do with my content.
If you’ve been following my Entrepreneurial Journey for the past few years, you may recall that there was once a time (2016 and few years previous) that I had been posting consistently across all my major platforms. I blogged several times a week, posted weekly videos, even updated my Instagram feed multiple times per week. But in 2017 I burnt out, I took a step back and pretty much since that time, I have been struggling to get myself back onto a consisting posting schedule across all my platforms.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying, I would set out with the best of intentions to reignite content on my platforms but for no substantial reason outside of a major mental block, I couldn’t make it work. There was something in my mindset, some limiting belief about what I was capable of and what would be sustainable that ultimately continuously threw me off my content creation schedule.
Over the last few weeks since the launch of my inserts, you may have seen I had been posting 3 videos a week, trying to catch up on essential videos I knew I needed to produce to answer key questions you in my community have been asking me to address, particularly around my inserts. The launch was the optimal time to get that content out to you and I was able to make it happen, of course at the expense of posting to other platforms.
But last week I had a break-thru. During a particularly High Vibe Business Planning Session, I sat down and felt inspired to map out a complete Marketing Plan for all my platforms. Blog, YouTube, IG, and even my email list. And in that moment something major clicked for me. Like the proverbial switch had been flipped and the lights turned on. I had a reasonable content creation schedule sitting in front of me that was populated with content I was actually excited to create.
Now, I’m not going to claim this break-thru was completely sudden. It was definitely the result of some mindset work I have been doing over the past few months to help me get out of that weird funk I had been sitting in because of all the world drama that was emotionally draining me. Particularly, in just the few days before that High Vibe Planning Session, I had done a few excellent journaling and future writing sessions where I believe I unclogged a lot of negative gunk that had accumulated in my mind over the past few years.
There is a quote I love from Marianne Williamson that says “God is the water, and you are the faucet.” I think my faucet had been clogged for quite some time and I needed to do the work of removing it from my psyche so that the water could flow again.
And flow it certainly did!
You know, several times over the past few years, I have hit a peak with my mindset after a period of stagnation, and I feel like each time those small break-thrus helped me take more and more steps into alignment. Even though valleys ultimately followed those peaks, right now in this moment I feel an even greater sense of clarity and confidence that I will be able to follow through on this new endeavor because this time it feels like a missing piece has been found. I’m seeing my future vision so much more clearly then I have in a long time. And for the first time in a long time, my content schedule isn’t merely a fill in the blank schedule, it’s actually filled with exciting content ideas.
So, of course I want to share my new content schedule with you! Here is what you can expect:
MONDAY Instagram Post
TUESDAY Blog Post
WEDNESDAY Instagram IGTV Post
THURSDAY Blog Post
FRIDAY Instagram Post
SATURDAY YouTube Video
SUNDAY Email to my list
Yea, that is one heck of a content schedule, right? Daily content from me and I feel very positive about it.
Of course, if you want to make sure you catch all the wonderful content I produce, you are going to want to make sure to do the following:
Next, let me give you a short preview of the types of content you can expect from me moving forward.
Planning & Productivity (of course!)
Online Business Strategy
What I’m reading and book recommendations
Mindset shifts
Metaphysical topics
My success rituals
Inspiration and motivation to live your best life and pursue your dreams
New monthly freebies, downloads and updates to TheCharmedShop.com as well!
There is so much I can’t wait to share with you moving forward! I do hope you will continue with me on this journey and that we can use this opportunity to grow closer together as a community. I would love to hear about what content you would like to see from me and have me integrate into this new content schedule, so don’t hesistate to leave me a comment, send me an email or drop me a DM on Instagram!
Wishing you a productive and successful month ahead!
