Insights from Dana
2 easy tips to plan like a pro

Two weeks ago I got intimate with my planner (and gave you all a little peek).

This week, I am going to give you my top planning tips.

Now is the perfect time to plan for 2018 (and finish 2017 with a bang)!

I always stress planning with my clients.

Having a plan is mandatory for working with me (remember, it is foundation 2 ).

Yes, I know many people out there hate planning and structure (or so you think).

You may say, “Dana! I started a business to get away from structured plans.”

To which I say, “No, you started a business to live a life you love.”

And without a plan you will never achieve greatness.

Planning really isn’t as hard as people make it out to be.

And I have a tried and true method that has worked with every single one of my clients.

Yes: Every. Single. One.

I have two main tips I give my clients:

1) Start with the big rocks.

2) Everything else is 90 days out.

The big rocks.

The big rocks are the immovable objects in your schedule.

These are the things you know of far in advance and need to plan around:

Conferences.

Vacations.

School breaks for kids.

The first thing to do is write all these into your calendar right away.

This accomplishes two things:

First, it makes them a priority so you actually get to do them (less stress).

Second, it lets you know when you will have time to focus on your business (where are the gaps?)

Now that you have written in the big rocks you know of, what is missing?

What do you want to do that isn’t in there?

If you don’t have a vacation planned…why the hell not?

Take a vacation!

I promise you can do it – if you make the time for it.

Set it aside now (as well as time to focus on your business by going to conferences and having personal development time).

Get those big rocks on your calendar and keep this updated 12-months out.

90 days out.

The other thing I tell my clients about planning is to focus on 90 days at a time.

Think about the upcoming quarter:

What will you do to finish the year strong?

What do you need to build on?

What do you need to change?

If you could only get one thing done for your business in the next 90 days, what would it be?

That is your priority.

Any non-big rock time should be focused on accomplishing that.

Then, look at your next 90 days.

This can be done quarterly or on a rolling 90-day calendar, but I typically start my clients on a quarterly schedule for this (just make sure you start planning for the next quarter before the last day of this one).

Let’s say you have a vacation the first week of April…you don’t want to wait until the end of March to start planning for Q2 (if you do, you will end up working on your vacay – gross).

But, if you plan right, your number one priority for Q1 could be making enough revenue and stacking your work so you can be gone that first week in April without a dip – and return to a planned schedule that is easy to step into.

Sound good? Great!

When you have your priority for Q4, share it in the comments! I would love to help you achieve it.

Until then…stay passionate!

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