I have always seen planning as an important part of
everything. To be honest, I probably spend too much time doing so – as was very
evident in my GCSEs. I definitely spent more time putting together my revision
plan and colour coding everything that I could than actually revising. And
whilst I see that the majority of time shouldn’t be spent planning, I do think
that it is very important.
At school, there was a quote in the science room that said, ‘if you fail to prepare, be prepared to fail’. Even though at the time I was sure teachers were just being dramatic, I have found that it couldn’t be truer of a statement. There are many things that are important to plan for; changes in your life, work, exams – the list goes on. And therefore, here are my top 2 reasons of why planning is so important:
At school, there was a quote in the science room that said, ‘if you fail to prepare, be prepared to fail’. Even though at the time I was sure teachers were just being dramatic, I have found that it couldn’t be truer of a statement. There are many things that are important to plan for; changes in your life, work, exams – the list goes on. And therefore, here are my top 2 reasons of why planning is so important:
1.
Mind
Even if my planning is minimal and I have just written a quick list of
what I need to do, it helps my mind feel more organised More times than not, my
lists may turn out to be somewhat useless or lacking in order, but just writing
down things I want to do or ways I feel like I can achieve something makes me feel
like I have some sort of plan together. And so, a key reason why I love
planning is because it makes me feel calmer about whatever it is I have to
tackle.
2.
Action
When I have a plan in place, I can see more clearly what I need to do. It
makes whatever I have to organise less daunting. When I have something written
down rather than going around in my head, I can appreciate what my next step is
and take things one stage at a time – rather than seeing what I need to achieve
at the end and not knowing where to start. Having a step-by-step plan – even if
I change it as I go – is the best way for me to approach something.
Writing
this blog post makes me seem like a super organised ‘Monica Geller’ person. And
whilst Monica is someone I will always strive to be like, I am currently not. I
find it quite hard to plan and so I have different ways of staying organised –
basically so I don’t get bored of it.
·
Phone Calendar
Having everything I am doing written down and accessible in my phone is
so handy and a great way of planning and staying organised. I love having
somewhere to refer back to and seeing what I need to do in the day is a really
helpful way of not getting to stressed about it.
·
Lists, lists and more lists
Whether this be for shopping or life goals, I love writing lists. Again,
it helps to write down what is in my mind and see clearly what I need to do.
Take a shopping list; it makes going into a clothes or a food shop less overwhelming,
because you have a clear idea of what outfit you need to get or what you want
to make for your dinner. Just like making shopping lists, making lists of your
aims in life is super helpful as it narrows down what you want and where you
need to start. A great app for this is ‘Trello’, and having an app is super
handy for on-the-go, however I do find handwritten lists just as good.
·
Colour coding
Even
though colour coding seems like a really simple thing, it can help section
plans into different categories and make you feel more organised. For example,
in my calendar I have different colours for different things I am doing – such
as; time with friends and family, work, birthdays etc. Having all these
different categories is so helpful because not only does it help you keep on
top of things, but it also gives you something to look forward to. I know
organisation is always linked to work events or things you have to productively
achieve – and whilst that is important, staying organised to plan things in
with friends and family is just as important to me!
So, there you go – the importance of planning and staying organised. I’d
love to know the different ways you like to plan? Is organising important to
you?
The main thing for me is just to feel as though I have some order in my
life and in what I am doing. It doesn’t have to be time-consuming or daunting
to plan and it lets you fit in friends, family and work.
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