Tired of your calendar looking like a Jackson Pollock painting—chaotic, colorful, and confusing? If you’re nodding along, then you’re ready to jump on the bandwagon of the Proactive Planners League!

Don’t let yourself get scared off; we’re not talking about the intimidating kind of planning that makes you feel like you bit off more than you can chew. What we’re talking about is the kind of planning that is easy to digest and makes you feel like a rockstar!

Let’s dive into the top reasons why you should start planning for 2024…today! Remember, there’s no moment quite like now!

OOO Oasis

Picture yourself gracefully stepping away from work, your mind as calm and composed as a peaceful garden, not aflutter with endless to-dos. Planning your year ahead is like hanging a “Relaxation in Progress” sign over your life. Imagine having the time and the mental space to curl up with a book on a cozy weekend, or taking off early on Fridays to enjoy some self-care time as you step into the weekend.  Planning ahead allows you to be OOO – out of office- both physically and mentally so you can recharge for what’s ahead. 

Plan the Work, Then Work the Plan

Crafting your grand plan post-New Year’s champagne buzz is like grocery shopping after a juice cleanse—everything looks like a good idea, and you’ll end up with a cart/calendar full of intentions that might spoil before February. Instead, stock your strategy pantry when you’re full of foresight, not desperation. Planning for the New Year before it gets underway will allow for strategic decision making rather than last minute decision making.

Masterpiece Mindset

When you’re not in the midst of playing whack-a-mole with your daily tasks, you can more strategically step back and see the canvas of the coming year. Sketch out your Sistine Chapel ceiling of business strategies, letting your mind dance between constellations of big-picture ideas, rather than getting lost in the administrative asteroid belt. Proactive planning enables you to take a look at the big picture with a bird’s eye view before you hit the ground running. 

Wisdom of the Crowd

Rushing through your plan is like hosting a potluck and forgetting to invite the guests until the day of—you’ll end up with seven bags of chips and no guac. Involve your stakeholders early, and you’ll have a feast of insights to garnish your plan to perfection before the calendar flips to January 1st. If you want insightful and constructive feedback, you need to give your team, your coaches, &/or your board of advisors the time they need to carefully analyze your plan. 

Quarterbacking Your Quarters

Huddle up your yearly goals, break ’em down into quarters, and you’re suddenly the MVP quarterback of your own game. With the plays drawn out, you’ll throw touchdown after touchdown because you’re not just winging it—you’re executing a playbook designed for champions. By having a full 12 month plan from the start you can set your quarterly objectives more accurately and you’re more likely to succeed.

Stay Ready So You Don’t Have to Get Ready

Ready for a productivity transformation? Enroll now in the Full Focus Workshop Series with Peak Productivity. It’s time to turn your overwhelming to-do list into a ‘Ta-Da!’ list, to swap frantic firefighting for calm command, and to replace ‘busy’ with ‘brilliantly productive.’

Let’s make ‘overwhelmed’ an outdated term and ‘on top of it’ your new catchphrase. No more meetings with Procrastinators Anonymous.  Remember, the early planner catches the success, so let’s get the worm—2024 is waiting!