Recently, we started talking about best practices to manage your week during one of our accountability calls.   

We discussed things like when did you start your day, when did you end your day? Did you work evenings? What about weekends? 

It was a great conversation. The biggest takeaway for everyone was that the best practices were as unique as the members in the room.    

Those who seemed to have a practice that worked best for them appeared to know when and how they worked best. They also seemed to know what their family needs were and tried to accommodate those as well. 

Those who had the awareness then structured their day/week to allow them to work their best. 

They may not have formalized it, but those members had an ideal week in their minds.

When I teach time blocking, I share a practice of creating an ideal week. This concept of an idea week is only introduced in my time blocking workshop, yet the idea of the perfect week guides me every day. 

I adjust/re-plan my ideal week each quarter after doing my quarterly planning. I tweak it so that it fits the goals I set.  

In my ideal week, I know what days I will do client meetings, coffee dates, networking, and the days I book no meetings. I know the time of day I want my morning routine to happen, what time I want to be at my desk and when I will finish for the day. I know when I want to do my creative work and even participate in personal development. I also know when to go to Taekwondo, socialize, play, and spend time with my husband.    

Does my week ever look like my ideal week? Nope, never!

It does how, ever, give me guidance so I can set boundaries around my life. It allows me to prioritize the important things and provides me with the structure to work on items at the best time for me. 

For example, personal development scheduled at the end of the day rarely happens. I just don’t have it in me to do it at the end of the day. However, if I schedule it first thing in the day, it happens.   I also need time to get into flow when creating, so; having a larger block of time for those activities is better than small pieces in between meetings. 

However, admin functions are things I can comfortably due in between other meetings. 

I love the sun and warmth, so ensuring I have more time to enjoy the outdoors in late spring, summer, and early fall is important to me. How I structure my week changes as the seasons change. 

When I do my weekly review, looking at how my week worked for me and how it didn’t are how I have built an ideal week that is unique to me and allows me to live the life I love when I’m not in working hours and also allows me to work my best when I am.  

My husband is energized in the evening. He has no problem heading up to work for a few hours at the end of the day. He likes to get up and go straight to work in the morning. Showering midday. On the other hand, I get up hours before him, do my morning routine (including personal development, meditation, and journaling), and then shower. Once I sit down at my desk, I am ready to stay focused and work. When I sign off at the end of the day, I’m done. 

I spend my evenings reading, playing, watching TV, going to Taekwondo, and socializing. 

What works for me doesn’t work for him. But we have found an ideal week that works for us. 

Do you know what an ideal week looks like for yourself? 

If you don’t, I challenge you to put some thought into it. Write it out. Then try to organize your life accordingly. It will take a few weeks to get everything sorted, but once you do, you will be able to see what works and what doesn’t. What needs to be tweaked, and what should stay. Before you know it, you will know when and how you work best.

Want to know what my ideal week looks like right now? Message me, and I’ll share it with you. 

Every day is different, and some days are better than others, but no matter how challenging the day, I get up and live it.

Muhammad Ali