Janette Byrne is a facilitator, speaker, and accountability expert known for her make-no-excuses, take-no-prisoners mentality. She combines her business and personal experiences to connect, inspire, and motivate others to get out of their own way, overcome challenges, and become the CEO of their lives.
As families across South Vegas nestle back into their school routines, taking the time to pause and think about how you want the next year to look for your family is critical. Your kiddos aren’t getting any younger, and you will not regret taking the time to plan your year so you can maximize fond memories and minimize regrets.
You use strategic planning in your professional life, and now is your chance to use it in your personal life to benefit your family! So, get to work implementing these tips to ensure you create a strategic plan for your family that is a thoughtfully curated balance of work, school, and play.
10 Strategic Family Planning Tips for Busy Parents:
1. Reflect on how the last school year went in terms of what worked well, what failed miserably, and everything in between. Sweep your mind and take notes so you can create a schedule that feels even better this year.
2. Add federal and state holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and other important occasions such as weddings and planned vacations to your calendar so you can plan accordingly.
3. School calendar in hand — add all the professional development days, teacher conferences, holiday concerts, sports, breaks, etc., to your calendar.
4. Add your work schedule to your calendar. If you’re able to make your own hours, determine what you want your ideal week to look like this year considering your kids’ ages, stages, and your own desires. Create a work schedule that fits your goals, finances, and lifestyle, and stick to it!
5. Talk with your kids about what activities they want to participate in. Help them prioritize their interests and register for the chosen activities that fit snugly within your family calendar.
6. Get clarity on what projects you want to tackle in your business(if you own one) and your personal life. Now that you no longer need to drive little Jimmy to his summer music class two mornings a week, it might be the perfect time to tackle that bathroom renovation project you’ve been dreaming up. Add it to your calendar.
7. Consider what you want your schedule to look and feel like. Morning walks, bi-weekly yoga, Friday date nights, and a monthly massage could be nice. Add your self-care and relationship time blocks to your calendar as well. YOU matter, too!
8. Throughout your strategic family planning sessions, keep your family’s resources in mind. Consider your family members’ time, energy, mental bandwidth, physical health, finances, pre-existing commitments, and outside support. Doing so will force you to prioritize based on your available resources and give you the clarity to move through decision-making and calendar planning more quickly.
9. Use a digital calendar that updates instantly and that your family members can access. It keeps everyone on the same page and can conveniently be edited on-the-go. No need to take (and lose) notes that must be transferred to a large calendar in your mudroom later when plans change.
10. Keep flexibility in mind. Even the best planners are thrown curve balls that make pivoting necessary (hello COVID!). Be willing to adjust your carefully scheduled plans as necessary and get back on track as soon as possible.