formspring.me

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/wendyrobinson

Organizing Your To Do List

Many times, when we sit down at our desks to begin the process of organizing our day and write out our "to do" lists, and we think about all the tasks we want to get done over and above our normal workflow, overwhelm sets in. Happens to me all the time. You too, huh?

The solution is very simple...break things down based on priority and the time it takes to do them. Tackling the most urgent, least time consuming tasks first will clear your mind and free you up to tackle those more pressing tasks.

Sounds easy, right?

Let me show you...

Here is a list of things I'd like to get done next week:
1. Create subject outline for newsletter and blog posts for March
2. Send welcome packets via email to potential clients
3. Finish writing chapter 5 of book (shhhh...Yes, I'm writing a book!)
4. Purge office of 2009 magazines, articles and other non-essential paper
5. Prepare for client coaching calls
6. Review/revise notes for Feb. 22nd speaking engagement
7. Book hotel and car for Vegas and Atlanta
8. Build draft of new ATP website
9. Finish services, FAQ and contact pages for SMW website
10. Finish interview questions for featured February and March featured teleclass guests

I use an Excel worksheet to do this (because I just LOVE Excel!) and I can sort my tasks when I'm done based on how I label them in the spreadsheet. I try to limit myself to no more than 10 tasks a week. Any more than that will interfere with my regularly scheduled work like client coaching, email, marketing, etc.

First I label each one with an A = Must be done this week; or B = Should be done this week but can be moved to an A next week.
I've designated 6 items above as A's; #2, #3, #4, #5, #7, #10; and the rest are B's. Next I enter how long each task should take in minutes.

This is an estimate and is often something I don't spend a lot of time on. Just throw a time length on it and move on.

Next, I sort the list by priority and time and voila! (I built in a cool macro to do this.) Now I have a nicely sorted list of tasks and a roadmap to get it done. I usually print this on Sunday night and write in my notes for the resources/people/tools I'll need to finish the task.



After that, its easy. Just do all of the A's with the shortest task time first, and so on.

What tools do you use to organize your daily or weekly tasks? If you'd like a blank copy of my worksheet, email me and I'll send it to you!

Until next time...

I Need Your Input

I've been working on some new products and services for my coaching clients and the process has taken on a mind of its own! I decided to create a survey to get some feedback from you...one of my most trusted friends and colleagues.

Would you take a brief survey for me and give me some much needed feedback? I REALLY appreciate it. Here's the link:

Wedding Planner Document Pack Survey

Once you've completed the survey there's a little something for you on the subsequent page :)

Until next time...

Aspire to Plan!

Planning One Day At a Time

Make a date with yourself today to sit down and create a schedule for the next week. I dare you! Set aside some time to sit down and "schedule" what you are going to do for the next 7 days. No, really...I mean it. Here's why...

We sometimes wake up each day and take the day as it comes. When this happens and we don't plan how our day is going to play out; whatever happens from one minute to the next is really related to someone else's agenda, right? Why not take control of your day and carve out time to do those things that YOU want to get done? This way you aren't bound by each issue that comes your way.

Now don't get me wrong...there will certainly be instances where you will need to take a break from your agenda and attend to something or someone outside of your planned task...I get that. If you are a stay at home parent, your 3 year old that wants a bandaid for his "ow-wee" isn't going to understand that you have to finish writing a blog post by 2pm...NOT gonna happen! But wouldn't you feel more comfortable knowing that you have a plan to stay on track even with these kinds of necessary interruptions? You'll know exactly where to begin again because you'll have a schedule!

I use a set schedule each day to work on my business. Mondays are business development days. I only work on those things that build or enhance my business. Things like writing articles and blog posts, finding and researching speaking engagements, setting up conference calls, etc.

Tuesday's and Thursday's are usually marketing and networking days. Wednesday', Friday's and Saturday's are for client and vendor meetings. Now of course, this schedule is flexible when it needs to be but I've setup boundaries that I really try to stick to. It helps to keep me on track and helps to educate others on how I operate my business.

Now on each of those days, I always work in some social media time. Can't go a day without touching base with my virtual friends! But I'm very careful because 30 minutes can turn into 3 hours very easily.

Now go do it! Spend the next 30 minutes or so writing down everything you want to get accomplished today and tomorrow. Oh what the hey...Go ahead and map out your whole week!

I DOUBLE dare ya!

Until next time...

Aspire to Plan!

Aspire to Plan Update - First Quarter 2010

Happy New Year, Aspiring Planners!

Are you ready to get this year started right? I'm so thrilled that 2009 is a memory and that we have so much to look forward to in 2010!

If you are new here, welcome! Be sure to sign up for our newsletter in the box in the right hand column of this page. It is published twice per month and has lots of great business building advice to help you as you grow your business.

If you've been here before, welcome back. I've missed you!

I've been working hard to plan lots of ways to bring you great content and fabulous resources for building your wedding planning business. I've lined up some great conference calls, blog posts and newsletter articles...I can't wait to share it all with you.

Here's the subject line up for the first quarter of 2010:

January 2010
It's Time to Get Organized!

February 2010
How to Promote Your Business When Just Starting Out

March 2010
Wedding Planning vs Corporate Event Planning...What are the Pros and Cons?

Many of you have told me that the Q&A portion of the conference calls have been very helpful. I'm so pleased that I'm able to help all of you with your business building questions and I want that to continue. I'm thinking about having a seperate call each month, just for questions. It will allow everyone to call in and pick my brain...but it will also help you by listening in on other planners questions. "Coaching by Osmosis", is what I've heard it called. Someone else may ask a question that you didn't think of or will offer a different perspective that you hadn't thought of. Let me know what your thoughts are on this by posting a comment and we'll keep you posted.

Until then...

Aspire to Plan!

First Seven Steps: Counting the Costs!

"What man builds a house without first counting the costs?"

This paraphrased question comes directly from the words of a very wise man. He influences and encourages many...I call him an expert!

These words came to mind just as I was starting to write this post. It makes perfect sense to me...how about you? I mean, how are you going to build anything without first figuring out what it is going to cost you? Especially if you're going to build it to last.

There's no need to start your wedding planning business without a financial plan...a budget. If you don't have one, you will fail. Plain and simple. I can't stress this enough.

Invested properly, the money you've set aside for starting your wedding planning business will serve you well. Mis-managing it or treating your business as a hobby will only frustrate you in the end. I can talk to you about this one fact all day long...been there, done that.

Here are some of the questions to consider when calculating your start up costs:

*Will you build your business on a part time basis or are you going for it full time?
*How will you pay for living expenses if your choice is full time?
*Will you work from a home office or will you rent space?
*How will you market your business?
*Will you hire employees?

The answers to these questions and others will help you to determine what your start up costs will be. Take some time to really think about them and what they may mean to your business.

Next month, I'll examine some of the possible answers to these questions; share some tips and examples on how to determine your start up costs and point you to some other excellent sources I've used over the years to help me in my business.

Until then...

Aspire to Plan!

Around the Web: 5 Trends That Will Shape Small Business in 2010

John Jantsch, founder of Duct Tape Marketing published a very interesting and informative article outlining trends for small business' in 2010. It includes innovative and cutting edge social media technology that you do not want to sleep on.

You can find the article here.

I'm excited!

Aspire to Plan!