1 00:00:05,480 --> 00:00:09,840 Speaker 1: Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the New Corner Office, 2 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:13,160 Speaker 1: the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the 3 00:00:13,200 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 1: new world of work, where location and hours are more 4 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: flexible than in the past. Today's tip is to find 5 00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:23,239 Speaker 1: a planning system that makes sense for you in your 6 00:00:23,239 --> 00:00:27,040 Speaker 1: new corner office. New times sometimes call for new methods. 7 00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:30,800 Speaker 1: In any case, planning is so important to productivity and 8 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:33,440 Speaker 1: success that you want to make sure that how you 9 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:37,400 Speaker 1: plan supports your life rather than making you feel confused 10 00:00:38,080 --> 00:00:43,040 Speaker 1: or sad. Many people's lifestyles and routines have changed dramatically 11 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:46,240 Speaker 1: in recent months. Perhaps you're working from home more often 12 00:00:46,360 --> 00:00:48,960 Speaker 1: or for the first time. Your work hours may have 13 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:51,920 Speaker 1: shifted earlier or later so that you can balance childcare 14 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 1: and homeschooling. The number of meetings you're required to attend 15 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:57,800 Speaker 1: in a week may have increased or decreased, or maybe 16 00:00:57,800 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 1: you're finding that you have fewer work tasks to attend to. 17 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:04,920 Speaker 1: Whether you're a Google calendar devotee, a paper planner, planner, 18 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:09,040 Speaker 1: or somewhere in between, people generally choose their particular planning 19 00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:13,480 Speaker 1: methods because they align with their lifestyles and preferences. Digital 20 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:15,319 Speaker 1: methods can be ideal if you want to share a 21 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:18,119 Speaker 1: calendar with your spouse or colleagues, and they're also great 22 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:22,120 Speaker 1: for people who frequently have meetings rescheduled. Paper methods, on 23 00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:24,959 Speaker 1: the other hand, appeal to many who enjoy to do 24 00:01:25,080 --> 00:01:28,040 Speaker 1: list making and the pleasure of putting pen to paper 25 00:01:28,360 --> 00:01:31,840 Speaker 1: or decorating paper. Planners have the upside of letting us 26 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,600 Speaker 1: see future events physically, often in a more intuitive way 27 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:39,720 Speaker 1: than day to day electronic calendars. But when life changes 28 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:43,600 Speaker 1: may be a previous preference doesn't make sense. A friend 29 00:01:43,640 --> 00:01:46,320 Speaker 1: of mine decided to buy a new short term planner 30 00:01:46,440 --> 00:01:49,480 Speaker 1: because she felt so sad crossing off future fun events 31 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:52,560 Speaker 1: in her annual one. If you've decided to launch a 32 00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:55,880 Speaker 1: freelance business from home that's based mostly on your individual 33 00:01:55,920 --> 00:01:59,440 Speaker 1: creative talents, the electronic calendar you used for your corporate 34 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:02,000 Speaker 1: life might feel strange. I mean, you don't need to 35 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:05,040 Speaker 1: start sending yourself meeting invitations to block off the morning 36 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:08,200 Speaker 1: for deep work. One upside of change is that it 37 00:02:08,200 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: prompts us to take stock of our current practices and 38 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:15,200 Speaker 1: consider whether they are still benefiting us. So take some 39 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:18,080 Speaker 1: time this week to ask if your planning system is 40 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:21,320 Speaker 1: still working for you. Are you finding yourself frustrated when 41 00:02:21,320 --> 00:02:25,240 Speaker 1: scribbling out canceled events? Are you having trouble coordinating schedules 42 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:27,880 Speaker 1: with your partner or keeping track of your kids online 43 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:31,560 Speaker 1: school meetings. The switch doesn't have to be permanent. My 44 00:02:31,680 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 1: friend wound up missing her old annual planner, so she 45 00:02:34,840 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 1: eventually bought a new one and put things that might 46 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:41,000 Speaker 1: be canceled on sticky notes, And you can always switch 47 00:02:41,080 --> 00:02:44,320 Speaker 1: back even if you don't have any interest in modifying 48 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:48,239 Speaker 1: your planner or calendar. You might consider if you're planning habits, 49 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 1: such as when you plan need a refresh. Maybe your 50 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: former supervisor sent you guidelines for the week on Sunday night, 51 00:02:55,880 --> 00:02:58,440 Speaker 1: and so you always planned everything out on Monday morning, 52 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:02,519 Speaker 1: But after some restructuring, you're reporting to someone who tends 53 00:03:02,600 --> 00:03:05,799 Speaker 1: to send assignments day by day, so you might set 54 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: a designated weekly planning time like Friday afternoons, supplemented by 55 00:03:10,720 --> 00:03:15,320 Speaker 1: many planning sessions each morning. Or maybe you're coordinating childcare 56 00:03:15,320 --> 00:03:18,040 Speaker 1: with your spouse and you get your schedules at different times, 57 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 1: figure out when you can chat to make sure you 58 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:24,280 Speaker 1: can cover for each other a reasonable proportion of times. 59 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:29,560 Speaker 1: Planning ahead doesn't prevent all unforeseen circumstances from arising. But 60 00:03:29,639 --> 00:03:32,560 Speaker 1: in a world that often feels uncertain, it can certainly 61 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:36,320 Speaker 1: help us to be happier and more prepared. So today 62 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:40,560 Speaker 1: ask if your planning methods need an update. There's no 63 00:03:40,640 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: point sticking with something that isn't working, and there's a 64 00:03:43,440 --> 00:03:46,600 Speaker 1: lot to be gained by finding a new approach that does. 65 00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:51,600 Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura, Thanks for listening, and 66 00:03:51,640 --> 00:03:58,119 Speaker 1: here's to succeeding in the New Corner Office. The New 67 00:03:58,160 --> 00:04:02,279 Speaker 1: Corner Office is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts, 68 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get 69 00:04:06,160 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.