Plan in color to increase your focus & productivity
Do you plan in color? Color coding your plans is more than making your calendar look organized and pretty. Used effectively, it can be one of your best strategies when it comes to executing those colorful plans!
And yes, a plan is different than a strategy. While I could give you a whole lesson on the difference, just know that a plan has to do with what you need in order to make progress, and a strategy is where & when you’ll execute the plan.
Plan = what you need in order to make progress toward what you want
Strategy = where & when you’ll execute that plan and how
Knowing this difference alone will have you making progress toward your goals much faster and with less frustration. Yes, please! 🙋♀️
Now’s the time to take the knowledge of plans & strategies and apply them with some color to your agenda.
Whether you use an awesome planner like this one I’m using in the picture and I built for the most distracted goal getters out there!
Maybe you’re more of an online/digital user and like things like Trello, Asana, or Slack,. Then there are those who are about the dry-erase or a paper calendar. I don’t even care if you prefer little note cards (Actually, I’ll let you in on a cool trick for those in a bit)
The point is, whatever you choose, using this plan in color system can help stop overwhelm and prevent, overscheduling your days, weeks, and even your BIG projects!
Planning in color will help you keep organized, and focused.
Deana Farrell – the focus lady 🎯
And dare I say, it’s FUN!
In the simplest terms, each color represents an area of focus, then that focus is assigned a particular time & place. You can use colored pens, highlighters, and note cards (told ya, these would come back) You can even use a google spreadsheet! (if you understand those things 😝)
One last note about this color-coding system I want to give you before we dive into the details and it’s this – know which Frustrating F each plan, goal, & color belongs to.
What am I talking about?
Now that we’ve got that covered, please know if you need more help with any of this, be sure to schedule a FREE call with me!
Let’s get to color coding! While you can assign your own colors to your areas of focus, below are examples of how I color code mine to help you understand this method a bit better
💗PINK = The color of your HEART
Think pink! As in what’s in your heart and why it’s so important to you. When scheduling things that are “close to your heart” you’ll remember to think pink.
Start by making a list of things when it comes to why “this” goal is needed to be put on your agenda right now.
If you’re a Valued, Amazing Lady in business, maybe it’s being more intentional about sharing your mission, and entrusted message with those you’ve been assigned to share it.
What does that look like for you? How will this get on your calendar in an actionable way? Sometimes a brain dump is an excellent way to sort out your heart.
⚠YELLOW= Yield to what distracts
When you think yellow, imagine the voice in your head saying “HELLO!” and a hand 🖐waving in your face. In other words, PAY ATTENTION! 👏👏
Yellow is the color to call your attention to remember to be cautious of what steals you away from what you should be doing.
I recommend listing your top distractions that steal your focus and on that same list – put the remedy right next to it!
Notification alerts on your phone could be a distraction. A simple remedy would be turn off notifications, or at least silence your phone for the period of time you’re doing focused work.
I only get phone calls & text notifications, everything else I check manually WHEN I have the time and attention span to respond.
When you begin thinking of your PINK & YELLOW colors as the FIRE 🔥behind what keeps you focused, you’ll be surprised how much more you’ll achieve!
prioritizedfocus.com
💼BLUE = the color to prove you mean Business
Take care of business and your actual business. These are the “investments” that will pay off long-term. These investments can be financial as well as relational.
I like to say there are three things every good business needs – People, Partners & Paydays!
Seriously, if you don’t have a community of people that support you in what you do, and who you are for, and haven’t taken the time to solidify those relationships, what kind of paydays do you think you can expect? (both monetarily and relationally)
Do you mean business when it comes to these things? Then it should have a place on your calendar. Speaking of things needed in order to take the next steps. . .
🎯GREEN = GOals begin with GO!
Goals are action-oriented tasks moving you closer to the milestones that measure your ultimate success.
That’s right, you get to determine what success looks like for you and the mile markers you pace yourself against.
Yep, you get to set the pace too. Want to hit a milestone faster? Get specific help from someone who has achieved what you want. And be prepared to work hard.
Goals may begin with GO, but intentional ones end with NEXT.
🙏PURPLE = Prayer is the color behind any project and plan.
Purposed project would be how I would sum this color up. Before the success of any project, I believe that it should first start with prayer. While we are capable of many things, doing anything outside of God’s guidance and will is probably the single most reason behind frustration and overwhelm.
You can also think of this as where you “park your projects” and maybe even your personal hopes for later.
It could be those BIG ideas, but you haven’t really been able to run them through the good of PINK, the cautions of YELLOW. This means they’re definitely not ready for the business of BLUE, or go get ‘em GREEN yet.
Purple is for your wait-and-see, but willing and ready. Ready to hear what God has to say about it and listen for the color it really represents right now, and where it will go next.
Get out there and put some color behind those dreams of yours!
over here cheering for ya,
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