Mondays can be hard because it’s often started with no thought or planning. I feel more in control if I do some prepping for the week on Sunday.

Prep starts after church when I go through the fridge to check for expired food, make the menu plan and grocery shop. I like to do this Sunday so we have the freshest bread and berries for my husband’s lunches.

While I cook lunch I’ll usually chop extra vegetables or brown some hamburger to make meals easier during the week.

Somewhere between 6pm and 8pm I write up my Weekly Simplicity Tips. I currently have a 7pm client.

Then if we watch some evening Sunday TV I will make sure my email is caught up from the week as we watch. I also clean out my purse and  sort papers from my inbox. I set out clothes and anything I will need for Monday.

Once my husband goes to bed around 9pm I plan my week in the quiet. I check my calendar, see if any to dos need to be moved over to this week and write any next actions down for goals and projects. I also plan my exercise and any fun things I might want to do this week.

I go to bed looking forward to the week ahead. (Usually 🙂

Every Sunday evening I hop on my computer with music going and a drink of water to do my weekly planning.

For me, weekly planning isn’t about planning to get all your to do’s done. Instead weekly planning is to make conscious decisions about your time and life. Rather than just do the to dos that life throws you, you are deciding what is important for you.

I like to get quiet before my weekly planning. I pray, but you can center yourself however you choose. The pausing gets you out of flight or fight mode where many live most of the time.

Once I am calm,  I think of my top 3 things that are most important to do or think about this week – usually gleaned from monthly planning and what my accountability partner Marcia and I talked about at our Thursday Skype chat. These I schedule into my Google calendar so I make time for them.

While I am in the calendar I look over the week to see if there is anything I need to prepare. Then I peek at the next few weeks as well.

Health is important to me so I write out my exercise schedule. Last week it was:

Sunday – swim at the beach
Monday – weights and yoga
Tuesday – walk with a friend
Wednesday – Zumba DVD
Thursday – off
Friday – weights and yoga
Saturday – Groove dance class

Then I plan my menu if I didn’t do a monthly plan. I include snacks which tends to be my downfall in healthy eating.

People are important to me as well so I plan time with my family and a friend or two. (An extrovert might need more social time.) Or I plan if I am invited to an event. Do I need a present? What will I wear? How do I get there?

And finally to keep myself wanting to get out of bed in the morning I make sure I have at least one thing to look forward to every day (some are from earlier planning).

Sunday – church, take pictures of the sunset at the beach
Monday – out to eat with my husband
Tuesday – morning walk with a friend, evening reading time
Wednesday – play the piano
Thursday – see the Street Performers or concert in the park with a friend
Friday – play with my visual journal
Saturday – farmer’s market with my daughter

If I am not having any fun or not taking care of myself or neglecting my relationships, it’s because I am not planning. What will your week be like?