Q4....but back up 2 steps!
It’s here!
Not the crisp fall mornings...no no…(at least not today in MO)
The push for Q4.
It's inevitable and you've probably already noticed the posts about it. While I get it...I want to pause on all of that and back up 2 steps.
1. The goals that you set beforehand. Maybe in January, February, or maybe even in June. Are they still relevant? Do you remember them? No wrong answer, but definitely something we need to look into because well, we need to know what we're working towards.
2. My personal favorite...does your schedule allow for the completion? Technically there are 3 months, but for some, there are some big holidays in there and also days kids will be out of school.
Do you realistically have the time? We all know shit can get done, but let's just pause.
Is it actually sustainable? Is it the schedule you want to continue with?
Something that I come alongside clients with is pausing the go-go-go and actually looking at their schedule.
Literally opening up a Google doc, letting them word vomit all of their commitments, all their tasks, and all their projects We then open up a Google sheet that has the outline of a schedule and we start filling it in.
- When do you want to start your day?
- When do you want to end your day?
- Do you have any recurring meetings and/or events?
- When do you do admin work?
- When do you do staff meetings?
- When do you prepare for the staff meetings?
- When do you not want to be working?
It can feel overwhelming to think of all of this. It can also feel like a waste of time to do it - but if you can trust me in saying....it's so freaking beneficial.
Why?
When finished, each client feels differently. Some feel a sense of overwhelm. Some feel a sense of desperation. Some feel a sense of relief. Some see they have more time than they thought.
And with each of these, it tends to point us to certain things. It points us to other areas to start tackling. And not just any area, typically it's the root of the problem. Self-confidence. Guilt. Boundaries. Automation. Organization.
So, yes with 4th quarter comes "finishing strong". But if you're blindly finishing strong - what good is it going to do if it's not where you actually want to go? Or if it's not going to benefit you next year? And yes, sometimes you just have to simply finish to then do what you want to do...but you can use this to start looking at that.
If you're feeling like, woof I need to do this. Don't overcomplicate it.
Just start listing out your tasks and then apply them to a calendar. There are many free calendar templates on Google and in Canva to use...BUT...
Please remember this isn't going to be permanent because inevitably shit will hit the fan and a day won't go like you thought it would. But, you'll have a guide to come back to and adjust.
I have 3 free templates here pending how you could use them:
- monthly + weekly canva template ( I print this out and fill it out when my schedule feels like a lot)
- quarterly canva template (just used this because I didn't want to answer "How long until we go to Colorado? When is so and so's party?" and I squished it down to fit on an 8.5x11 piece of paper)
- weekly Google sheet (this is my typical go to with clients)
Pause. Brain Dump. Put it back together.
Hope this helps and if ya need help let me know as it’s pretty powerful!