How to Plan an Organized, Intentional Week

I’ve always loved organization. When I was little, I would admire my dad’s leather bound planner with all of his appointments neatly written and highlighted by category. When things are not organized, I tend to get a bit stressed. I really hate being stressed, so I tend to try to be as organized as possible. Today, I want to look at a list of tasks that help me to have an organized and very intentional week.

Plan it out.

As much as I love technology and using my iPhone calendar for reminders and storing dates/appointments I make right on the spot, I love to visually lay out my week. Every weekend, I examine the appointments I made for the week, the meetings I have scheduled, the grades that are due, and then I see where I can fit in my yoga classes (my goal is to attend 2-3 per week). I also have always put the Steelers schedule in my planner and record the scores, Ws, and although rare, the Ls. My dad always did this too. Like father, like daughter. <3

Seeing my week in front of me helps me to keep on track and accomplish everything that I have planned for the upcoming days. This doesn’t promise there won’t be late nights up checking tests or early mornings where 4 hours of sleep was more than I expected, but it helps me to prioritize and set objectives for the week. I use this planner because I love the layout and the fact that the company actually makes TEACHER planners! But they also design regular “life planners”, student planners, wellness planners, meal planners, address books, you name it. I wrote about it here and provided links! (If you use my link, you get $10 off too!) If you already have a planner or are thinking about getting one, my favorite stickers for meetings, doctor/dentist appointments, Steelers games, Target, Dunkin’, etc. are designed by this guy. Ally got me the Steelers ones for my birthday last year and I’ve loved using them ever since. I also like these ones from Amazon. It will automatically take you to the “basics” pack, but if you use the dropdown menu, there are so many kinds– including teacher, mom, and fitness ones.
Choose Your Outfit the Night Before

TOP: Magnolia Boutique Leopard Asymmetrical Tunic | PANTS: Michael Kors Black Skinny Dress Pants (old) | SHOES: B.P. Lance Block Hill Booties | EARRINGS: BaubleBar Gabriela Tassel Earrings in Ivory

One of the prerequisites for moving into my house was the addition of a walk-in closet. I like to be able to see all of my clothes and I also like them to be organized by type and color. You can see that on the side of my closet shown (blazers, sweaters, tunics, and lightweight sweatshirts). I don’t like to put laundry away until I can do it right. Don’t judge. When I lived at my parent’s house and would be super stressed in the morning finding an outfit at 6:30AM, my mom would constantly remind me, “Ashley, you need to pick your outfit the night before!” Now, I actually listen to her. I try to choose an outfit the night before so that if needs ironed or I run into any unexpected detours in the early morning, I’m not rushing to find an outfit and iron it. Some people plan their outfits for the week. I guess I’m not that ambitious and the weather can be a little finicky sometimes, but if you can get your outfits planned for the week, rock on. I also recently discovered a new boutique online, called Magnolia Boutique. They always have really great deals going on every few days. In fact, today they’re having a flash sale with many items $20 or less! I linked the pieces of my work outfit from this past week in the caption above (when you plan your outfit the night before, you may even have time to take a photo for the blog.. see?) 😉
Set Daily Goals

From the moment I arrive at work, I am bombarded with a million things to do: take homeroom attendance, collect excuses, students at my desk for help with the homework assignment, attend a math department meeting, get progress reports out of your mailbox, return calls from parents, grade work that was submitted for online Algebra. EVERYONE, JUST HOLD ON A SECOND. My lifeline: Post-its. Seriously. Or any old notepad would do. I just need to be able to grab a Post-It and write things down as I remember them. What do I need to do when I finally get a second to breathe? Then, I work to cross off all of the items on my list as I progress throughout the day– in between ya know, teaching my classes. No matter what your job is, it’s hard to keep up with all of the daily tasks you face. I recommend a Post-it pop-up dispenser and the Post-it “pop-ups” that go with it (regular Post-its won’t work). I get this box right here and it lasts me all year plus some. I’m on my second box ever. I have this dispenser, but if you’re not a teacher this one is really cute. Most importantly though, work on crossing off those items every day. It feels great when the list is accomplished and helps the rest of your week go a little bit smoother. Any other Post-it list makers out there? I get you, my friend. If you are one of my teacher readers, here is a blog post I wrote a while ago about how I stay organized in my classroom.