This post is an explanation post on how to use peak performer's day planner and become a peak performer every single day. Peak Performer’s Day Planner was created by studying the Rituals/Routines … [Read More...] about Peak Performers Day Planner
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Peak Performers Day Planner
This post is an explanation post on how to use peak performer’s day planner and become a peak performer every single day.
Peak Performer’s Day Planner was created by studying the Rituals/Routines followed by some of the world’s best performers in various fields ranging from Sports to Business, who are highly successful in their respective field.
I created this template for my personal use, and it was a game changer in my life. So here it is for you to help you become a peak performer in your field.
Below is the explanation video on how to use the peak performer’s day planner:
Download Peak Performer’s Day Planner:
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How to use:
- This Planner is in an editable format, so you can use it in digital version instead of printing to use. Just make sure to keep a separate folder on your computer and store your daily planner with a date specific filename.
- You can also take a printout and write your schedules and track your routines. I highly recommend you to maintain a binder to file each day’s planner.
- Finally, “Out of sight is out of mind” So if you are using a digital version, keep the folder on your computer desktop and if you are using print version, carry it along with you all time. Set a specific time to use this day planner both in the morning and evening and create a routine.
Date – Fill in the Date
Big Win – If there is one task that if you complete, will make your day great, then that is your Big Win.
Morning Power Ritual:
Hydrate your Body – Drinking water as a first thing in the morning, hydrates your body and refreshes your mind.
Clear your Mind – 10 Minutes of morning meditation, has shown to improve our ability to focus and reduces stress throughout the day.
Move your Body – 10 Minutes of quick Stretching, Yoga, on the spot running or even wall pushups, proven to increase the blood and oxygen supply to each of our cells and activates our Lymph nodes which are an important part of our immune system.
Review your Schedule – 10 Minutes reviewing your day’s schedule will help you get prepared for the day instead of feeling overwhelmed at work. (Once you reviewed your day’s schedule you must sign the planner at the bottom right corner)
Energize your Body – The first meal of your day can either make you energetic or lethargic based on what you eat. Though Food is very subjective and varies for each individual, it’s better to avoid carbohydrate heavy meal and instead include lean protein, healthy fat (charges your brain) and green veggies.
Schedule and Recharge Ritual:
Plan your day in three Time blocks
- Time Block # 1 – Concentrate
- Time Block # 2 – Connect
- Time Block # 3 – Complete
Time Block # 1 – Concentrate – Tasks that comes under this time block are the Most Valuable Tasks, which means these tasks have the highest lifetime value or the highest priority tasks which are expected out of you (in case you are working for someone). Most often, the most valuable tasks are the ones which require your creative energy and will power. Examples: Writing a book, creating a strategy for your business, training for the marathon, etc., which only you can perform. Ideally, you must allocate 2 to 3 hours a day and not more than three tasks per day.
Time Block # 2 – Connect – Tasks that comes under this time block are the ones which require you to connect with other people, like customer, teammates, etc. Tasks can range from clearing emails, following up on a sales funnel or meeting with your team. It’s all about responding to people, interacting with people and following up with people. Ideally, you must allocate 1 to 3 hours a day and this time block is also highly influenced by the nature of your work (Example: If you are in sales or customer care, this becomes your day).
Time Block # 3 – Complete – Finally, the tasks that come with this time block are the ones which are Urgent, and which need your attention to complete them ASAP. They start from any firefighting task to your usual household chores; everything gets done in this time block. Ideally, you must allocate 2 to 4 hours a day. If you have a to-do list, this is the time to get it done.
Estimated Time/Actual Time: Most often we are poor at estimating time, either we overestimate or underestimate. So it is important to write our time estimate while planning, then track the time while doing and finally write down the actual time taken to compare how accurate we are in our time estimation.
You must start with Time Block # 1, complete the tasks then move on to Time Block # 2 and then to Time Block # 3; There is no exception to this order unless someone is going to pay you a million dollar.
Recharge Ritual:
Hourly Break – Take a quick 5 to 10-minute break every hour while you are working. Take a short walk or stretch to help you renew your energy and focus.
Hourly Hydration – Drink a glass water every hour while working to keep yourself hydrated.
Self Reflection Time – Spend 2 minutes to gently observe how you are feeling and what thoughts are running through your mind. Ideally do this once right before you start working in the morning, once during the middle of the day after lunch and once when you complete the day. If you find yourself stressed continuously, then it is better to make a quick note in your journal.
Meditation and Deep Breathing – After Self-reflection time, take 5 minutes to Meditate while observing your breath and take a deep breath every time you inhale. This will help you refocus and concentrate.
Nightly Ritual:
Nightly Rituals are as important as Morning Power Rituals. Set aside 20 Minutes before you end the day for Nightly Routines.
Review your Day – Go through your Peak Performer’s Day planner and review how many of the planned tasks and routines you have completed. And gently walk through your day mentally from the time you woke up to until this moment you are reviewing. (Give a Rating for your Day)
Journal your insights – After you reviewed your day, capture your thoughts, emotions, insights and learnings from your day in your journal (If you are not writing a Journal, then I highly suggest you to start journaling).
Write your Gratitude – Write down things you are grateful for today. It can be people who helped you, an event that happened or it can be your positive mindset which you carried throughout the day. Anything you feel grateful for, write it down. Write at least five things, because most often we are blinded to the good things happening in our life.
Schedule next Day – Spend this time to review the goals you are working on and schedule your next day, write down the task for each time blocks, from the tasks you will concentrate on, people you will connect with and tasks you will complete.
Visualize next day – As a final step before you end the day, gently visualize your next day, see yourself being happy, vibrant and energetic, see yourself completing the morning routines, completing the scheduled tasks efficiently and ending the day like peak performer. This way you are setting yourself to become a peak performer the next day.
One thing to become super productive
Have you ever wondered what the one thing most productive people on our planet do to become super productive each day is?
Before I dive into the very secret, let’s discuss why we constantly feel unproductive and incomplete. Though we can list hundreds of reason why we are not productive, it all boils down to 2 things:
1. Lack of tracking
2. Lack of completion of important tasks
And the solution is simple. Write down a to-do list each day and do it.
However, the secret lies not in just writing a long to-do list and putting a check mark after completing each task, “Because not all tasks are created equal” even if you complete them.
So the secret to becoming super productive is to know what tasks are most important and complete them before you start working on other tasks.
This concept is widely known as MIT (Most Important Tasks). All you have to do is write down your three Most Important Tasks for each day, either on the night before or first thing in the morning, and then work on those three things until completion before you start working on the other tasks.
I learned this concept from Zen Habits a few years ago, and when I started applying this to my work, it changed how I felt about myself. I went from a master procrastinator to a most productive person.
After practicing this concept for a few years now, I can say that the key to mastering MIT is to know what kinds of tasks qualify as MIT, and how to identify them.
Following are the rules you can apply to Identify your MIT’s each day:
1. MIT must be from your immediate life goals or professional goals and on completion, they move the needle forward.
2. MIT are the tasks which give high returns to your time (Example: – As an author and speaker, the best use of my day comes from writing content which has a lifetime value. So the MIT for me are: creating a module for my courses, writing a chapter of my book, writing a blog post and writing content for my speech).
3. MIT are the tasks which will take you 60 to 90 minutes to complete. (I apply this rule to remove the noise from smaller tasks).
4. MIT are the tasks in which you will produce or create (Example: – If you are an entrepreneur, creating a marketing plan, sales strategies, brainstorming product ideas and building relationships will be your MIT.
5. MIT are the tasks which will give you a sense of completion and fulfillment at the end of the day, even If you have not done anything but MITs.
6. MIT are the tasks which are solely under your control, and you don’t need anybody’s help or assistance to complete them.
I am sure if you follow the above rules to set your MITs, you will get more things done in a day than in a week. And If you want to become a productivity superstar, then you should include the following best practices to make it even more efficient:
Following are some of the best practices to make MITs even more effective:
1. Write down the MIT the night before each day. There is two strong reason to do this: one; you will not be under pressure to pick the urgent tasks over an important task and two, you might be more creative and efficient in completing the task next morning because I already directed your mind to think about the task you want to complete. (If my MIT is to write the next day, then I will even decide the topic to write about, so my mind is engaged and filled with thoughts about the topic and most times, I am more efficient in writing).
2. Keep a Journal for your MIT. Capture how you felt when you performed each task. Did you feel focused, efficient and creative? Was there any challenge you faced? Was there any distraction from people and how was your energy level? If you capture all these details, it will help you to optimize your routine while performing your MIT and make you more efficient.
3. Create the habit of completing your MIT – To form a habit; it must become an unconscious routine. To become a routine, you must create consistency at what time you work each day, the place you work from, and resources you will work with. When you create a habit of completing MIT each day, I can guarantee you that you will become a productivity superstar in no time.
So the next time you beat yourself up saying, “I am a Procrastinator,” “I am lazy” and “I cannot get things done,” you’d better start setting your MIT and complete them before you do anything new. Remember to focus three to four hours a day on finishing your MIT, and this will give you 20 hours of peaceful time which will make you feel super productive.