Plan your work, work your plan with a simple framework

If you want to bring more structure, purpose and ease into your work and personal life, you’re in the right spot right now.

Maybe you’re here because you’re interested in planning.

Perhaps you’re already a planner but wondering why your plan isn’t working.

No matter what brings you here, I’m sure you’ll walk away with something to help you create your desired results.

You can stop chasing deadlines, losing sight of the bigger picture and feeling drained by unproductive days.

You’ll learn how to plan your work and work your plan by turning your work into a daily routine.

I’ll show you a simple planning framework you can apply all year round.

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains affiliate links which means I receive a commission at no additional cost to you if you click through and make a purchase using those links. See my full Disclaimer here.

Pinterest image with title plan your work work your plan, image of a rose gold laptop on a couch, plant in glass vase, note pad on the side with pencil on top

What is intentional planning?

But first, let’s talk about planning, particularly intentional planning.

Intentional planning means looking ahead, setting goals and figuring out the steps you need to get where you want to be. For a plan to be intentional, it needs to be based on what matters most to you, like your core values and beliefs.

Sure, you can “just plan”, which may work too, but I believe it’s always better to make your plans as intentional as possible.

Having an intentional plan helps you avoid feeling empty after reaching a goal. This happens when you mistakenly believe that achieving a particular goal will make you happy.

I’ve experienced this a few times before, and it only changed when I started being intentional with my plans.

I also found that this is a common tendency in humans.

Have you heard of Arrival Fallacy?

This belief, coined by Harvard-trained psychologist Dr Tal Ben-Shahar, suggests that true happiness will come from achieving the next big goal. However, once that goal is finally reached, the anticipated joy often feels fleeting or may not appear at all.

The power of planning your work

Featured Image of a bLog post with a title Intentional Planning

Intentional planning starts with your core values and beliefs as a foundation.

This foundation becomes the base of your meaningful goals.

It’s best to start planning your work by creating intentional plans, as this is where the power of planning comes from.

Intentional plans help you become an effective planner because they encourage you to be deliberate and thoughtful with each element of your plans, such as the goals, strategies and resources you’ll need to achieve your objectives. Because it is based on your “why”, instead of setting random goals or rushing through steps in your plan, you’re not only thoughtful about the process but also reflective.

By doing this, you benefit from the learnings and breakthroughs along the way.

You won’t get hung up on the outcomes only; instead, you get to experience the process at its fullest—the highs, the lows and everything in between.

At the end of a journey, you’ll have that feeling of fulfilment and success when you achieve your goals. If you don’t, you’ll still come out feeling like a winner because you know you did your best.

You just have to try again.

Try again until you get it.

If you’re new to planning, I highly encourage you to set your intentions first.

What Does it Mean to Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan?

Image of a weekly goal planner with text above it that says 12-week year planning guide to achieve your goals faster.

This is a reminder to stay focused and disciplined.

When you “plan your work”, you create a path forward where you map your steps and decide what strategies to implement.

“Working your plan” means committing to action and following through on those steps.

Sometimes we get too focused on planning and forget to actually execute what we’ve planned. Well, not really forget, but something happens in the midst of execution and we fall off the path.

I am guilty of this too.

Planning is exciting, and doing can be hard and challenging sometimes—so there’s that.

But this isn’t a hopeless case.

As long as you keep taking consistent forward actions, (small actions are counted), the plan will work.

Difference Between a Plan and a Work Plan

A “plan” is a general outline of what you want to achieve, like setting personal or professional goals. A “work plan,” however, is more specific. It’s a detailed strategy with steps, deadlines and resources you’ll need to get the work done. While a plan focuses on what you hope to achieve, a work plan focuses on how you’re going to achieve it. It helps you take that dream or goal and turn it into actionable steps.

A work plan provides structure and focus.

With a clear work plan, you know exactly what needs to be done, and you’ll feel in control. A well-thought-out work plan also makes it easier to track progress, adjust goals as needed, and celebrate achievements along the way.

Plan your work, work your plan: the framework

So here’s how to plan your work and work your plan.

Create an intentional plan
Execute with intention

Sounds simple, right? But I’ve got to be honest with you, it sounds simple and maybe looks easy, but it isn’t.

It’s doable and possible though.

And this is where the intentional planning framework comes in.

This is my personal take on being strategic with plans and execution.

Before I give you the guide, let’s set some principles first.

Focus on what matters and prioritise impact over busyness
Progress over perfection
Reflect, realign and try again

The intentional planning framework is not new and is definitely not a secret.

And here’s how I do it.

1. Set Intentions and Goals

Set your intentions and goals. Before setting goals, set your intention first. Your intention is the mindset and attitude you want to embrace while you’re planning and doing. Setting intention first helps you create more meaningful goals as it forces you to evaluate what matters to you.

Here is the 9-Step Goal Setting Guide for all areas of life

2. Write your 3-month or 90-day plan

Make a plan in three-month or 90-day chunks. This is also known as Quarterly Planning. Quarter 1 is from January to March, Quarter 2 is from April to June, Quarter 3 is from July to September, and Quarter 4 is from October to December. Please don’t feel pressured to plan from the beginning. Plan any time you’re ready and inspired. And you don’t have to plan all four quarters in one go. Start where you are, which means planning either the current quarter or the next quarter. Your Quarterly Plan may include: your broken down goals, strategies you want to apply, and the habits you want to build or eliminate. Your goals don’t have to be specific. They can just be an idea of what you want to achieve by the end of the quarter.

Image of a pen on top of a pad that says Top 3 priorities with a box of post it notes above the pad

Read about the Quarterly Planning Process in 7 Easy Steps

3. Plan each month

Think of monthly plans as smaller versions of your quarterly plans, but more specific. Your monthly plans include the current projects you’re working on. These projects relate to your long-term and short-term goals and act as milestones connecting your starting point and endpoint. You can also include weekly plans or weekly focuses in your monthly plans. The focus and objectives of your weekly plans are the tasks you need to complete to finish a project.

Here’s how to set monthly goals, with 33 monthly goals examples

4. Set a weekly plan

When planning your week, this is when you get more specific. This is when you schedule the tasks of your current projects. Make sure you schedule weekly planning and reflection. You can’t just plan and not review. You need to monitor progress so you know if your plan is working or not.

Image of a pink planner with text that says Goals, with highlighter and post it notes on top of the planner

7 Steps Weekly Planning Process to a Productive Week

5.Execute daily.

This is where you practise intentional execution and where the magic happens. From setting intention to your weekly plan, the actions you take are considered planning. But the moment you get to daily planning is when you actually execute what you planned. This is pure action, with a little reflection during the day to ensure that what you’re doing aligns with what you’re trying to achieve.