The "man on top of the mountain" didn't just fall there, they had a vision, breaking it down into a plan, with steps to take each day, and then they took one step after the other till one day, there were no more steps to take... they had "arrived." Success very rarely happens overnight, so fall in love with the journey, knowing that each action taken is one closer to what you have envisioned.

Work your way through the next set of lectures and take notes along the way; also, download the supporting documents for future use.

THIS MODULE BREAKS DOWN HOW TO PLAN A SUCCESSFUL DAY

1. BOOKEND YOUR DAY:

Plan out a routine to begin and end every day, then put it in your daily schedule. As the saying goes, “what gets scheduled, gets done”

MORNING ROUTINE: This will help start your day off positively and set you up for success for the rest of the day. A plan also relieves you of the torment of choosing what to do next. It also keeps you from becoming distracted by a more exciting option. If you put precisely what you should be doing in your schedule at that time, the decision has been made for you.

I.E., Morning routine: Get up at 6 am, have a cup of coffee-meditate for ten minutes- work out for 30 minutes, shower/dress at my desk by 7:30 am. From 7:30 am -8:30 am on my (insert most important task)

2. STEP 2: EACH DAY, SET 1-3 GOALS TO ACHIEVE THAT DAY

1. At least one of these goals should be about making progress on your most important goal. It does not have to be big, just a step.
2. Set these goals the night before, or make it part of your morning routine. The most important thing is to write them down and commit them.
3. Make sure it is not generic, Be specific about what task within your #1 Goal you will be accomplishing. i.e., I will identify 15 off-premise accounts to target and look up their address and phone #.
4. Be realistic about what can be accomplished during that time; you may need to break a task into even smaller chunks) Once you achieve that task, then attack the day.

3. END-OF-DAY ROUTINE

Create a routine to finish out your day and power down. Some suggestions are:

1. Set Office hours
2. Commit to time to go home 
3. Commit to time to stop working, relax and enjoy your evening.
4. Create a ritual as to how it will end, i.e., Each day at 6 pm, I will close my computer and go for a run.

* side note never plan your most essential work for the end of the day. Unless you are a true night owl, and this is when you are the most creative or when your brain comes to life, for most people, they are their best in the morning and before lunch. 

PRODUCTIVITY HACK

• Most people are at their highest productive selves in the morning- use this clarity to do your best thinking and achieve your most important goals. For others, it may be the evening.
• Don’t waste this time on the quick and easy task. Take care of what requires the most willpower.

KEEP YOURSELF ON TRACK

•  Figure out your #1 distraction and make a rule about it. For many of us, this is email or social media.
•  Block out specific times to work on your most important work. A great way to do this is to make rules for yourself that will provide you with uninterrupted time to finish your most important task.  
• i.e., “ Don’t read or answer emails from 8 am -10 am while I am working on my most important task. *insider secret when you answer your email, you are helping others achieve their goals while you are distracted from your own.

IN THIS MODULE, WE ARE GOING TO DETAIL SOME BEST PRACTICES ON HOW TO PLAN A SUCCESSFUL WEEK.

Step One: Block out chunks of time on your calendar to take steps to achieve your top 3 goals for the year/quarter

Step two:  Chunk big goals into smaller tasks. A way to manage them is to chunk the big Goal into smaller tasks, then break those chunks into smaller pieces. 

i.e., Goal to achieve 25 new placements in the next three months

• Write a target account list
• Visit five accounts each week to conduct research & gather contacts
• Make 3-5 appointments each week
• etc

-Decide which tasks are the priority for that week

-Decide how much time on each day you have to achieve that next step.

-Then, put that into your schedule across the week at specific times. Protect these times like sacred appointments.

-Once you know what your pieces are, you can put them into a timeline on how and when you will achieve them... this is where Sunday planning comes in. 

Step Three: Remember the 80/20 Rule to help narrow your to do's.

"The Pareto Principle of the 80/20 rule", 80 percent of your results come from only 20% of your efforts. If you closely look at the items on your To-Do list, you'll find that only a few more essential things will generate the most significant results.

i.e., Make five buyer appointments vs. posting on social media

Identify that essential 20 % that will generate maximum returns.

Within your account universe, you will have accounts that like your brand and those that love your brand. For example, your friend might have taken in a few bottles, but they do not give you the impression that they will ever use it in a cocktail VS the account who loves your brand, puts it into a cocktail, and allows you to train their staff. 

If we follow the 80/20 principle, you should spend 20% of your time and money in your friend's bar and 80% of your time and effort in account # two. In account #two, you should build and support programs that drive volume. At bar #1, you pop in once a month and buy a few drinks. 

REWARD YOURSELF

Decide how you will track and evaluate what you have achieved at the end of each week and give yourself a high five.

Most of us achieve many things that we practically take ourselves for granted throughout the day or week. Take time to observe everything you checked off and marvel at yourself that you deserve it. 

*INDUSTRY TIP*

Todoist is an excellent app for tracking and scheduling what you need to do each day. It also keeps track of everything you have accomplished to remind yourself that you are fantastic!

RESOURCES:

• You can also use programs like Trello to help plan https://trello.com
• ToDoist is an excellent app for tracking & scheduling what you need to do each day. It also tracks what you've accomplished to remind yourself that you are awesome! https://todoist.com. 

*HOMEWORK*

Please utilize this sample calendar to plan an effectively structured week.