Do you have a never-ending to-do list that seems to grow longer as the days go by? Do you ever struggle to find enough hours in the week to complete the tasks that really matter in your business? If this is you, I have the perfect solution. I have designed a SMART Action Plan Sheet – a simple tool to help you plan your days and weeks so you can efficiently and systematically grow your business.
Who is the Action Plan Sheet for?
This easy-to-use tool is perfect for solopreneurs and small business owners who are working towards bigger business and life goals. It provides ideal support to your business planning process. Plus, you can use it as a project management tool, and you can even share it with your team members if you have any.
How the SMART Planner Action Plan Sheet works
If you’re wondering how a simple planner can help you grow your business, it’s because it will help you to prioritise your tasks.
Once you’ve identified what’s important and what will move your business forward, you can start to focus your time on what matters the most. You’ll be able to take purposeful action and reduce overwhelm.
As a business owner myself, and having worked over the years with hundreds of service-based solopreneurs just like you, I know what it’s like to fill our days with ‘busy work’. Our schedules and to-do lists are full of appointments, commitments, activities, and tasks.
But are we always choosing to do the most important things first? Or do we tend to pick what’s easy and quick because it gives us a temporary sense of achievement and the satisfaction of ticking something off the list? My guess would be that a lot of us choose the latter option…
The truth is, without a clear plan of action that details exactly what you need to do in order to achieve your goals, staying focused on what matters is hard. And what often happens as a result of doing work that doesn’t move the needle in our business (or in our private lives) is that we end up feeling overwhelmed, discouraged, and frustrated. Because doing the wrong things means not getting the results we want.
So by creating an action plan first – and before you do all the things – you can be sure that the action steps you decide to take are the ones that will help towards a specific goal in your business. Start using my Action Plan Sheet, and the tasks you choose to complete will be the most important and effective ones.
But how do you know which tasks we should prioritise?
Identifying your top priorities
Assuming you’ve already listed your business goals, the first step to take when using my Action Plan Sheet is to identify the action steps that will help you achieve your goals faster.
Once you are clear on your priorities, my daily and weekly planning sheets will help you to consistently work on what really matters in your business. The result? You’ll be guaranteed to achieve your goals and dreams. And you will do so a lot faster than without the support of this tool.
If you want to find out more about setting SMART goals for your business, head over to my blog post: Goal Setting for Better Business Results this Year.
How to use the SMART Planner Action Plan Sheet
You may have used free action plan templates in the past with varying degrees of success. But using my SMART Action Plan Sheet to help you to take action and stay on track couldn’t be simpler.
How to use the Weekly Action Planner Sheet
Before you look at your Weekly Action Planner (page one of the template), I recommend you refer to your monthly and quarterly goals. These will be key in identifying your weekly actions.
Based on your specific business goals, jot down any outstanding tasks and ideas and identify your top 3-5 priorities. These could be larger tasks, such as “Create email campaign” or “Prepare the quarterly marketing plan”.
I recommend you review and update your Weekly Action Planner page once a week. And while you do this, don’t forget to add any tasks that are important to your personal life and goals, like exercise classes or celebrating a birthday. Also, make sure you include any tasks that you may want to outsource, delegate, or get help with.
How to use the Daily Action Planner Sheet
With your weekly tasks firmly identified, it’s time to delve into the details with the daily Action Planner page (page two of the template). This is where you break any larger tasks down into smaller ones.
I suggest that you write the top 3 priorities for your week at the top of each page first. This helps you stay focused when you’re planning your day. Remember – if a task doesn’t directly help you achieve one of your weekly priorities, it doesn’t belong on your planner.
As you list your daily tasks:
- Align them with your weekly priorities.
- Always be realistic and allocate enough time to completing each task.
- Keep an eye on your diary, so you can take into account any client calls or pre-existing commitments.
- Review and update this sheet daily and cross your items out in real-time if you want.
The key here is not to do the shortest and easiest tasks first. Instead, you’ll want to work on any Quick Wins or tasks that will move you towards your business goals faster and more effectively.
Would you like my support to achieve your business goals?
So, are you ready to make my SMART Action Plan Sheet a key part of your strategic planning? You can buy the Action Plan Sheet here.
And if you’re a female entrepreneur and are looking for practical support to articulate your business goals or identify the key priorities in your business so you can start focusing your time and your actions towards what matters the most, get in touch. I offer a FREE 30-minute consultation to discuss how I might be able to help you grow your business.
