Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's tip is to plan your check in times. If you have set any sort of annual goals, or if life looks different in different seasons for you, you want to set sometimes during the year to check in on how things are going and to plan the next season. Setting those times now early in the year increases the chances
that they happen. So plenty of people set annual goals, and plenty of people plan their days or weeks, but a lot of life happens in chunks that are between those sizes. Sarah hartunger my co host on the Best of Both Worlds podcast, thinks of her year in quintiles. There is January to spring break, spring break to summer, summer, and then the beginning of the school year to November first. Quintile five goes from November first to the end of
the year. She checks in at the beginning of each quintile to look at her annual goals and see how things are going. She also plans out things that need to happen over the next two to three months. Perhaps you might think of your life in some different way. Many people think of life in quarters, or maybe it is seasons. In general, academics often go for trimesters. But however you think about your time, it is good to
have multiple check in times during the year. You will be able to check in on any goals you have set, pivot or set new ones, and plan anything requiring long range planning. Now, perhaps you are thinking, yes, Laura, that makes sense, But how do you know that come the beginning of say Q two, you will actually remember to sit down with your list of annual goals. Well, here's
how choose check in dates. Now, pull out or pull up your calendar for the year and set times at the beginning of each new season or at least every three months or so, to review your life. Put these appointments on your calendar. Now, I am not saying that these are completely set in stone. It is entirely possible that you don't know what you will need to do on or around October first. However, by putting the appointment now, when it gets close to October first, you will see it.
You will think, oh, yes, I need to do my quarterly check in. Even if you can't do the check in at that particular time that you chose back in January. Seeing the appointment will nudge you to put it at some point and then you will do it rather than forgetting about it and not doing it. Making the appointment increases the chances of you staying on track. Or maybe you could be more formal about it. Maybe you envision taking a half day off work each quarter for planning
and reviewing life. I think that's a nice idea. If you do, too, then you should go ahead and request those dates off. Doing that will likely make them stick a bit more. Or maybe you would like to make one of your check ins more of a retreat. If you think you will be going somewhere for a weekend, plan it in that will also more likely stick. But do at least put some check ins on the calendar.
People go to the trouble of setting new intentions for the new year, and then they forget about them when life gets busy, or perhaps they have hopes for particular seasons, but forget those hopes by the time that time rolls around. Planning in your check in times gives you a fighting chance of keeping your intentions front of mind. Check in times will also give you a chance to look at
the bigger picture and take stock of your life. These are all good things, so they deserve space on your calendar. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of our times. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com.
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