My imPERFECT Planning Routine: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, and Beyond
Just because the perfect system doesn't exist, doesn't mean you shouldn't have one.
I’ve been asked about planning routine, so this is the full picture. The whole system, all four layers, and the story of how it came to exist. This post is the hub of a series, each layer gets its own deep dive, and I'll link them all here as they go live.
Quick note: this post contains affiliate links. Full details in the My Tools section at the bottom.
But first, let me tell you about the drawer.
The catch-up spiral
For years, my planning routine was "whenever I had time," which mostly meant mornings, which mostly meant not at all once life got busy. I'd skip a day, then two. Then I'd sit down and try to play catch-up, backfilling everything I'd missed, and the catch-up itself became the chore that killed the whole thing. Eventually the planner would get quietly abandoned.
But here's the part that mattered: I always came back. Every single time. Because I know something true about myself, and maybe you know it about yourself too. When I use my planner, I'm a better person. Calmer, more present, more on top of my life. The planners were never the problem. The routine was.
So instead of hunting for the perfect system one more time, I built one I could actually come back to. Not perfect. Repeatable and capable of consistency.
Working with the grain of time
Here's the idea underneath my whole routine, and it's almost embarrassingly simple.
Time already has a shape. Days, weeks, months, quarters, years. They exist whether you plan them or not. So instead of fighting that, or reinventing the wheel with some elaborate 15-step framework, I just decided to meet time where it already is. One small routine for each natural layer.
Each layer has its own job. The small ones keep the day and week running, the big ones hold the vision, and they all ladder up to each other. And there's a bonus baked in: because I'm checking in at every level, I never get stuck for long in a routine that's quietly stopped working. The system essentially audits itself.
Here's each layer at a glance. Every one of these gets its own full post with all the details.
Daily: three check-ins, one non-negotiable
My daily routine consists of three small check-ins. Morning, midday, and evening. But only one of them is required, and it's the evening. That's the one I protect no matter what, even if it's just five minutes.
I stopped planning in the morning because mornings, as a mom of two, simply stopped belonging to me. Planning the night before means I wake up already knowing my day, and the whole morning feels more peaceful.
Read the full daily routine here, including the brain dump sticky note system that keeps my planner from becoming a dumping ground.
Weekly: where everything comes together
The weekly reset is honestly my favorite part of the whole system. Brain dump, migrate tasks, goals and habits, meals where it makes sense, and then put the week together.
And yes, deco at the beginning and at the end. Not because it's productive, but because it's what makes me want to come back. Joy is a feature of the system, not a distraction from it!
Full weekly routine coming soon.
Monthly: the safety net
Monthly planning is where I zoom out. Tasks, goals, reminders, and specialty tracking. The star of the show is my trigger list, a simple prompt list that makes sure nothing ever falls through the cracks, from birthdays to the stuff you only remember at 2am.
Full monthly routine coming soon.
Quarterly and yearly: loose, dreamy, and done together
The biggest layers are the loosest ones on purpose. Quarterly and yearly planning is more vision than plan, and I do it with my husband. Just enough structure to feel grounded, without pretending I know exactly what life will look like in eight months.
Full quarterly and yearly post coming soon.
Where should you start?
If you're reading this with a drawer full of abandoned planners, you might want me to tell you exactly which layer to start with. I'm not going to, because the honest answer is: it depends on the person.
You have to experiment. Try the evening check-in for a week. Or start with a weekly reset. See what you actually come back to, keep that, and change up the rest. Don't get stuck. The setup is a draft, not a vow. Most planning systems die because we treat the first version like a contract we're breaking instead of a garden we’re tending.
When it all falls apart (because it will!!)
Even with this practice, life still wins sometimes. Sick kids, a brutal work week, a vacation that knocks everything sideways.
Here's the difference between the old me and now. Old me would play catch-up, backfilling every missed day religiously, until the catch-up became the reason to quit. Now? I skip the catch-up entirely.
Start where you are. Open to today. Write something down.
That's the practice.
Get the starting point
My Tools
Everything that shows up in this routine, all in one place:
The planner: Laurel Denise Anne, my daily driver. Code IMPERFECT10 for 10% off. [link: https://tidd.ly/3IyLSgc]
The morning journal: Peacefully Productive journal from Hustle Sanely. Code SARAH86. [link: https://hustlesanely.com?bg_ref=PNiiHLyeg4]
The work planner: Erin Condren Daily Duo. [link: https://www.erincondren.com/referral/invite/sarahshadid/1]
The printables: The Imperfect Practice Kit, 7 pages designed to ride along in the Anne. [link to shop]
The freebie: The Imperfect Practice Sheet. [link to signup]
Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate or referral links, which means I may earn a small commission if you shop through them, at no extra cost to you. I only share tools I genuinely use in my own routine. Thanks for supporting Imperfectly Planned!
