Friday, May 22, 2015

A Trick for Scheduling Long Periods of Unspecified Time

My title is all fancy and complicated, but this post is really about solving a simple problem. How do you schedule flexible time (meaning you can do it any time that day) that eats up most of your schedule?


schedule, planner


For me, this question arises in two ways.

I am employed with completely flexible, work-from-home hours, but I still have to work several hours a day. I need a way to note that on my schedule, but still take advantage of the flexibility of not having to work at 3:15 p.m. if the weather is perfect and my kids want to play in the park.

I also grocery shop about once a week. That takes at least two hours, so it needs to be noted on my schedule, but it can move around if a friend calls to have lunch together.

Maybe you are a student and have to study for three hours today. Perhaps you homeschool for five hours each day.

Whenever something is a time suck, it should go on your schedule! But while appointments go in at a certain time, the flexible time sucks should only be tentative scheduled, to give you an idea of how much you have to go and approximately when the best time to do it is.

I solve this problem by putting brackets around the untimed, flexible but necessary appointment (as in the green circle above).

Now I know at a glance what can be moved (if I must rearrange my schedule) and how many hours total are already booked.

(In the example, I ended up working from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. until 5 p.m., during my kids' appointment. I moved my workout, which honestly should be in bracket, too, to 7:30 p.m.)

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6 comments:

  1. That's a great idea! For me, if it's something tentative, even what for dinner, I just put it on a page flag. That way I can move it if need be.

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  2. That's a great idea! For me, if it's something tentative, even what for dinner, I just put it on a page flag. That way I can move it if need be.

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  3. Dear Kristie

    What words or symbol are you jotting down in the bracket?

    Thanks and take care

    Deborah

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  4. I like both your idea and Suzanne's. I may try a combination of the two. :)

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  5. Thanks or the tip. I have been looking for ways to schedule things that are flexible without creating a national disaster in my planner. Love the idea.

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  6. The brackets are a great idea! Please come share your blog posts over at the Home Matters Linky Party! We'd love to have you for a visit. The Door is OPEN. http://lifewithlorelai.com/2015/06/04/home-matters-linky-party-40/ :)

    ~Lorelai
    Life With Lorelai

    ReplyDelete

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