Do you ever look at your to-do list on a Wednesday afternoon and wonder, “How on earth did I think I’d get all of this done? “.
You started the week with good intentions and high hopes, but now it feels like you’re dragging yourself through a mountain of work that’s growing, not shrinking.
If that’s you, take heart. The problem isn’t your motivation. And it’s not your discipline. It’s your expectations. More specifically, the way you plan your week may be setting you up for a cycle of frustration.
The good news? There's a smarter way to approach weekly planning, one that supports your priorities, energy, and overall well-being.
Have you ever tried to pack a bunch of tasks into your digital calendar and felt like you needed at least two more days at work? You keep adding more work, trying to fit everything into place, but the whole thing feels like it could burst at any second.
This happens because we often treat our calendar like an abstract space where “future us” will be magically more productive and less distracted. We cram tasks back-to-back, forgetting that real life will inevitably interrupt our best-laid plans.
So what’s the solution? Don’t start with your calendar. Start by mapping out your capacity for the week on paper or in a spreadsheet, and then schedule items on your calendar with clarity and precision.
Start by defining your working hours. Are you working 9–5? 7–3? Do you dip in and out throughout the day, around school runs or caregiving?
Even if your week is a bit “nonlinear,” it’s still critical to map out the time you’re willing to give to work. Otherwise, your brain assumes it’s infinite, and that’s where the stress creeps in.
By clearly stating your work hours, you create boundaries that protect your energy and signal to yourself (and others) when you're off the clock.
If you are using the weekly planning template, block out non-working times to visualise this.
Breaks are essential in every workday. They give shape to your day, keep things organised, and make space for you to breathe.
Don’t wait for a magical moment to take a break - plan for them. At a minimum:
It might feel indulgent to block out this time. It’s not. It’s protective. You already take breaks; this just ensures they’re restorative, not rushed.
There’s one hour you should add to your day before anything else. You can label it:
If someone needs your help, or a task takes longer than you anticipated, this buffer time ensures that your other work isn’t impacted. And if nothing comes up, you’ll have an extra hour to get ahead, take a breather, or even finish your work early.
Now that you’ve built the foundation, it’s time to fill in the essentials:
Allocate a dedicated block of time (one hour per session) for your most important work and treat it like a priority meeting. I call this your “Hour of Power.”
This time is for work that moves the needle - not admin, not Slack messages. It's time for deep, focused, and creative work. If you’re not sure what qualifies, start by asking: If I could only get one thing done this week, what would make the biggest difference?
Now you can drop in blocks for:
You can chunk these into 15-, 30-, or 60-minute blocks. But resist the urge to fill every slot. Your goal isn’t to “maximise output.” It’s to create a plan that’s grounded in reality. Aim to plan for 60–70% of your total capacity. That gives you space to breathe and respond to the real world, not just your ideal week.
Once you’ve created your weekly plan on paper or in a spreadsheet, transfer it into your calendar. This approach ensures you’re working from a plan based on intention, not panic.
If you want to take it one step further, take a screenshot of your plan at the start of the week and then compare it to your actual calendar at the end of the week. Notice what changed. What meetings popped up? What didn’t get done? Use that as feedback to improve next week.
A client of mine used to start every week with a fully booked calendar. She was constantly behind, apologising for late replies, and frustrated that she never finished what really mattered.
We tried this method for just two weeks. She started by sketching her plan on paper instead of diving into her calendar. She gave herself one buffer hour per day. She cut her planned workload by 20%. And she told me something I’ll never forget:
“For the first time in ages, I ended the week feeling proud instead of panicked.”
That’s what this is about. Feeling proud of what you did do, instead of drowning in what you didn’t.
Most of us don’t need more productivity tools. We need better expectation management, with ourselves and others. And that starts with capacity planning: deciding, in advance, what you’re truly capable of (and available for) this week.
With this method, you’ll build weeks that feel more grounded, more human, and more satisfying.
So go ahead. Grab the weekly planner template or sketch your own. Try it out. And let yourself experience what it feels like to end the week feeling good about what you got done.