As you shut down your computer on Friday and reflect on your workweek, you either feel a sense of fulfillment or you wonder where the time went. We’ve all had weeks when we kick butt and take names. We’ve also all had weeks when we busily go from one thing to another but have nothing to show for our efforts at the end of the week. With some effective planning on the front end, you can jump-start your workweek and feel satisfied as you roll into the weekend.
1. DETERMINE WHERE YOU’RE GOING.
Stephen Covey eloquently said,
“Begin with the end in mind.”
As you begin your week, visualize what you want to achieve. Sure, it would be great to plan that next big event, write months of curriculum, personally disciple every student in your ministry, and create a killer social media strategy, but with only 168 hours this week, you won’t be able to get it all done. You can’t do everything in one week, but with some planning you can do some things. Pull out your calendar, pray for God’s will to be done, and write down your goals for the week.
2. CHOOSE YOUR MOST IMPORTANT TASKS.
The work of ministry is never truly done—you can always have more conversations, improve your systems, and spend more time in the Word. So choose and write down a few big tasks that are both important and urgent for this workweek. If you’re planning a service project, finding transportation is important, but the details you first need to determine are date and location. On Friday, you don’t want to look back and see all the little tasks you accomplished as you failed to complete the big and urgent goal.