Calendar Audit

Audit. THAT sounds like fun, right??

I know, anything called an audit feels like it might be work…monotonous, tedious, I’d-rather-sacrifice-my-left pinky-finger work. This, however, IS the work we must do to make sure we’re being intentional with our time and spending it on activities that move us closer to our goals, as well as WITH people who support us and that we love.

A calendar audit can happen as often as you’d like, I suppose, but it’s probably most effective to implement once or twice a year. It’s quite simple and eye-opening. If you’re like me and have a full-time job, most of our calendar space is taken by that, so it won’t take you very long anyway. You will want to set aside an hour or two to fully focus on this project, though.

It’s worth saying that this is not my original idea, but I’ve heard of so many successful, grounded, and centered people who do it. I’ve done it the past 2 years and it does help me decide where and with whom I want to focus my time and energy in the coming year. 

By becoming aware of time-wasters on last year’s calendar, you can practice saying no when similar invitations come your way this year. Becoming aware of time spent that moved you toward your goals, helped you feel more like yourself, motivated you, or brought joy to your soul means that you can intentionally schedule more of THAT in your upcoming calendar!

So, grab your phone or your planner, wherever you keep your appointments and reminders, along with a sheet of paper, marking it into 3 sections. I like to label mine: WORTH IT, Necessary, and Time-Wasters. 

Go back to the beginning of the year and start with January 1st. Go through each day, noting your appointments and how you spent your time. As you come across each one, reflect on it. You can write it down along with memories of it, if you’d like. Recalling and reflecting in your own mind is perfectly fine, too. As you reflect, decide if this was time that you absolutely loved or brought you closer to your goals or you learned something new (maybe about yourself) or was definitely worth your time. Obviously, these go under the WORTH IT category. 

You’ll know right away when many activities will end up under WORTH IT, but there may be a few that aren’t immediately obvious. These could be situations where you were uncomfortable, but they also caused you to grow. You learned something from the experience, and therefore, it was extremely valuable. Spend some time with these because if you can take away the uncomfortable feeling associated with the activity, you may find that it was completely worth it. 

Some examples include: a job interview where you didn’t get the job but learned some areas for improvement via feedback from your interviewers; a local business networking event where you felt very awkward during the entire thing and stuck your foot in your mouth 3 whole times but you met one person who has helped you immensely with your business; or trying a new exercise class with a friend where you fell down AND farted at the same time, but now you have 10 new friends from class. 

Some ways you spend your time will just be necessary. They’re part of adulting or teenaging or just surviving in our world today. These tasks include doctor’s appointments, getting your oil changed, taking the dog to the vet, getting your hair cut, etc. Those duties are part of life and must be done, so they will stay on your calendar, too, although, I’m sure you could make a case for going to the salon also being in the WORTH IT category.

Next, those chores that didn’t make the cut – they didn’t bring you closer to your goals (hopefully they didn’t push you farther away), they weren’t joyful, they could have been avoided and did not need to be scheduled, all those things you said “yes” to and later realized you should have said “no” to; they go in the Time-Wasters. 

Maybe you did your own taxes…then had to re-do them…then ended up taking them to a professional. You learned maybe you should just take them to a professional the first time. Maybe you tried a spinning class for the first time and couldn’t walk down steps for the next 3 days. You learned that isn’t quite your fave type of exercise. You won’t be scheduling those particular activities anymore. Easy to decide where those tasks go, right?

But, maybe you had a weekly Bible study. One that you felt obligated to attend. But you never felt like you deepened your connection or learned anything. Maybe you volunteered at a local homeless shelter but felt like you had no opportunity for impact on the people there because you weren’t able to work with them directly. Maybe you day-dreamed about volunteering at the animal shelter or nursing home while you were there.

These reflections and decisions are more difficult to accept. You may feel like you need to continue these appointments because they’re viewed as “good.” Remember, just because it IS good doesn’t mean it’s good FOR you or FROM you. If you find something like this on your calendar and realize it just isn’t right for you anymore, don’t let it MEAN something negative about you…because it doesn’t. It’s okay to find the opportunity to which you’re best suited and where you’d have far more impact versus being in a situation that doesn’t really suit you or where you’re unable to shine your light. 

Yes, even commitments that are viewed as “good,” such as volunteering or visiting others may need to be taken off your schedule for now. If you’re not feeling called to do it, your time may be better spent on something else. Sometimes that’s difficult to hear, or worse, difficult to decide for yourself as you reflect on that time. But some of you need to hear this: not every good deed must be done by you. Find the thing that brings you the most joy and you’ll have the most impact. 

Whew! Pretty simple audit, huh? Easy? No way. Simple, yes, but not easy. When you have your lists and can see where you’ve spent most of your time, you can see why you made so much progress in the last year…or why you’ve been trying so hard but still feel like you’re stuck. Use this information to be intentional when scheduling time during the upcoming year and you may be surprised at the difference it makes in your motivation and inspiration to chase your goals…as well as your progress and the joy you get from it.

As the last step, let’s set a goal for next year’s calendar audit, which means being mindful about what we schedule for next year. Let’s aim to have less Time-Wasters than we did this year. Let’s also have more in the WORTH IT category than in the necessary category. While the necessary undertakings are, well, necessary, it’s essential we have plenty of pursuits that give us opportunities to learn more about ourselves, to grow in ways we may not want to, and to bring absolute joy to our lives.

Consider this:

• How did your last year look? Mostly worth it or mostly time wasted?
• What activities will you add more to your calendar for the upcoming year?
• What tasks are you determined to cut out of your new calendar?
• Did you find any surprising pursuits that you thought were worth it, but found were actually time-wasters when you reflected on and assessed them?