How To Plan For 2020 And Make it Count

Can you believe that it’s 2020? Time flies by when we are having fun, or kids keep us busy. I mean, both of course!

On that side note, they grow up so fast! Looking back at how small Baby K (my daughter) was a year ago, I missed those moments.

When time passes by so much, it is so important for us to plan for 2020 so that we don’t miss anymore moments with our little ones.

In this blog post, I will share how we can plan for 2020. It is a simple way that everyone can do it whether you are a beginner or an expert in planning.

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Here is how to plan for 2020 and make it count:

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1. Reflect on the previous year (2019)

Let me paint you a picture. Imagine shooting an arrow with a bow. What happens? First, you pull the arrow back before releasing it to its fullest potential.

Similarly, it’s really good to look back and reflect on the previous year before you start this year.

Here are some questions to help you reflect:

• What were the best memories of 2019 (or the previous year)?
• What did not go so well in 2019 and how you can avoid it for 2020?
• What and Who are you thankful for in 2019?

You can write it down or just think about the answers to these questions. It will be good to note what you want to repeat in 2020 or what you want to avoid in 2020. For example, if one of the best memories were spending time with family at an all-inclusive resort, you can start planning for another family vacation at a different island in 2020.

It’s also nice to see how much you have grown as a person.

For me, in 2019, Baby K was a few months old baby. Now she’s almost a toddler. My parenting style changed for sure. It requires negotiation and communication skills more now than before. However, it is such a fun process to watch her grow up.

2. Decide on how you want to plan (paper vs online)

When you decide on plan your year, you can choose either to use a paper version like a planner or online such as Google Docs / Calendar.

The pros of a paper planner is that you can write it down and have it available (even when your phone is charging in the other room). You can organize it with stickers and labels in whichever way that works for you. If you prefer to write things down on a paper or notebook, a planner would be a good idea for you.

Here are some cute planners that I found on Etsy that you might like:

The downside to a paper planner is that it takes up physical space in your bag or on your table. If you prefer to have it on your phone, I highly suggest the next option.

If you prefer to have everything on your phone or online, Google docs and Google calendar are free options to start with. You can also color coordinate your items and label as you wish. Please let me know in the comments below or email me at Becca@makingdayscount.com if you want a tutorial on how to organize with Google Docs and Google Calendar.

You can also have a mixture of both, depending what works well for you. Try it out and see which is best.

3. Put down prearranged events

Before you start making your goals, start writing down all the prearranged events and holidays in your planner (online or paper).

Here is a list of what you can note in your calendar or planner:

• Birthdays
• Anniversaries
• School Holidays
• Doctor /Medical Appointments
• Weddings or Engagement Parties
• Baby Showers
• Vacation days (if you have planned a vacation for 2020)
• National holidays or Long Weekends
• Play Dates

Write all these down so that you have an idea of what your year looks like. This will also help you to prepare in advance if you have gifts you need to buy or days you might need to take off to care for the kids.

One tip that I learned is to set alarms for birthdays weeks in advanced. I am definitely guilty of being reminded by Facebook of someone’s birthday and be like, oh yeah! It’s a good thing that I remember my immediate family members and M’s immediate family members’ birthdays.

Also, I did note it down on my Google Calendar so it helps!

Before you start planning everything else, know what you have for 2020 so nothing gets double booked and we all remember to get that special someone a gift or a card.

4. Begin with the end in mind

Now it’s time to set your goals.

What do you want to accomplish by the end of 2020? Is it to be organized and travel with little to no stress? Is it to be healthier and get an exercise system and routine? Is it to finish decorating your study room? Whatever your goals are, write them down.

This is something my dad taught me, which I’m sure you can also find online.

Ask yourself, when do you want to accomplish this goal and then work backwards.

Here is a real life example of how to work backwards:

I wanted to attend a wedding at the end of December, but the wedding reception is at night. The problem is that Baby K was highly dependent on me nursing her to sleep. Yes, I should have trained her earlier but I did not.

My goal was to sleep train her to be able to sleep without nursing by herself in her room at the end of December.

Here was the plan:

1. I can start sleep training her without nursing her to sleep.

2. M can help her self soothe herself to sleep. So even if my mom can’t do it, I can still go to the wedding dinner by myself and M can make sure that Baby K sleeps.

3. My mom can watch her while she sleeps on her own (maybe a little assistance of my mom calming her down)

So, all this is happening within the month (of December as of writing this). We moved her crib to her room a month before the wedding. I trained (am training as of writing this post in mid-December) her to sleep with the pick up put down method. M will use the same method to help her to self soothe to sleep two weeks before the wedding, and my mom will try this method for one night before the wedding.

This is a short example, but this is how you can work backwards for your goals too.

Set a date and write down the necessary steps to achieve your goal.

I wrote a little bit about SMART goals here in my blog post How to make New Year Resolutions as a new parent. They stand for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely.

Take your time to write these out and follow the plan that you have made for yourself. for 2020 You can do this!

5. Remember to plan for rest and vacation

It’s so easy for us to plan everything except for rest and vacation. We are so busy prioritizing other people before ourselves that we can get really tired.

So, please schedule in some time for rest and vacation. Or at least, start thinking and talking about it. It makes life more exciting and something to look forward to.

Also, if you are able to, schedule in some date nights and me-time. The ability to just rest and not think about the busyness of life is really refreshing. When we rest, we become more energize to tackle whatever else we plan to do and have an amazing 2020.

Thank you so much for reading. If you did not know already, I have made 3 (not just 1) free planners for you to use. Click here to sign up for to get these planners. They are absolutely free (for now).

Please let me know in the comments below what are your goals for 2020 and how you plan to make it count. I would love to hear from you. Also, don’t forget to follow me on my Instagram @makingdayscount. Please pin the image below and share it with others. I really appreciate it. Happy New Year!