157. Your Planner and Your Project Management System

Episode Transcript

Courtney Baker:
Welcome to another episode of Focus On This, the most productive podcast on the internet so you can banish distractions, get the right stuff done and finally start loving Mondays. I’m Courtney Baker here with a very special guest, Annie Mayberry. Hey Annie.

Annie Mayberry:
Hey, so excited to be here.

Courtney Baker:
It is really fun to have you here with us today. What we’re going to be talking about today is a question we get asked all the time when it comes to using the Full Focus system and project management, especially company project management. And you are the absolute pro at this. Matter of fact, you are our corporate project manager here at Full Focus, so I can’t think of anybody else better to help discuss this with everybody listening today.

Annie Mayberry:
Yeah, I’m excited.

Courtney Baker:
So just out of the gate again, I’ve said already biggest question, how do I integrate the planner with my project management system? So I’d love to just give us a hot take. How do we do that high level?

Annie Mayberry:
Yeah. Well actually there was some discussion that came up in the Full Focus Planner community earlier this week that was really interesting specifically around this actually. And somebody used the comparison of basically if you think of your project management system as the database, so Asana or whatever it is as the database, the Full Focus Planner is kind of the computer monitor, if you will, that pulls up that information for you. So in my mind, when I’m building my day, I am pulling from both places because a lot of the time when I’m assigning cross collaborative work, I may not know every single thing that is on somebody’s plate. And so the planner is kind of the place where you can take for yourself what’s been assigned to you, what tasks you know have to do and compile them all into one on this computer screen, if you will. I’ll have to look up who said that in the community because I thought it was a great analogy. So thank you for that.

Courtney Baker:
I love that analogy. That’s really interesting. Yeah, project management as the database, your Full Focus Planner like the monitor. Really what you’re saying is the Full Focus Planner is the user interface to all of that data. I think that’s really interesting and probably a helpful analogy as we today talk about bridges, three bridges from your project management system to the Full Focus Planner. Annie, what is the first bridge?

Annie Mayberry:
Yes, so the first bridge is your list sweep. So here is where your project management system informs your weekly preview. So the project management system clarifies your upcoming obligations and reminds you of any open loops that may be out there. It also brings clarity to the question what needs to be done. So as you’re doing your weekly preview, you’re comparing that with your project management system saying, how does this, what I have been assigned, inform what my weekly preview is going to look like, what I need to focus on this week? And so capturing these things in the planner I think helps us to understand what’s happening in the coming week, but to look beyond that. So I think something that the planner does so well that is not always easy to accomplish in a project management system or software is looking forward.
So I’m a very detail oriented person by nature, and so when I get in Asana in the mornings, I’m like, okay, this is my list of things that I have to do and I’m loving checking them off. But being that in the weeds does not always help me stay focused on my longer term goals. And so I think that’s where the planner in connection with your project management tool has to become so important. It keeps you out of the weeds and looking at these higher level goals that otherwise you may lose sight of.

Courtney Baker:
Yeah, absolutely. I think this list sweep is really helpful. Again, using your analogy, it’s like you’re looking at the database and saying, okay, what is coming up this week? What’s coming up next week? Because even with project management, it’s easy to just start doing the work on the day it’s due and sometimes that works out okay, but sometimes you realize, oh gosh, there is no way that I can complete this project on time. I needed to start this a week ago. And that’s really this list sweep moment in your weekly preview is going to help pull you up and actually look at the work that’s coming ahead.

Annie Mayberry:
Totally agree.

Courtney Baker:
All right, let’s jump to bridge number two. What is that bridge, Annie?

Annie Mayberry:
That is your Weekly Big 3. So in our list sweep we have discovered what needs to be done. Then we can answer the question, what should I focus on this week specifically? So you use this question to set your Weekly Big 3 and in your Weekly Big 3, it then in turn informs the deadlines that you set for your tasks in the coming week and what you need to communicate to your team. So as you’re setting these Weekly Big 3, you may realize me setting this for my Weekly Big 3 has effects on the rest of the team downstream. And someone that is waiting on something from me, if I know that I’m going to be working on this this week, I can give them a heads up, say this will be coming to you, that kind of thing. So in other words, your priorities will impact what others can expect from you in the week. And I think it’s just so important to have that oversight to be able to communicate it to the rest of the team.

Courtney Baker:
I think this is a really helpful connection that I don’t think people always realize that after that list sweep, without doing that list sweep, if you set your Weekly Big 3 without it, you’re kind of going in blind without any of that data. You haven’t looked in the database to see maybe… And they may be a lot of low leverage tasks that you’ve just got to get done. Maybe a lot of design projects, you’ve got emails to design yada yada, but without knowing what’s coming, it’s almost setting yourself up for failure to go in setting a Weekly Big 3 without that visibility. And so yeah, I think this is a really great bridge and so helpful that reminder of hey, our Daily Big 3, especially when we’re setting them on the professional side, but also really the personal side too. We’ve got to communicate those things because it impacts other people’s work. Annie, what is the third bridge?

Annie Mayberry:
That is of course your Daily Big 3. So they should advance your Weekly Big 3. These Daily Big 3 should advance the Weekly Big 3 that you have already set. But sometimes there are smaller tasks of course that come up that don’t rise to the full level of a Weekly Big 3, but they do have ramifications for other teams. So maybe you need to just in the same example that you were using Courtney, you need to review a design for a team member or write a small series of ads, that’s contributing to your Weekly Big 3 of finishing this ad series. But this one ad is what I’m working on today. So it’s really breaking down those Weekly Big 3 into smaller, more bite size daily tasks. And project management systems are excellent with that. They’re capturing not only these detailed level tasks that you have to do, but also anything that is cross collaborative.
So I have personally had the problem sometimes of setting my Daily Big 3 as just way too lofty and I’m like, I come in the morning and I’m like, I can do 47 things that are all falling under this big thing and it’s just unrealistic. And so I think sometimes I have to have the discipline in myself of being like, no, I have four meetings today. Maybe meetings is one of my Daily Big 3 today. And so I think that reviewing the tasks that are assigned to you while keeping your Weekly Big 3 in mind is really a great way to decide on obviously what becomes your Daily Big 3.

Courtney Baker:
Yeah, absolutely. I think this is really key and part of what I do as part of my workday shutdown when I’m setting my Daily Big 3 for the next day is really taking those two sources of information, those two data points together along with my calendar. That’s the other place we mess up is we have these lofty goals. I can get 47 things done while I’m in eight hours of meetings. No it’s not… It’s like humanly impossible unless you’re going to be on the meeting also working, which is also a recipe for really irritating all of your coworkers.

Annie Mayberry:
Yes, all of your coworkers. Also, thank you for using the same exaggeration number that I did, 47. That’s the one that I use all the time for some… Do you have one that… That’s my go-to, I don’t know why it’s 47 always.

Courtney Baker:
No, I am much more extravagant than you. I’m normally like 7 billion tasks, I go really large with my… But 47 feels, actually, I feel like there are some people with task lists that have 47-

Annie Mayberry:
That’s what I’m saying.

Courtney Baker:
[inaudible 00:10:05].

Annie Mayberry:
It’s not so much of an exaggeration maybe.

Courtney Baker:
Exactly. Annie, I think this has been so helpful today. Again, it’s like I think intuitively if you’ve used the planner for a long time, you’re like, oh, I kind of intuitively know those bridges but maybe haven’t had it shared so explicitly. It’s really helpful. I want to close today with you sharing your favorite planner hack or tip. What’s your go-to? Because I got to… No pressure, but I imagine it’s probably a really good one.

Annie Mayberry:
Well, that’s kind. I think I would kind of relate it to honestly the discussion that we’ve had today, how to bridge the two. Look for ways in your project management tool to denote your daily and your Weekly Big 3. So whether that is in sections on whatever list you’re using or if it’s a tag, whatever way that you can quickly and easily take at a glance and say, this is in my Weekly Big 3, this is in my Daily Big 3. Go after those. And that really, really helps you set priorities throughout the day. So what I do in Asana is I actually use tags. So because Asana on your my tasks list allows you to toggle on the column that is tags, it helps you just see quickly at a glance this task is tagged with my Daily Big 3 or my Weekly Big 3 and I know that I need to prioritize it for today. So that’s what works for me. But find whatever works for you.

Courtney Baker:
I love that. That’s a great, another bridge from the opposite way of helping you see the Full Focus System in use over in your project management tool.
Hey guys, we have a brand new segment that we are going to be talking to some of our Full Focus Planner certified pros because we have so many amazing people that use the planner and teach and coach using the planner. And so as part of this series, we’re going to be talking to some of these pros and just learning from them who they are, what advice do they have for us and how it’s impacted their lives. So today I have a very special pro with us. Andrea, say hi to everybody.

Andrea Liebross:
Hi. Thanks for having me.

Courtney Baker:
Yeah, Tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do.

Andrea Liebross:
So I am Andrea Liebross and I help women create a life and a business they love. Not another to do list. So I really work-

Courtney Baker:
Preach.

Andrea Liebross:
Yeah, I really work with driven ambitious women, kind of like the Full Focus Planner types who want to create something that’s sustainable, sustainable success I call it both at work and at home. So this works, your theories all work well with mine. And these women really feel like they wear a lot of hats and things are complicated. They will say to me, “My life is chaotic.” And they crave that simplicity, but yet they’re ambitious. So they kind of believe that they can do anything. Anything’s possible, anything’s doable, and they also want to have some fun. So I like to say they want to make things simple, doable, and fun. If that’s you, we’re a good match.

Courtney Baker:
I feel like you just described to me. I’m like, Andrea, we should hang out more often.

Andrea Liebross:
We should.

Courtney Baker:
This is right up my alley. I actually say all the time, the reason I turned out the way that I did is because my father believed I could be president at any time, 1000… He’s just waiting for me to be like, I’m going to become the president. And he would be like, okay, let’s do it. So I love that. I think there’s probably lots of people listening to this show right now that also resonate with that. So tell us a little bit about your planner journey. When did you discover it? What was it like when you started using the planner?

Andrea Liebross:
Yeah, so I would say, I was thinking about this last night. The journey was I was a PalmPilot girl way back in the day. I’m dating myself.

Courtney Baker:
Yes.

Andrea Liebross:
PalmPilot. And then I started to use, iCal more and more I’m a Mac user. And when I had kids, then we had all different colored calendars and my husband had a calendar and we had all these iCal calendars talking to each other. Then I started using the Panda Planner, which was kind of my… It’s a segue into Full Focus. And then about three years ago when my business had grown to a place where I had a full coaching client roster and I had two teenagers and two dogs and one husband. And I also was kind of caring for my parents, I needed something that looked at both life and business together. I like to say it’s all wrapped up in a ball of yarn, you can’t separate them. So that was how I landed upon the Full Focus Planner.

Courtney Baker:
Well I think that’s a testament three years later you’re still using the Full Focus Planner. And not only that, you’re a pro user. And speaking of being a pro user or one thing that I love to find out from our pros is what’s your favorite hack or your favorite tip or even that thing in the planner that you feel like gets overlooked a lot, but you know the power of it. Give us a little taste of what you would recommend.

Andrea Liebross:
So I coach one on one, but I also coach in groups. And I literally just ran my first, I call it a masterclass for a Full Focus Planner. So I’ve been working with about 16 women over the past month taking them through this process. So this was really helpful for me to see what stuck with them. So I give three quick tips. Number one is I really think of the planner as a system to help us make decisions. So a lot of what I do in coaching is help people make decisions. And I think the planner really is that tool that gives you that systematic look at things. So it’s kind of a decision maker. Second, I think that those daily pages, if you can look at them as more of a container, anything that’s on a daily page is part of your daily container for that day.
Anything else that comes along, it’s not going to fit in there. Or you don’t want it to fit in, you don’t want to throw it in the container. So it kind of gives you parameters for your day, which helps you make decisions actually, it helps you, gives you the confidence to say, no, I can’t do that. And I think a lot of women have a difficult time saying no, I don’t want to do that, or I can’t do that, or it doesn’t fit in. But if you can kind of blame the planner, it’s like blaming your mom. Then-

Courtney Baker:
Yes. Yes.

Andrea Liebross:
All right. Yeah. And then I think the third thing is it really has helped my clients upgrade their thinking. So I think I’m a big believer that you need systems and mindset. So if you can use the planner along with doing what I call thought work, that is really where people kind of up level who they want to be and start to make decisions from the future person that they want to be, not the person of today.
So it really gives you that opportunity, opportunity to upgrade your thinking and aim higher. So kind of going back to that impossible thing, sometimes I say river, it’s called the river of misery. And on one side is the land of impossible. And on the other side is the land of inevitable. And there’s a little bridge that goes over it and at the top of the bridge is the land of possible. So you got to walk over the bridge from impossible, possible, to inevitable. And that’s really, as you do that, you’re kind of upgrading your thinking and as you need to make decisions along the way, having a system can help you do that. So-

Courtney Baker:
That’s amazing. I think there is some really good… That was chocked full of really great advice and thoughts.

Andrea Liebross:
I only have a few minutes. I might as well tell you my top-

Courtney Baker:
I know.

Andrea Liebross:
Three tips, right.

Courtney Baker:
That is amazing. I would be amiss if I didn’t also ask you just on a very personal level-

Speaker 3:
Sorry Courtney. I think you want say remiss, right? I just want to catch you.

Courtney Baker:
Oh, what did I say?

Speaker 3:
Amiss.

Courtney Baker:
Amiss. Well it would be amiss.

Andrea Liebross:
It would be a miss. How about it would be a miss.

Speaker 3:
Oh, that’s fair.

Courtney Baker:
There you go.

Speaker 3:
I’m sorry, I can leave this all in. That’s fine. I’m sorry, everybody.

Courtney Baker:
While we’re here, I would just on a very personal level, love to talk to you a little bit of how the planner has impacted your life. I think obviously there’s that story of how did you get here and what was the pain that you were trying to solve with this tool, and then what has that actually meant in your life over the course of three years?

Andrea Liebross:
So what it’s helped me do is… It sounds so cliche, but focus. So I use a lot of software, I use a lot of digital tools and I really use those to help me compile lists of things or processes or collaborate with other people. And I can do that all day long. But none of those things are really telling me what to do, so to speak. And they’re not helping me access the thinking I need to determine, where am I going to start? When am I going to start? So the planner helps in three ways. It’s helped me really figure out what are my priorities. And I think the goal section helps me most with that. It helps me plan how I’m going to reach them. So I think all of the quarterly preview, even those rolling quarters can be helpful.
Even the rolling quarters, that helps me really plan out what it’s going to look like. And then I think when you get down to the nitty gritty on weekly and daily pages, that helps me schedule. So no other… I use Trello a lot, for example, that’s not helping me necessarily figure out what time during the day I’m going to prepare for the podcast. It tells me… It needs to tell me I need to do it today, but it’s not taking into account everything else that’s going on in my life kid wise or personal wise so the planner kind of helps me connect the dots and figure out how to fit in every… I don’t want to say fit in, but what do I want to put in my container for today? It’s not really a fit in thing. It’s like, let’s decide, I have power over this, let’s figure it out.
So nothing else can really do that. So I guess it really, it’s given me a strategic pause. It gives me that time to strategically pause and evaluate and no software is going to do that. And doing it on your own is kind of hard too.

Courtney Baker:
Yeah. It helps you be intentional. I mean, what do you think that has… What’s the outcomes that has produced?

Andrea Liebross:
Yeah, I mean just from a business perspective, my business has really grown. I’ve got plenty of clients and plenty of work that I love doing. On a personal level, I think it’s made me a lot more intentional with time I spend with my kids. My kids are older teens, actually one’s 21. So sadly but true, but planning it out, when are we doing, what are we doing? And time is fleeting, so that helps there. And relationship wise too, it kind of really made me assess what are my marital goals, what am I doing? So how do I make that a priority? It is a priority, but how do I keep it top of mind?

Courtney Baker:
What would you say if you had to go back three years and you had just gone your own way without those tools, what do you think that outcome would’ve been?

Andrea Liebross:
I don’t think I would… Definitely wouldn’t be where I am business wise right now. And I would not have had the opportunity to really have that 30,000 foot view. I would be very much caught in the day and in the moment and probably I would’ve missed a lot of life that was kind of passing me by because it wouldn’t have given me the opportunity to reflect. Those self-care questions, sometimes I’m like, eh, but I do them. And it really… Especially the relationship one or the friendship, what does it say? Friendship, relationship.

Courtney Baker:
Relationship.

Andrea Liebross:
Okay. Who am I connecting with this week besides the people that live in my four wall?

Courtney Baker:
Actually we’re both wrong. I think it says connect.

Andrea Liebross:
Connect, okay.

Courtney Baker:
Isn’t that sad? Because I have a feeling you and I… Yes connect. You and I have done a lot of weekly previews and both us are like-

Andrea Liebross:
I know I’m like [inaudible 00:23:15].

Courtney Baker:
Relationships, friendships? [inaudible 00:23:18].

Andrea Liebross:
Also, it’s like a testament. Everybody can use the planner in the same way, but also in a slightly different way. So in my head that stands for who am I connecting… Or who am I seeing this week? Or who am I making an effort to connect with? I don’t even care what the word is, but that’s where that goes.

Courtney Baker:
Yeah, that’s amazing.

Andrea Liebross:
So yeah.

Courtney Baker:
So if you’re out there and you’ve been using the planner for a while or maybe you haven’t even started and you’re thinking, hey, I actually could use some extra accountability, or maybe there are some tools within the planner that you’ve never onboarded, like the ideal week or rituals, our Full Focus Planner certified pros are amazing and they’re there to help you with things like that. So if you’re interested in working with a pro like Andrea, you can go to our directory, which is FullFocus.co/directory and search for any of our certified pros.
So you can search for Andrea by name. Just make sure that you click in that directory and click earners. We’ll also, for Andrea, we’ll put her direct link in our show notes. So if you’re interested in reaching out to her. And then Andrea, you’re also pretty active in our Full Focus Planner community on Facebook. And so they can reach out to you there as well, right?

Andrea Liebross:
Yes. Feel free to reach out to me there and message me on Facebook.

Courtney Baker:
And I do want to say, when it comes to working with someone, I know it kind of feels like, hey, it’s a planner, I just intuitively know how to use it. And I think the thing is, this is a system. This is way more than the planner that you go buy at Target and you write a date at the top. This is really a system to be intentional about doing the best, the right type of work, actually moving to the person that you want to become. And so this is really just the tool that can get you there. And so having a coach help you get there faster is just going to accelerate your results. So don’t think that, hey, it’s a planner, I don’t need help, If you want to get somewhere, if there’s something that you’re trying to achieve or just trying to end some of the chaos, working with a pro will help you get there faster.
So really encourage you to just reach out, take the first step. Don’t be afraid. I know a lot of these certified pros and they are amazing. Thanks everybody for joining us on Focus on This. This is the most productive podcast on the internet, so share it with your friends. And don’t forget to join us over on the Full Focus Planner community. We will be back next week with another great episode. And Annie, thank you so much for joining us today.

Annie Mayberry:
Yeah, thanks for having me.

Courtney Baker:
Until next week, stay focused.

Annie Mayberry:
Stay focused.