Monday Motivation: How to Find Time to Organize Your Workweek

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Every Monday workplaces across the world are filled with the groans and complaints of employees dreading the upcoming workweek. You will not, however, hear Andrew Ziehler engaging in those pessimistic rumblings.

Ziehler, the owner and president of Ziehler Lawn & Tree Care, Centerville, Ohio, genuinely loves Mondays. He joined the landscape industry 17 years ago simply as a way to make money. Once he realized that landscaping provided an outlet for him to coach and assemble teams, however, he was hooked. That is also when he began his love affair with Monday, the day of the week when he really gets to put his organizational skills to the test.

As Ziehler has transitioned from college landscaper to company owner and Monday enthusiast, he has perfected some very helpful scheduling techniques:

Use Fridays proactively

Ziehler puts aside 10 minutes at the end of each day to set his next-day priorities, share his schedule with his team and meet with management, a routine he calls his “daily huddle.” His scheduling on Friday afternoons, however, tends to be a bit more extensive.

“I set aside two hours each Friday to plan for the next week,” Ziehler says. “I will be perfectly honest that this does not always happen. It sometimes gets moved around or subbed out for an important pressing issue.”

Be aware of your busiest day

Even though Ziehler understands the significance of his Friday preparation period, Fridays are actually not his toughest day. His Wednesdays are typically the busiest, filled with appointments and meetings, so he is always sure to map out a very clear and concise calendar for the middle of the week.

“I have scheduled meetings all day, starting with each individual manager in the morning and ending with a management team meeting in the afternoon. Preparation for this day is very important,” Ziehler says. “I put one to two hours into prepping to make sure the day goes smoothly. I have learned that I must schedule everything on the calendar to block out the time and make sure the prep gets done.”

Read more: Why Monday Meetings Make All the Difference

Set concrete goals for the future

Mainly working with residential clients and on lawn care projects, Ziehler has made his mark in the industry as an organized leader. He not only schedules for the short term, however. A natural planner, Ziehler even has definitive goals for the distant future. When Ziehler jots down his plans, he works to make them become reality.

“We plan to grow about 30 percent each year,” Ziehler explains. “We have been able to hit this goal for the past three seasons and plan that this will continue. Our BHAG [big, hairy, audacious goal] is by 2030 we will make 25,000 lives more enjoyable.”

What’s your Monday motivation? Let us know in the comments below.