You are busy.

December can feel a bit frantic. From end-of-the-year business wrap up, to wrapping up all the holiday gifts (or finding time to even buy them…thank you Amazon Prime!). Your to do list is a mile long

I get it.

Most of us just dive into to getting those things done, yet we get to the end of our day and we don’t feel successful, no matter how much we do. And even more than feeling successful…you want to feel fulfilled. You want to finish the year with intention, not frustration.

I have 3 clear steps that you can do right now to ensure that you finish today and the year with intention.

Get out a blank sheet of paper and your favorite pen (great office supplies for the win!)

Step 1: Pick a Non-Negotiable

Moms are notorious for putting ourselves at the bottom of the list.  Even when we learn to prioritize our businesses, our own needs and self-care can fall even further down the list of to dos. So, start your list with one thing you are going to do just to make you happier, healthier and more balanced.  It can be as simple as “eat a proper lunch.” Commit to a 15 minute walk alone, get yourself to that barre class you’ve been meaning to try, or even a vow to go to bed early tonight (that’s mine!)

Pick one thing that is just for you and make it our number 1 priority today.

I know there are so many other things to do this time of year, which is why we need to prioritize ourselves even more. To finish the year strong, you’ll need to recommit to setting a non-negotiable goal just for you, but we’re going to do it one day at a time. So what are you doing for you today?

Step 2:  Set your intention with your kids (and the logistics around that intention)

On Tuesday, my 5 year old daughter looked up from her ipad (while I finished a few work things for the Plan Like a Mother challenge) and said;

“Why are your working so much?”

I’ll admit it hit my heart a little, but then I reminded her (and myself) that this was a big project I was wrapping up, so we could have lots of special time without work during her winter break.

PLAM wrapped up yesterday so today, my intention with my kids is to be present when we are together.

This time of year, (but really all times of the year) it comes down to logistics (or lack thereof). If I know clearly what I need to get done and when it is going to happen, then I can explain it to them and I can stick to my intentions more closely.

By having the logistics sorted out ahead of time, it’s easier to be present with my kids.

Think about the rest of your day today. Whether your kids are with you all day or whether they have somewhere else to be for part of the day, think about how you want to feel, act and embody when they are around today. Maybe it is “calm” or “happy” or “less stressed.”

Then ask yourself what steps you need to do beforehand to make you feel that way. Maybe planning a moms’ night out for next week, will help you feel less stressed tonight (even if kids are bouncing off the walls!) or perhaps deciding what you are having for dinner right now will help you feel more “calm” this afternoon. And maybe you decide that to make things logistically possible, you’re skipping the Gingerbread Village today or the holiday craft at the library even though it sounds fun, because that makes life less stressful. Know how you want to feel and make a plan to get there.

Step 3: Get Real About Your Time

With your personal non-negotiable and your intention with your kids set, we move on to the logistics of getting stuff done.

Look at your calendar right now and add up the amount of time you have to work on your business to-dos today.  Write that number down.

Now look at your master to-do list and star the 1–3 must do items. But before you move them over, think about how long each of those tasks are actually going to take, add up that time and write that number down.

Do your two numbers match?

If the time you need to complete your must dos for the day is greater than the time you have to work on your business today…you are not going to have a successful day.

AND it is not because you have to get ALL THE THINGS done in order to have a successful day, it is the way you’ll feel when those two numbers are out of alignment.

Look back at your intention with your kids. Will you feel “present” if you feel like you have to get back to your computer to finish up that last task?  Will you feel “calm” if you know you have more to do?

Probably not.

So, the first thing you’ll do to make more time…is to drop that non-negotiable, you figure you can finish your shopping in place of that class. You’ll take care of you tomorrow. But to finish the year with intention…that’s not going to work.

Look at your to do list and your time available again.  What can you realistically and confidently complete off your task list in the time you have? 1 tasks?  The first 2 pieces of a bigger project? Can you break down one task even more, so that you can move forward, even as you end the day feeling successful.

Even though getting real about what you can accomplish can sometimes feel like you’ll never move forward fast enough, I promise this method will help you feel more successful in your business and your mom life and ultimately that feeling will propel your business and your home life further ahead that you think.

By getting real about what you can accomplish each day, you get clear on what you can compete by the end of the year. You keep you on your schedule and get more intentional about everything you do.

Tell me in the comments:

• What is your non-negotiable today?
• What is your intention with your kids today?
• How much time to you realistically have for your business tasks today?

The Mama CEO Planner is designed put all your business and home tasks and events in one place to help you stay intentional—there’s even space to make sure you focus on you. The 2017 Mama CEO planner is almost sold out.

Get yours here.