The Daily Plan is a practical technique
for reducing mental stress and tension, anxiety, and provides you with a means of getting your thoughts in order before sleep
so that you can begin to overcome insomnia.
This is a method of
putting things-to-be-attended-to on paper, rather than trying to remember them, and of reducing the unnecessary mental activity
of continually 'going over things in your head'.
The Daily Plan helps
you manage both your time and your thinking by enabling you to prioritize your activities, think more clearly about them and
reduce unnecessary self-talk.
Using the Daily Plan
is an excellent way to begin your stress-management program because by planning the day ahead you have a greater sense of
order and a better chance of achieving more.
You also feel more
in charge of events rather than at the mercy of whatever occurs. It is true that things will occur that have not been anticipated
in your Plan. This is especially likely in the first couple of weeks of using this method. But with practice you will be able
to anticipate and include more of the things that are likely to crop up. And you will become more skilled at allowing sufficient
time for the unexpected.
With the Daily Plan
you invest about 10 minutes each evening in order to list everything that needs your attention the following day. You will
get an excellent return on this investment.
When you have your
day planned on paper:
- You don't have to keep your mind `on the go' all day long - continuously
going over things in your mind, reminding yourself about things, or worrying whether you can fit everything in.
- You avoid creating or adding to a sense of on-going urgency
- You will find it easier to mentally relax, switch off, and enjoy recreation time during the day
- You are able to utilize your unconscious mind - to mentally rehearse and ready you for what is ahead.
- You are better able to ensure that thoughts about different topics do not contaminate one another
- You are better able to switch off in the evenings and forget about the next day.
- You make it less likely that, at night, you will spend time lying awake trying to decide what and when and how to do
things the following day
- You have an internal image of what you will do next day and when you will do it - this reduces the amount of self talk
- You have a sense of order in your day and are more likely to go through your tasks more easily and systematically
- You have a daily reminder that, through this course, you have made a new start and that you are
taking charge of your own mind.
