Planning Backwards: The Simple Shift That Changed How I Work

For a long time, my days looked full.

I had lists. I had plans. I had good intentions. And yet, I kept ending my days with the same feeling. I was busy, but the important things kept getting pushed to tomorrow.

Not because I wasn’t trying.
Not because I didn’t care.

It was because the way I was planning my day didn’t actually protect what mattered most. I used to plan my days by starting at the beginning.

What do I need to do today?
What’s urgent?
What’s already scheduled?

By the time I answered those questions, my day was basically decided for me.

The tasks that required the most focus, the work that actually moved me forward, were always the easiest to push aside. They didn’t demand attention. They didn’t have hard deadlines. They just quietly… waited.

And because they waited, they were the first things to go.

Planning forward sounds logical. It’s how most of us are taught to manage our time. But for me, it created days that belonged to everyone else’s priorities before they belonged to mine.

Emails, messages, meetings, and small requests filled the space first. By the time I got to my own work, I was tired, distracted, and running on whatever energy was left.

I wasn’t failing at productivity. I was failing at protecting my priorities.

One of the biggest shifts came when I stopped trying to force myself into a schedule that didn’t match how I actually work. I started paying attention to when I’m most creative, when I’m best suited for admin or repetitive tasks, and when my brain simply needs a break.

For me, my mornings are where my best thinking happens. That’s when I’m most creative, most focused, and most capable of doing work that requires depth. Protecting that time became non-negotiable.

Admin work, repetitive tasks, and things that don’t require as much creative energy fit better later in the day.

Meetings also have their place, but I learned quickly that late afternoons are not it. I don’t schedule meetings then. That time is reserved for wrapping up, lighter work, or shutting off altogether.

Once I stopped treating every hour of the day as equal, everything changed.

What I’ve learned about myself is that I need structure to feel momentum.

Checklists work for me. Being able to check off what’s important is how I know I’m actually moving the needle, not just staying busy. When the right things are on my list, I feel focused and grounded.

But that only works if the list is built with intention.

When everything feels equally important, nothing actually moves forward.

Everything changed when I stopped asking, “What do I need to do today?” and started asking:

What needs to be done for today to feel successful?

Instead of building my day from the start, I started planning backwards. I decided what mattered first, before everything else tried to claim space. This simple shift helped me take back control of my time and energy.

This is what planning backwards looks like for me:

• I choose one or two priorities that would make the day feel like a win

• Those go on my checklist first

• I block time for them during my most creative hours

• Admin work and repetitive tasks get scheduled for lower-energy windows

• Meetings are placed intentionally (never at the end of the day)

• Everything else fits into whatever time remains

If it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t get added. If something new comes in, something else has to move.

This one change removed a huge amount of decision fatigue. I stopped constantly re-evaluating what to work on next. Looking back, the biggest change wasn’t my calendar or my to-do list.

It was the feeling that my day belonged to me again.

I wasn’t constantly reacting. I wasn’t ending every week wondering where the time went. I stopped planning around how much I could squeeze in and started planning around what actually mattered.

And that shift changed how I work. More importantly, it changed how my days feel.

If you’re busy but still feel behind, planning backwards might be the simplest shift you haven’t tried yet.

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Michelle Gallant

Author | Creator | Advocate for a Fulfilled Life

Cover Image Captured by: Amanda Rentiers Photography