According to David Allen, we naturally follow the following steps when planning:
- Define our purpose. We define the impetus and boundaries of our plan (why).
- Define our principles. We define the boundaries of our plan.
- Outcome vision. We picture the what: what it looks, sounds, and feels like when our purpose is best fulfilled.
- Brainstorm. Our brain follows this natural process to fill in the gaps of our plan (how).
- Organize. After ideas (components, subproject, priorities, sequence) are produced, our brain automatically sorts these out.
- Define the next action. Identify the next action that will make the first component actually happen.
References
Allen, D. (2015). Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity (Revised edition). Penguin Books.