You know you should plan the year, but every time you sit down to do it you end up with a list of 14 vague goals and no idea what happens in March. If you're wondering how to plan your year without buying a fancy planner or spending a whole weekend on it, this is for you.
This post is one afternoon, about three hours, split into five steps. You look back, you put the dates you can't move on the page first, you pick a small number of goals, and you place them on a one-page 2027 calendar so you can see whether the year actually fits.
TL;DR
- In one afternoon you end up with all of 2027 on one page, with fixed dates, three goals and four review dates.
- Put the dates you can't move in first, because goals have to fit around holidays, school breaks and work deadlines.
- The most common mistake is picking goals before looking back at what last year actually took from you.
Who this is for
- Freelance designer: You can see which months are already full of client work before you promise yourself a side project.
- Elementary school teacher: Your year already has a shape from the school calendar, and this puts everything else around it.
- Small business owner: Launches, busy seasons and your own time off end up on the same page so clashes show early.
- YouTuber: You can plan upload streaks around travel and holidays instead of finding out in week 30 that you're behind.
- Project manager: You get the same year view you'd build for a team, but for your own life and goals.
Before you start: what to have open
Set aside three hours. Have these open or nearby:
- Last year's calendar (Google Calendar, Outlook or a paper one).
- Your phone's photo roll, scrolled back to January.
- A copy of Big Year, the free one-page 2027 calendar in Google Sheets. The BIG tab shows all 12 months on one page and every day is a cell you can type in.
- A notes doc or a sheet of paper for step 1.
Step 1: Look back for 30 minutes
Scroll last year's calendar a month at a time, then the photos. Don't judge anything yet. Just answer these, one line each:
- Which week of last year would you happily repeat? What was in it?
- What took far more time than you expected?
- What did you say yes to that you'd say no to now?
- Which month felt like it disappeared?
- What did you keep putting off, month after month?
The answers to the last two questions are usually where your goals come from. The answer to the first one tells you what a good week looks like, which matters more than any goal.
Step 2: Put the fixed dates in first
Before any goal, add the things you can't move. Open the SETTINGS tab in Big Year and type in the dates. They highlight on the BIG tab automatically. It starts blank, so you add your own country's holidays, school breaks and company days.
A starting list for 2027:
- Public holidays. In the US that includes Easter Sunday on March 28 and Thanksgiving on Thursday November 25.
- School terms and breaks, if you have kids or teach.
- Birthdays and anniversaries you plan around.
- Work dates: busy seasons, conferences, fiscal year end, renewals.
- Trips that are already booked.
Step 3: Pick three goals and give each one a season
Go back to your step 1 notes. Pick three things, not ten. For each one write the goal, why it matters, and the season it mostly lives in.
Giving a goal a season is the step most plans skip. "Get fit" lives everywhere and nowhere. "Train for a fall race, with the base miles in June to August" has a place on the calendar. "Launch a paid newsletter" might be January to March, because Q1 is 90 days with only two US federal holidays in it after New Year's Day.
Step 4: Place the big rocks on the page
Now type onto the BIG tab. A big rock is anything that takes a week or more, or that other things depend on: a launch, a trip, a move, a training block, a week off.
Then look at the whole page. With all 12 months visible, two things show up fast:
- Clashes. A launch in the same week as a school break, or a trip right before a deadline.
- Gaps. A month with nothing in it. That's either a rest month on purpose or the best place for the goal you haven't placed yet.
Move things until the page looks like a year you'd want to live.
Step 5: Book four review dates and print it
Type a short review into the last day of each quarter: Wednesday March 31, Wednesday June 30, Thursday September 30 and Friday December 31. Put the same four dates in your phone calendar with a reminder.
Then go to the DOWNLOAD tab and make the PDF. It comes out landscape, fit to one page, with no gridlines. Pick Tabloid (11 x 17 in) or A3 if it's going on a wall, Letter or A4 for a desk or binder. Tape it somewhere you'll walk past every day.
Common pitfalls
- Starting with goals. Do the look back first, even if it's only 30 minutes, so goals come from what actually happened.
- Too many goals. If you have more than three, put the rest on a "maybe in Q3" list instead of the calendar.
- Goals with no dates. Every goal needs at least a start week and one checkpoint on the page.
- Forgetting the fixed dates. A goal that ignores school breaks or your busy season will break in that week. Add them in SETTINGS before anything else.
- Planning once and never looking again. The four review dates are what keep the plan alive. Put them in your phone, not just on paper.
FAQ
How long does it take to plan your year?
About three hours works for most people: 30 minutes looking back, an hour on dates and goals, and the rest placing things and adjusting. You can split it over two evenings.
When should I plan the next year?
Any time from late November to mid January works. Earlier is better if your fixed dates, like school calendars or conference dates, are already published.
How many goals should I set for a year?
Three is a good number for most people. It's enough to change something and few enough that each one gets a real place on the calendar.
Is a one-page calendar enough to plan a year?
For the big picture, yes. Use the one-page year for the big rocks and keep your daily calendar or planner for appointments and tasks.
Does Big Year include holidays?
It starts blank. You add the holidays and school dates that apply to you in the SETTINGS tab, and they highlight on the calendar automatically.
Planning next year? Get the Big Year, a free 2027 calendar in Google Sheets.
