We all know the familiar catchphrases about good planning.
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
“Plan your work and work your plan.”
“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”
Planning connects to our culture so much that we spend an astounding $386 million on planner books and organizers annually. Yet for many children, teens, and adults, developing practical planning skills continues to be one of the barriers to success. It’s one of the most critical executive functioning skills to prioritize with diverse learners to start teaching now.
Why are planning skills important?
In earlier articles, we’ve covered the basics of planning skills and the connection that deficits in executive functioning can have on challenging behaviors. As a reminder, planning skills inform our ability to identify and manage tasks in the future. They include identifying future tasks and events, setting goals to complete them, and analyzing the steps needed to complete the task ahead of time.
For a clear picture of how these abilities typically develop from infancy through adulthood, see our Executive Functioning Skills by Age Guide.
Practical planning skills create a sense of control and allow us to complete tasks more quickly and efficiently. When we plan carefully, jobs go smoothly, allowing us more time for fun and relaxation. Likewise, when we don’t have a plan, frustrations rise, tasks take longer, and tasks may even be finished incorrectly.
The 10 Planning Skills Everyone Should Learn
After you complete an assessment of a learner’s executive functioning skills, note that planning skills may look different depending on age, current skill level, and experience with independent planning. The skills below show a progression—beginner, intermediate, and advanced tasks. Focus on identifying where support is needed right now, then gradually expand to more complex goals.
1. How to identify an end goal
Start by encouraging the learner to identify the end goal of simple tasks. Ask about the end goal of putting away belongings (“so the room is clean”) or of daily living tasks like going to the car wash (“so the car gets clean”). Ensuring a learner can identify the end goal of a task is a prerequisite skill for learning to plan the intermediate steps.
2. How to identify the main idea vs. minor details
Some teens and adults with unique learning needs get hung up in the details of planning and miss the big picture. Before beginning executive skills like planning, you may need to boost the communication skill of articulating the central concept vs. minor details. Use familiar movies, video games, and books to talk about main ideas; then move on to main idea vs. small details in scheduled daily activities.
3. How to use a checklist
Hundreds of different sources cite the value of using checklists. From the United States military to Fortune 500 business success, humans from all walks of life find value in creating a list of tasks and visually marking them off when completed. It seems like a simple concept, yet many individuals with unique learning needs struggle to create checklists independently and use them functionally. Start by practicing how to use a checklist with the steps of familiar tasks. Then graduate to using a list of steps with new responsibilities. Once the learner can independently check off steps and move to the next one, start working on creating checklists.
4. How to order simple activities
As part of using checklists, you may need first to teach your learner how to order the steps of simple activities. It’s challenging to teach planning skills if a learner struggles to know which actions go in what order. Have the learner write out the steps or use visual cue cards to order the steps of everyday activities (getting a car wash, preparing a favorite meal, ordering in the drive-through). Encourage explaining the cause-effect relationship when sequencing steps and why they should go in a specific order.
5. How to use a calendar/planner
Once someone can demonstrate the order of a task and use a checklist to complete steps in order, introduce the concepts of time and pre-planning tasks. For many learners, it helps to start with a daily calendar first, mapping out the steps for one day rather than overwhelming them with multiple days or weeks of tasks.
We’ve developed hundreds of different calendar/planner systems because there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Observe for several days and get a sense of which calendar tool helps the learner stay on track. Does it make sense for it to be on a mobile device? Paper and pencil? Is it helpful to sync with your own calendar to share updates, changes, and reminders? Choose the tool most likely to help your learner succeed, not necessarily the one you prefer.
6. How to set reminders
As a learner masters ordering steps and using a calendar, start teaching the value of reminders as a planning tool. Teach teens or young adults to be more planful by setting smartphone reminders or using a well-placed note. Encourage trying several options and offer support when a reminder proves helpful. If a critical task or deadline is missed, use it as an opportunity to teach better reminder strategies.
7. How to use visual maps, drawings, and diagrams
Now that the learner has more experience with planning concrete tasks, start working on planning tasks without clear steps. One strategy shown to enhance executive functioning is creating visuals, including mind maps, drawings, and diagrams. These visuals can help create order from less structured activities and assist when needing to prioritize tasks or decide what to do next.
8. How to use the ‘next best step’ strategy
For some learners, the breakdown in planning doesn’t happen with identifying tasks—it’s in prioritizing. In this case, focus heavily on goals and strategies that help identify the next best step or what’s immediately most important. Try brain dumping, or listing all the steps in a task and then ordering and selecting the most important or next step.
9. How to communicate a plan
As your learner progresses, don’t miss the opportunity to practice effectively communicating about plans. How many challenges occur because a learner failed to articulate a plan—or that a plan exists at all? Ask questions like “What’s your plan today?” or “How are you going to accomplish that?” Provide praise when a great plan is created independently. If articulating the idea is tough, return to checklists or visuals to help explain steps.
10. How to manage when things don’t go according to plan
Although this final skill overlaps with the executive skill of shift, it’s still essential. Flexibility—or moving forward when things don’t go according to plan—shows advanced planning and prioritization. If teens and adults can learn to pivot rather than get bogged down when steps change, it improves success at home, school, and work.
Strategies to Teach Planning Skills
If you’re ready to dive into helping someone improve executive functioning and planning skills, consider these key strategies. They may help avoid common stumbling blocks and set the learner up for success:
Collect baseline information
Before starting any teaching strategy, gather information about how the learner currently uses planning skills. Jumping into a training program without a baseline might mean targeting the wrong skill or addressing it in a way that isn’t useful.
Create a SMART goal
Work together to develop a SMART goal about using planning skills. Keeping age and current skill level in mind, select a goal that captures both the starting point and the desired level of performance. Focus on writing a goal that has a strong “why” and meaning for everyone involved.
To help generate goals, download our PDF worksheet for planning goals.
Find motivation and common ground
If a learner doesn’t already demonstrate planning skills, evaluate motivation. Is it something they can do but don’t care to? Or is it something they don’t yet understand how to do? Ability and motivation require different approaches. If motivation is the issue, establish common ground that makes sense to the learner.
Consider video games and digital play
Video games are full of opportunities to target planning skills. If the learner enjoys a preferred game, use it as common ground. Have them identify the end goal of the game or mastering a level, the order of steps needed, and the outcome of planning those steps.
Focus on successes
When working on planning, you’re bound to hit bumps. Instead of being discouraged by setbacks, focus on successes and positive steps. Learners with unique abilities already know they learn differently; concentrating on what they’re not doing well isn’t helpful. Stay focused on what’s going well.
Use visuals and supports
Research supports that checklists, calendars, and reminders help everyone use planning skills more effectively. As you work through teaching different planning skills, focus on building in visual supports. The learner may not always need them, but they can bridge initial gaps.
Regularly step back to re-evaluate
As part of developing a SMART goal, decide on a timeline for stepping back and assessing progress. Document what’s going well and the next steps forward. If you hit a plateau, consider breaking the current skill into smaller sub-steps. Don’t be afraid to back up to the last successful stage before progressing.
Surround yourself with support
For some teens and young adults, boosting planning skills requires an “all hands-on-deck” approach. If you’ve tried these strategies or feel under-supported, consider who else can help. A medical care team or experienced mental-health professional can assist in making informed decisions. Other team members may already be working on planning skills in different ways that could boost your efforts.
One final note: children, teens, and adults all respond well to models of appropriate behavior. If someone you support could benefit from stronger executive functioning skills like planning, be sure to model those behaviors in your own life. Demonstrate the value of a well-organized calendar, checklists, and reminders. Consistently communicate about next steps and how you plan tasks. Real-life examples help learners see planning skills in action as they grow more independent.
Further Reading
- Life Skills Advocate Blog – Help Your Child Develop a Strong “WHY” When Goal Setting
- Life Skills Advocate Blog – How Brain Dumping Can Improve Executive Functioning in Diverse Learners
- Life Skills Advocate Blog – How to Use the Eisenhower Matrix to Help Your Child Plan Their Day
- Seattle Times – Why so many (ahem, millennials) are obsessed with complicated planners
- The Checklist Manifesto – Atul Gawande