Choosing Focus Areas for the month are one of the most fun things you can do in Planning. You’re starting your month with a blank slate and aside from choosing focus areas that are Must Do’s, you can get as creative as you want with your selection or choosing to focus on activities you really enjoy.
This isn’t about doing more—it’s about choosing the few things that make everything else feel lighter, clearer, and way more “on purpose.”
What are Focus Areas
Focus areas are are the categories of life you want to actively maintain, improve, or protect. They are the parts of life you’ve decided deserve attention this month. Focus Areas tell your planner what matters this month. They keep your goals from scattering across too many directions.
The Wrong Way to Choose Focus Areas
A lot of people choose focus areas that look good on paper but feel heavy in real life.
That’s how you end up “focusing” on 12 things and resenting all of them.
- “I guess I should focus on networking…” (but you hate it)
- “I should meal prep like those people on the internet…” (but you won’t)
- “I should become a morning person…” (you are, in spirit, asleep)
Choosing Focus Areas by Subcategories
Map out the life areas into Broad Focus Categories. Then, break the Broad Focus Categories into Subcategories (more specific areas that are narrowed down). I find that goal setting is easier when the focus areas are done this way.
Broad Focus Areas
- Health
- Money
- Home
- Career
- Relationships
- Personal Growth
- Faith
- Creativity
- Education
- Family
These are useful because they offer a view of the various parts of your life:
But try narrowing them down to guide your goals.
Focus Area Subcategories
These are easier to turn into goals and action steps.
Examples:
Health →
- Sleep Improvement
- Strength Training
- Daily Walking
- Stress Reduction
- Meal Planning
Money →
- Debt Reduction
- Budget Awareness
- Emergency Fund Building
- Expense Tracking
- Subscription Cleanup
Home →
- Kitchen Organization
- Paperwork & Admin
- Seasonal Cleaning
- Decluttering
- Home Maintenance
Career →
- Portfolio Building
- Skill Development
- Job Search
- Workflow Improvement
- Networking
Relationships →
- Family Time
- Communication
- Friendships
- Date Nights
- Community Involvement
The “What’s Currently Costing Me?” Test
The easiest way to pick meaningful focus areas is to look at what’s creating the most friction right now.
Friction shows you what needs attention.
- Time friction: you’re always behind
- Money friction: surprise expenses keep landing
- Energy friction: you’re exhausted for no clear reason
- Emotional friction: everything feels “too much”
Pick 1–2 friction points to guide Choosing Focus Areas That Matter.
Choosing Focus Areas by Season
What matters in one season might be optional in another. That’s normal.
Choosing Focus Areas That Matter works best when you pick for now, not for an imaginary perfect future.
- High-demand season: survival systems, energy, basics, stability
- Growth season: learning, career, creative output, expansion
- Repair season: health, finances, boundaries, decluttering
- Joy season: relationships, fun, experiences, hobbies
Prioritizing Your 3 Focus Areas
Since your planner uses three focus areas per month, the key is to recognize that they are not all equal.
One focus usually needs more attention than the others.
Instead of treating them the same, think of them as a simple priority order:
- Focus Area #1 – Primary Priority: the area that deserves the most progress and attention this month.
- Focus Area #2 – Secondary Priority: still important, but it may move forward in smaller or fewer steps.
- Focus Area #3 – Support Priority: something you want to maintain or gently improve while the other focuses move ahead.
This approach keeps your planning realistic. Your week can still reflect all three focus areas,
but the first focus area is where the majority of your progress will usually happen.
When you prioritize your focuses this way, you’re giving your most important priority the space it needs without trying to push everything equally.
Turn Each Focus Areas Into 3 Goals
A focus area isn’t a vibe. It needs tiny goals.
Category: Health
Subcategory: Daily Walking
- Goal: Walk consistently throughout the month
- Goal: Increase weekly walking distance
- Goal: Build a simple walking routine
Category: Money
Subcategory: Debt Reduction
- Goal: Pay extra toward one credit card
- Goal: Track spending each week
- Goal: Reduce unnecessary expenses
Category: Home
Subcategory: Kitchen Organization
- Goal: Declutter kitchen drawers
- Goal: Organize pantry storage
- Goal: Create a simple weekly reset routine
Once your goals are clear, you can list the action steps that will move
those goals forward throughout the month.
Turn Goals Into Action Steps
Once your goals are defined, the next step is to list the action steps that will help you reach those goals. Action steps are the small, practical tasks that make progress possible throughout the month.
If goals describe the destination, action steps describe the road you take to get there.
This step turns your planner from a list of intentions into a list of things you can actually do.
The structure now looks like this:
- Category: the broad life area
- Subcategory: the specific focus inside that area
- Goals: the progress you want this month
- Action Steps: the tasks that move those goals forward
Example:
Category: Health
Subcategory: Daily Walking
- Goal: Walk consistently this month
- Action Step: Schedule three walking days each week
- Action Step: Place walking shoes by the door
- Action Step: Track walks in an app or notebook
Category: Money
Subcategory: Debt Reduction
- Goal: Reduce credit card balance
- Action Step: Review credit card statements
- Action Step: Make one extra payment this month
- Action Step: Identify one expense to cut
Category: Home
Subcategory: Kitchen Organization
- Goal: Declutter kitchen storage
- Action Step: Organize one drawer
- Action Step: Declutter pantry shelf
- Action Step: Donate unused kitchen items
These action steps become the tasks you will select during your weekly focus check-in and place onto your daily pages.
Because the thinking has already been done on your focus pages, daily planning becomes much easier — you simply choose which action steps to move forward this week.
