Free template

Daily planning template

Use this daily planning template to choose priorities, organize tasks, track habits, capture loose thoughts, and close the day with a short reflection. It works as plain Markdown, and it becomes a running record when the same loop lives in HourLife.

See the daily planner →

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# Daily Plan

Date:

## Start the Day
- Today's intention:
- Energy level:
- One thing that matters most:

## Priorities
1.
2.
3.

## Tasks
| Task | Linked goal/project | Focus block | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| | | | |

## Habits & Routines
| Habit/Routine | Done? | Note |
|---|---|---|
| | | |

## Capture
- Loose thoughts:
- Follow-ups:
- Ideas:

## Close the Day
- What got done?
- What changed?
- What should move to tomorrow?
- One thing worth remembering:

How to use this template

Start with one intention and no more than three priorities. The goal is not to predict the whole day perfectly. The goal is to know what matters before the day starts pulling at your attention.

Use the capture section while the day is running. If something new appears, write it down before deciding where it belongs. That keeps planning from turning into constant re-planning.

At the end of the day, close the loop. Move unfinished work deliberately, keep one useful reflection, and leave tomorrow morning something to start from.

What belongs in a daily plan

A daily plan stays usable when it holds a small number of parts:

One intention for the day.
Two or three priorities, not a full backlog.
Concrete tasks, each small enough to start.
The habits and routines you actually intend to keep.
A capture space for anything that arrives unplanned.
A short end-of-day close.

If a section stays empty for a week, delete it. A template you fill in is worth more than a template that looks complete.

How HourLife supports this

HourLife maps this template onto the app's daily workflow, so the plan is a live surface rather than a file you rewrite each morning:

Today for the active daily plan.
Brain for quick capture.
Tasks for one-off commitments.
Habits and Routines for repeated behaviors.
Focus for protected work sessions.
Journal, Gratitude, Highlights, Mood, and Energy for reflection.
Markdown export for a readable daily record.

Related workflows

All templates → Daily planner app for iPhone → End-of-day reflection template → Habit tracker with tasks →

Common questions

What should be in a daily plan?

A useful daily plan includes your main intention, two or three priorities, concrete tasks, the habits or routines you intend to keep, a place to capture anything unplanned, and a short end-of-day review.

How long should daily planning take?

A few minutes. If daily planning regularly takes longer than that, it has become another task instead of a tool, and the template is probably asking for more than you will use.

Should I plan every hour of the day?

Only if time blocking genuinely helps you. For most people, an intention, a few priorities, the day's habits, and one protected focus block are enough structure.

Can I use this daily planning template on paper?

Yes. It is plain Markdown, so it works in a notebook, a text file, or any notes app. An app version helps mainly by carrying unfinished work and habits forward without retyping.

What do I do with tasks I did not finish?

Move them deliberately rather than automatically. Decide whether each one still matters tomorrow, belongs to a later week, or should be dropped, then write it into tomorrow's plan.