Planning is a never-ending task during construction. Although the saying, "if you plan hard you can work easy," is true, that doesn't mean once the work starts the planning stops. It is an everyday chore that must be done, and when it is done well it saves thousands of dollars, hours, and headaches. So, while it takes time and effort to plan it is worth every second. After all the initial plans: getting bids, having detailed house plans and specs, having a good organization system for paying bills, comparing prices, and contracting subs, you have the daily planning that makes every thing move smoothly and without incident.

If you plan daily, you will get far better results than if you plan initially and stop, or if you plan monthly, weekly, or some other way. Plan daily and see results.

So, what should you do each day when you plan? Start by each evening taking a few minutes to plan for the next day's work. This is not really something you can do in advance as you won't know until that day what is finished and what isn't, especially since in construction set backs happen all the time. Planning for the next day might include putting in a few reminder calls to subs to ensure they show up and on time. It might mean making a list of which materials you need for the work that should be done that day, then checking to make sure you have all of the materials, that nothing has been misplaced or stolen.

Checking your materials is a big part of daily planning. Finding out what you have and what you need before you need the materials is going to save you money because it means you aren't going to pay people to sit and wait for you to get back with the items they need to do their job. A little bit of pre-planning on materials will make things flow smoothly, and save you money.

You will also want to be sure that you have a commitment from each and every sub you need for the next day's work to show up, and that you placed the reminder call and sent a reminder email so there is no excuse for them not being there. Also, if there is a sub you thought you would need, but it turns out you are not ready for them yet, part of your daily planning is being courteous and letting them know that you aren't ready for their services yet, and give them an idea of when you will be.

So, in summary, each night take the time to review your over-all plan, find out if you are on task for the whole picture, then plan the daily things that will make everything work to your advantage, get your materials in order, your subs called, and a good night's rest.