How do you prepare for your day?

Just for fun, I responded to an application question (one of those on-line job-search things; I'm not really looking for a new job, just wondering who'll bite). So, assuming that the question above pertains to a day of work, here's what I answered:

The day planning really begins at the end of the previous month (in turn influenced by the year's strategy). At the end of the month I identify the most important outcomes that I need for the coming month, then I design and schedule activities to produce them. This will give some kind of weekly skeleton of a schedule (I try not to make things too detailed and tight, it results in inflexibility and unnecessary stress).

With this in place, at the end of the week (anywhere between Friday and Sunday depending on my mood) I set out to plan the coming week. For this purpose I've used a number of tools (both software-based and pen-and-paper); right now I'm just using Microsoft Outlook, as I enjoy it's feature of sending email to meeting participants as you schedule your meetings and what not.

I begin with identifying the key outcomes I want for the week, then design activities that produce it (involve the resources as I go along). Once I've come up with the activities I plot the schedule. If the resources (people, facilities) cannot be confirmed at the time. I make this my first task on Monday.

The logic behind this is that I don't want to compromise these activities when the urgent and important things suddenly appear over the course of the week (and despite the best efforts of humanity and general, emergencies and surprises still occur).

This schedule will and does look still wide-open when it gets plotted on the calendar, and I enjoy the feeling of being "ready for anything" that having such a loose schedule allows. During the course of each day, new activities are plotted on the calendar.

The best times to work on the calendar for me is near the beginning of the day, after reading my mail, and once again at the end of the day, after taking into account all the meetings and resolved work. This effectively sets up the next day.

This kind of planning allows me to be leisurely in the morning (as is my wont).

I wonder if there are others who go about their time the same way.