Audit the past 12 months of calendar data — rate each…

When This Fires

• Annually, when planning the next year's major commitments and projects
• When you notice being consistently overwhelmed during the same months each year
• When planning project timelines that span multiple months
• Complements Forecast high-demand capacity from last year's same-period… (reference class forecasting for seasonal periods) with the diagnostic that identifies the periods

Common Failure Mode

Planning based on current energy: "I feel great right now, so I'll commit to 5 projects for Q4." But Q4 is historically your highest-demand quarter (end-of-year deadlines, holidays, family obligations), and last year's Q4 was a crisis. Your current feelings are not predictive; last year's data is.

The Protocol

(1) Pull your calendar data from the past 12 months. Include work commitments, personal obligations, travel, holidays, and any recurring seasonal events. (2) For each month, rate it: Low-demand (had surplus capacity, finished early, picked up extras), Baseline (normal pace, met commitments without strain), High-demand (stretched thin, some things slipped, felt pressured), Crisis (overwhelmed, dropped commitments, burned out). (3) Look for patterns: do certain months consistently rate high-demand or crisis? These are your predictable pressure points. (4) Map the next 12 months using the pattern: "March is always high-demand (tax prep + Q1 close), December is always crisis (holidays + year-end)." (5) Use this map to pre-adjust commitments (Make at least one structural adjustment before each…, Reduce commitments ~30% during high-demand months vs…) and schedule recovery (Schedule recovery proportional to intensity immediately…) before the pressure arrives.