How I turn a contract or SOW into a key-dates one-pager

A signed PDF sitting in Drive is not a calendar. It is a trap for missed renewals, forgotten notice windows, and "wait, when was kickoff supposed to be?" emails.

Here is the workflow I use when someone drops a contract or SOW and wants a one-page key-dates sheet they can actually act on.

What "good enough" looks like

• Every date that can move money or risk is on one page
• Each date has a plain-English meaning (start, delivery, invoice, renewal, terminate-by)
• Notice windows are spelled out as "act by" dates, not just "30 days"
• Open questions are listed instead of guessed
• Source clause or page noted so counsel can verify later

Intake checklist

1. The signed (or near-final) PDF / DOCX
2. Which side they are on (provider vs client) — dates feel different from each chair
3. Timezone and "business day" rule they already use
4. Any amendments or email side-letters that change dates
5. Whether they want calendar reminders suggested or just the sheet

The pass order that saves time

1. Skim for date language effective date, term, milestones, delivery, acceptance, payment, renewal, termination, cure periods.
2. Normalize each hit — calendar date + what it means + who owes the action.
3. Compute act-by dates — turn "30 days before renewal" into a concrete day.
4. Flag conflicts — amendment vs base, missing year, "upon delivery" with no SLA.
5. Build the one-pager — chronological list + "next 90 days" callout + open questions.
6. Hand back — sheet only; no legal advice, no rewrite of the contract.

One-pager sections that work

Section	What goes here
Parties / term	Who, effective date, initial term end
Delivery & acceptance	Milestones, due dates, acceptance windows
Money dates	Invoice triggers, due days, late fees (date-relevant only)
Renewal & exit	Auto-renew?, notice length, terminate-by / non-renew-by
Open questions	Ambiguous clauses that need a human call
Source map	Clause / page for each date

Common traps

• Logging the renewal date but not the notice deadline before it
• Treating "within X days of receipt" as a fixed calendar date without a receipt event
• Ignoring amendments that silently moved a milestone
• Mixing "nice to have" marketing launch dates with contractual obligations
• Shipping a pretty timeline with no source map so nobody can verify it

Soft handoff

When the one-pager is done, send:

• The key-dates one-pager (chronological + next-90-days)
• A short list of ambiguous dates that need a human decision
• One suggested next step (add the act-by dates to a calendar, send questions to counsel, or attach the next amendment)

That is the whole job. No full contract review engagement required for a dates cleanup pass.

---

I do this as a 24-hour DFY service for freelancers and small businesses ($12 for contract/SOW → key-dates one-pager). Shop: https://brittanybonds.gumroad.com/l/contractdates — code ADMIN12 for \$2 off. Full catalog: https://brittanybonds.gumroad.com/ and https://brittany-bonds.github.io/