How I Set Up My Planner

One of the best things about starting a new year is getting a fresh new planner. There are so many amazing organizational tools out there amongst all of the phone calendar apps, but there’s something about a physical planner that is so far beyond any electronic organizational tool. I am the kind of person that LIVES AND DIES by my planner. It’s so soothing to have at least a general idea of what is to come as well as the ability to easily reference back to things I may have forgotten. The satisfaction of crossing something off my to-do list and seeing all of my pretty color-coded events on my calendar is unmatched. I do still use the calendar on my phone for notifications, and after I discovered GoogleCal, I really lost my mind (in a good way). I personally find a lot of my self-worth in productivity (not necessarily a great thing, but here we are), so micro-managing the details of my life saves me a lot of anxiety.

I use my planner to track work schedules and work tasks, social events, appointments, travel, bills and expenses, pay day, holidays and birthdays, daily gratitude, goals and progress, social media posts, order deliveries, workouts, projects I’m working on, and general daily tasks.

The planner I’m using this year is the regular Day Designer. I’ve used their line at Target many times, but this year, I sprung for the hardbound version on their website because of subtle layout differences and for the hard cover. They are a little pricey, but I love it. If you’re on a budget, there are coupon codes online, and the Target Day Designers are just as awesome for a third of the price. Last year I used a Passion Planner and loved the weekly layout, but wanted to switch to a daily planner with lots of room for list making. I love a good list.

I use Papermate Flair pens because I like how evenly and dark they write and they don’t smear, although I do have to replace them fairly often. I use Mildliner Hightlighters to color code. I like the dual tips and the pretty colors! The pastel pack, which I’ve used the heaviest, are just starting to lose their oomph after a year and a half. The colors I’ve used less are still going strong. My planner is also absolutely covered in sticky notes. If I need to keep a running list that will be moved across multiple days, I’ll keep it on a sticky note so I can move it to where I need it and not have to flip back and forth. I write out workouts, projects, and planned posts on smaller tab stickies so that I can rearrange when I need to, and then I will ink it in once it’s completed. I do still use lots of white out tape.

Monthly layouts are pretty standard in any planner. I like the Day Designer layout because it’s simple but pretty and there’s lots of space to write. I like to put big events that are further in the future on stickies in case plans change. Once specific plans are finalized, I will write them in. I use this spread to track “big picture” things that I want to be able to reference quickly, like my general schedule, travel, and birthdates. I color code almost all events in my monthly calendar: Pink for work, yellow for cheer practices and events, purple for workouts, blue for social events, and orange for appointments. I’ll write errands in all capitals and then remember when I went to Target or check when the last time I filled up my gas tank. My favorite thing about color coding is that its pretty. My second favorite thing is that I can look at my month and see what I’ve spent a lot of time on. Did I fit in workouts or did I skimp? The purple jumps out at me and I know. Did I attend a lot of social events, or was I more of a homebody this month? I scan for blue and I know where I need to adjust.

I use the left side column of my monthly spread to make a checklist of goals I want to accomplish that month. It’s usually things like “Complete X project”, “Read two books”, or other specific measurable goals. The margins of my calendar pages are filled with sticky notes of ideas and lists of things I would like to do or be reminded to do. Then when I have a more actionable plan for those projects, I can move them to a specific date in my planner.

The daily layout is what really sold me on this planner. I love having a column for my schedule and a column for a to-do list. I love love love a good to-do list. LOVE. My mind has so much going on in it all the time that it makes more sense just to dump it all out and organize it on paper. I am a visual/kinetic learner, so I need to see and do. My thoughts are so much more organized if they’re right there on paper in front of me. I would be such a mess if I didn’t have a list to guide me and keep me focused.

I use the hourly schedule to block off what my day looks like. I mark off a box around the time that I’m going to be at that specific event in the same color code I use in my monthly spread. For example, if I work that day, I draw a pink line across at 9am and across at 5pm, then I connect the vertical lines to make a box and write the details “Work 9am-5pm” inside the top of the box. If it’s a bigger box and I have specific tasks for during that time (like for work), I will draw check boxes and put my tasks for that time in that box, so I can just focus there during that time. I like being able to visualize how much of my day is taken up by things like work and coaching, because the white space shows me how much time I have for other things like working out, filming YouTube videos, or fitting in coffee with a friend.

The to-do list on the right side is my favorite. There are so many small tasks that need to get done throughout the day that I would forget about if I didn’t write them down. I never ever ever finish the whole list, but at the end of the day, I move my unfinished tasks to the next day, or to a better day in the future when I know I’ll have more time. By Tuesday or Wednesday, I am usually moving a lot of unfinished tasks to Friday when I have half days at work!

The top tasks are great, because I can reserve this top spot for things that HAVE to get done that day. I usually use this spot to fill in my workout and any time sensitive tasks.

The top right corner has more space for tracking things like finances and meals. I use the “Don’t Forget” spot to copy over things from my main calendar, like birthdays or family member travel days, or to jot down that a package will be arriving or we’re having someone come to the house to do maintenance. I love the “Dollars” spot— my goal is to make as many days a big fat ZERO as I can! But I also hate having to reference back to write down how much I spent and where, so I have to really want it to go through the hassle of copying the amount into my planner. It’s a great way to realize that you’re writing “Postmates” in every day and it might be time to go to the grocery store!

There aren’t a ton of note pages in the back of the Day Designer, so I try to maximize what’s there by using them for various trackers. I like to look on Google or Pinterest for free printables to glue into my planner. I currently have this page to track how many books I read this year (I write the titles on the spine and color them in as I go), a mood tracker, and a body measurement tracker. There are so many cool trackers out there depending on what you need. I’ve seen them for bills and debt payoff tracking, weight loss tracking, and more. This is just what I currently use.

I love my planner because it keeps me organized, keeps me accountable, and keeps me sane. Do you use a planner? A bullet journal? Do you prefer an app? Do you prefer to be wild and just wing it? I love anything and everything that has to do with organization and time management, so leave a comment below with your preferences and recommendations for other awesome organizing tools!