Anyone who has met me in real life (and many people who have only met me in the virtual world) knows that I’m a planner person. At any given time, I probably have at least one planner in my bag, and that’s not counting journals and apps. Without a solid system in place, I melt into a puddle of anxiety and literally can’t accomplish anything.
I’ve heard so many people tell me, “Planners just don’t work for me. I already know everything I need to do — why do I need to write it down, too?” And, while I can appreciate that some people really don’t need to write down their daily agenda, the fact is that most people do have it written down… Just maybe not the same way that I do. (And that’s OK!)
The truth is… There are many different ways to plan, and if yours is working for you, that’s wonderful. But, if it’s not, I’ve got a few tips for how you can redefine your system and get it working for you instead of against you.
What do you rely on most?
Although we planner nerds have a habit of making “fresh starts” whenever the mood strikes us, the best “fresh start” will utilize some of the same tools we’ve used before, perhaps refined to be even more helpful.
Think of your 2019 system, and what works for you. Chances are there is something about your current system that calls to you… That’s why you started using it in the first place! Step one of redefining your system is figuring out which parts of your current system are non-negotiable.
For me, that means weekly spreads. While I use monthly and daily pages, too, I can do without them if I’ve got a good weekly page. I used to insist on vertical weekly pages, but recently I discovered the Day Designer layout. This particular layout incorporates two sections per day: One for your schedule and one for your to-do list. This is perfect for me because, while my schedule may be set weeks (or months) ahead of time, my day-to-day tasks often aren’t planned until the night before.
What did you think you needed, but never actually used?
So many planners these days try to cram in as many features as they possibly can. To the novice planner, this seems amazing — with so many groundbreaking goal-setting activities, how can you not be successful using it?
The reality isn’t so cut-and-dry, though. Planners that are overloaded with features tend to sit unused on a shelf because they’re overwhelming. Too many to-dos on the page doesn’t magically create a life of balance. It just ends up feeling like more work, and when some of those features aren’t even being used, it can cause even more anxiety. (The truest planner nerds among us tend to dwell on unfinished tasks, and a page full of them before you’ve even written your schedule in can be intimidating.)
For me, the feature I often gravitate toward (but rarely actually use) is the habit tracker. When I first got back into planning, I obsessively made long, detailed, gorgeous habit trackers. However, about halfway through the month, I’d get overwhelmed by how many boxes I’d missed, and I’d end up scrapping the whole thing. (Counterproductive, I know.) The simple, yet elusive solution? Stop trying to do habit trackers. They work well for some people, but I am not one of those people. So, my planner for 2020 doesn’t have one.
What’s your budget (time and money)?
In the past ten years or so, the options for an organization-savvy planner person have absolutely exploded. No matter how much time or money you have, there are options at every price point and every level of customization. Bigger planner companies are partnering with cheaper companies like Blue Sky and making budget-conscious planners that have many of the same features as the more expensive brands.
If you’ve got a ton of money but not a lot of time, pre-printed planners might be your best bet. An hourly layout makes it easy to mark down exactly when you’re busy and when you’re free, while monthly calendars make it easy to plan recurring events and bills. Likewise, digital planners can make the best use of your time by automatically syncing across your devices and your computer, so even if you forget your printed planner at home, you’ve still got access to everything.
If you’ve got a lot more time than you have money, DIY planners can be a lot of fun while also making the best use of your limited funds. Digital planning systems, such as Google Calendar and Any.Do, are free and offer a reasonable amount of customization. Bullet journals can be made for cheap, especially if you buy a good notebook on clearance, and by far offers the greatest level of flexibility — as long as you’ve got the time to set it up.
I’m lucky enough that, while our budget isn’t huge, my wife knows how important it is for me to be on top of our schedule, and for me that’s easiest on paper. I do backup planning digitally because it makes it easier for my wife to check in on the schedule, but she knows there’s always a paper copy tucked away in my purse.
What does your schedule actually look like?
Everyone has their own routine, and for a long time, ready-made planners didn’t necessarily reflect that. If your week started on a Monday, but you live in a Sunday-start country, your chances of getting a planner that started on Monday were pretty slim. Now, most planners offer you the option of starting on Sunday or starting on Monday. I used to prefer a Sunday-start because it gave me the chance to set up my week (that actually started on Monday) at the start of my week. However, these days I prefer a Monday-start. My week still starts on Monday and I still plan on Sunday night, but with a Monday-start planner, I don’t start my week feeling like I’m already behind.
Planners have more than one “start point,” though, and it’s worth factoring in how often your year resets, too. If you’re using your planner mostly for school or college, an academic-year planner might be best; these usually run from August through July, rather than January through December. If you know you’re only going to use your planner sporadically (or if you “year” is liable to reset more often than once a year), an undated or refillable planner might make the most sense. Whichever “year” style you choose, rest assured: You’re allowed to change it if something else suits you more.
(Also, getting a planner that’s already past most of its “year” may be the most cost-effective solution for testing a new planner. Many companies offer deep discounts once the planner is at least partially obsolete. This means academic planners will be cheapest when the January planners drop, and January planners will be cheapest when academic planners are just about to drop. Undated planners don’t usually have any rhyme or reason for when they go on clearance, so if that’s your preferred style, just buy it when the mood strikes you. 😉 )
How well do you know your goals?
I touched on this a little before: planners these days come with a ton of goal-setting activities. For those who don’t know how to define their goals well, this can be a lifesaver. However, if you’re already “grandfathered in” to a particular goal-setting method, changing your method just so it matches a new planner can be inefficient. Keep this in mind while you’re browsing through the different goal-setting methods.
Some planner companies will even let you try out their goal-setting pages for free before you splurge on their planner — try checking their website for a page that says “downloads” or “printables.” These are cost-effective for the planner company because they don’t have to spend any of their own money to create them; the pages are already made for the paid-planner, and the user pays to print them at home. This is also cost-effective for the customer because you don’t end up buying a ton of planners you don’t need just so you can check out the “extras.” It’s a win-win!
Where will your planner “live”?
One aspect that’s often overlooked is the “home base” for your planner. Some people use their planners mostly at their desk, while others use them mostly on the go. Your planner’s “home base” will tell you a lot about what you need from your planner. Spiral binding can make it easy to keep your planner open to the page you need, while a sewn binding and elastic closure makes it easier to keep your planner closed when not in use. A soft cover might make your planner lighter if you plan to carry it everywhere, but a hard cover will make it easier for you to write without a hard surface. No two people have exactly the same needs out of their planner, so it’s up to you to decide what works best for you.
My planner “lives” in my purse, but gets taken out almost everywhere. I personally have no preference between hardcover or softcover (that is to say, my preference between the two changes on a somewhat regular basis, LOL), but I strongly prefer sewn binding, elastic closures, and ribbon bookmarks over spiral binding, plastic covers, and clip-in bookmarks.
When all else fails… Just buy the planner!
Okay, so maybe this isn’t exactly the advice you were hoping for, but it stands to reason that, if you’re drawn to a particular planner, the only way to really know if it’s for you is to try it out. Ideally all planners would let you try them out before you drop the cash, but if that’s not an option, just buy it. Worst case scenario, you find out you didn’t like it as much as you thought you would — and that’s OK.
Now, I know those of you on a strict budget might be a little upset with me here, but let me explain. Planner peace is so worth it, and sometimes the only way you can find peace is to discover what doesn’t bring you peace. Even the most expensive planners I’ve personally seen are under $100 for an entire year* and those ones tend to come with a much higher quality than the cheaper ones. Realistically, though, you can probably think of a million other things you do every day that cost more day-to-day than your planner might. (For a bit of perspective, a $100 planner — exceptionally high-cost — still works out to less than 30 cents per day. Most planners fall closer to the $20-50 range, which works out to 5-15 cents per day.)
If you have any more 2020 planner questions, feel free to drop a comment! What system will you be using next year?
*= I actually looked up the most expensive planners and immediately felt way better about my own planner purchases. If you’re having some trouble rationalizing cost, go check this page out and breathe easier!
Semi-Planned Chaos 