I live and breathe by my planner. As much as I like to feel adventurous and spontaneous, I also know that if I don't write it down in my planner, I'll forget it. Twice a year, new planners and pens and notebooks grace the shelves of Target and inspire me to organize my entire life: January (New Years) and August (Back to school).
The thing is, planners can get really overwhelming really fast, and can end up getting thrown back on the shelf with several empty months left. This usually happens because A) It just became too overwhelming to use something like that every day or B) It didn't help as much as you thought it would and you feel like you're wasting your time.
Over the past three years, I've become extremely dependent on planners, and I really think they make my day so much easier and save so much time. I use one every single day. Here are the best things I've found to help get the most out of using a planner.
Write everything down. This is the most important thing! I think sometimes planners don't work because we're really just liars (or maybe just extremely optimistic) when we write in them. For example, we'll write:
- Respond to emails
- Schedule blog post
- Conference call
- Get things ready for party.
When in reality, this is what that list means:
- Respond to emails
- All 10,000 of them. Cry a little.
- Schedule blog post
- Figure out what the heck to actually blog about, because I have no ideas.
- Actually write blog post.
- Take pictures for post.
- Conference call
- Take notes during the call.
- Send notes to everyone.
- Scramble to respond to questions asked during call, and send emails answering them.
- Get things ready for party.
- Clean the whole house because I'm having people over.
- Go to the store so they actually have something to eat.
- Cook said things for them to eat.
- Take a shower and try to actually look presentable.
See? Big difference. If you look at the first list, it looks like a deceptively easy day and you can end up wasting most of the day and panicking when it's 6:00PM and you've only crossed one thing off the list and HOW could this happen if you used a planner?!
I write down every single thing I want to get done. From how many glasses of water I want to drink (not joking) to making my bed to sending specific emails. It can feel silly at first, but having exactly what you expect to get done written down in front of you helps you manage your time better. Plus, more things to mark off just makes you feel more productive.
Use a highlighter to mark things off instead of scratching them out. I just started doing this last month, and it's so helpful for when I need to go back and see exactly when I did something. Plus, it makes your planner look neat and colorful, so it's a win-win.
Have a separate "running to-do" list. Whether it's a section in your planner or a notebook or a list on your phone, have a separate area for all the things you need to get done eventually. That way, when things pop in your head, you can write them down somewhere with all the other things you need to do, and you'll also have a list to reference when you're planning your days.
If you can't find a planner that works for you, make your own. Seriously! Everyone is different, and every season is different. If the planner you bought doesn't cut it for what you need, there are plenty of free printable to-do lists online. Put them in a binder and you've got a planner! Or, it can be something as simple as a notebook with the date written at the top of each page. Whatever works for you, use it.
