I previously asked if anyone would be interested in a post about my planner usage. Turns out, many people are interested. Lauren & Alexandra invited me to link-up with them today and share a little about my methods.
My last three planners (2017, 2018, 2019) have been Plum Paper Planners. I love PPP because they have SO many choices. You can do a horizontal or vertical option, you can get prioritized pages, you can get student or teacher or mom-specific planners. Options are endless.
Their planners are durable and come in different sizes. You can pick from multiple front cover options and add customization like your name, initials, etc. You can make the inside colorful or neutral, & you can chose what month to start with, & you can chose the duration of the planner (12 to 18 months). You can also add organizational pages for home, baby, wedding, blog, chores, bills, scripture, exercise, and many many more.
So… as far as my planner goes, I order the 7×9 horizontal planner with two-sided days, the colorful layout, and my name + the year on the cover. I also add a bill pay chart at the end of each month. In the past I added sticker sheets but I have a lot left over from the last 2 years so I didn’t for 2019.
In the future I think I’d like to add more but for now this works really well.
My new planner has coffee mugs and fresh, empty pages. To better illustrate my organizational habits I’m going to take pictures of my 2018 planner. Let’s start at the beginning…
(Click on pictures to see them larger.)
There is a basic calendar in the beginning of the planner. I mark birthdays and holidays but otherwise don’t use these pages for much.
Next is SPECIAL DATES
After each month is over I go back through the month and jot down important or noteworthy events. This is helpful when I go to scrapbook our marriage years.
The next page is IDEAS. PLANS. GOALS.
Here I write down the yearly and seasonal goals I am working on.
Now we finally get to the months. For past months I clip them together. When I’m in a current month I use a paper clip to mark the week:
We’ll use April 2018 as an example month…
The first page of the section is dedicated to goals, important dates, and lists for things happening this month. Sometimes it’s blog swap lists or book challenge lists. In December this is where I keep my Christmas shopping list. In April it was a “money owed” (to me! lol) list and a menu for Easter (which we hosted).
The next page is the overall month. I use long stickers or washi tape for trips.
On this page I also list my blog posts. Since I post on Tuesday & Thursday I number the column and add titles as I write them or think of them. I check them off once they’ve been scheduled/posted.
This is a relatively light week but….
My weekly to do list is up in the box (top of left side page). Our dinners are in the shaded box to the right of each day. My scheduled blog posts are also in that box on T/Th. I use sticker icons when appropriate.
The last two pages of the month are dedicated to books and bills, lol.
I keep track of what books I’m reading, what I’ve finished, and what I’ve logged on GoodReads and on the blog for Show Us Your Books.
On the bills side, I list them as they come in, check them off once the check has been sent or the payment has been scheduled, and mark them with a dot once the money has left my account.
In April I renewed PicMonkey, got my hair done (Exodus), and paid the dog sitter (Anna).
Ok… moving on. (If you’re still with me, HIGH FIVE!)
The back of the planner has some dotted pages for notes. I just list all the trips and goals we might like to accomplish over the year.
There’s also a page for passwords, contacts, and a calendar for the following year. On that future calendar I tend to mark appoints/weddings/events that I’ll want to jot down in my new planner once I’ve ordered it.
And that more or less sums up how I organize my planner! I keep a separate (monthly) planner for work related stuff. That one is just filled with deadlines, employee schedules, and work trips.
If you read this whole thing- thanks! If you have any questions on my planner style- fire away!
Thanks for hosting this link up, Lauren & Alexandra!!
