Planner Peace
Listener Tara sent in an audio planner peace segment! Loved hearing about her system. Keep the PP submissions coming – I’m hearing so many unique combinations of digital + paper.
Current Lineup
Top to bottom:
Hobonichi 5 Year Journal
Hemlock & Oak Undated Weekly (affiliate link here; use code BLP for 10% off)
Full Focus Daily (sort of hidden in this pic – affiliate ink here; use code SARAH10 for 10% off)
Cultivate What Matters PowerSheets Goal Planner
Notiq Pencil Case
Paperian sticky notes
As mentioned, here’s my Full Focus repurposed reading log:
Idea: Planning with Partner
Elisabeth sent in a rec for the Parenting Junkie Create Vision program for those looking for guided long-term planning worksheets to do with a partner. Very interesting idea!
Fixing Mistakes
My tactics? Sticky notes (see above) for tentative events, and otherwise just a neat arrow when something is rescheduled. As I noted – you can’t be perfect on paper!
Ring Bound Ideas
I delve into standard sizing (A5 = 6 rings seems to be one industry standard across brands). Brand mentioned: EC A5 Ring Agenda, Cloth & Paper, Notiq
Planner Anxiety
Very interesting audio question from a listener who gets anxiety seeing all she has to do in a day. I question whether she is putting too many things on her plate for one day — certainly that would make me anxious, too! If not, perhaps a strategy might be just writing out a rough schedule and a daily big 3. Since she likes to keep a running log of what was accomplished, the Full Focus above might be a good option, or Sprouted – their projects are designed to take away planner anxiety & stress!
Keep the Q&A coming! Love these as well as the Planner Peace being shared. As always thank you for listening — need to figure out what would be a fun blowout for Ep #100!
Episode Sponsor: Gusto! Gusto’s modern HR platform makes it easy to hire, pay, manage, and support your employees — all in one system of record. If you’re ready to experience a new bar for HR, get three months free at gusto.com/sarah
14 Comments
I was having trouble picturing the reading tracking page, thanks for including a picture. I think I will have trouble with this kind of tracking, because of the need to write the title every day. Currently I’m only tracking start and end date for each book I read. I tried tracking it daily, but since I often read in bed before going to sleep, I forget to mark it in the following day.
I have been enjoying tracking my reading in the bottom of the monthly Habit/Routine Tracker section in my Wonderland222. Pretty sure I stole this idea from you? I just list the title on the left, and then if I read that book that day, I put a little dot in that day’s column. I like the visual of seeing mini-streaks, or not. I also decided to put a triangle around the dot on the day I first started the book, and then on the day I finish it, I draw a little square around my dot. Just helps me to see the start/end date more quickly at a glance.
(That lower half section would probably not work for someone who reads….very prolifically… but since I only read a few books per month, if I’m lucky, I have more than enough space. Could probably read well over double the books I do, and still have room left.) I’m in there checking off the rest of the habit tracker anyway each day, so it’s so easy to just jot down if I read or not, too. I fill it out the following morning, for the previous day.
I only use erasable pens in my Full Focus Planner, I have a set of different colors that I use for different goals.
Which do you use? Pilot Frixion?
Pilot FriXion Point Knock 04 Gel Pen are seriously the best. They write super smooth like any gel pen and are not too thick or thin.
Oh no i just ordered a different Frixion to try!
If you loved the Juice Up pens (in my top 5!), the Point Knock are very similar and imo the best erasable pen out there.
Seeing Tranquility by Tuesday made me so excited that I had to go pre-order it on Amazon.
I use Pilot Frixion pens in my Rifle Paper weekly and Day Designer daily.
Thanks for a great episode Sarah!
Do you or does anyone when the Softbound life planners will launch? I love mine on the inside but really dislike the cover design. I am hoping that EC or the Focused line comes out with new ones with more modern /simple designs or better yet, just solid colors!
I use an Erin Condren LifePlanner and sometimes find that I have allocated too many tasks for a day, or that one or more days have to be totally re-planned (usually due to preschool closures, but I imagine there are many non-COVID ways this could happen). Some of the EC sticky notes are exactly the same size as my planner sections (in the vertical weekly) and I use them to cover up whatever I’d previously written and start over. This is a very specific solution, but I would guess a lot of brands have something like this. There’s something very freeing about giving yourself a blank square in a previously messy spot…
Thank you for answering my question!! I’ve been traveling and just read your podcast notes today and thought “oh my goodness that’s me!” Haha, your answer was really helpful:)
Hi Sarah – great episode. I love these ones that touch on a bunch of different areas.
Since finding BOBW and BLP, I started using YNAB because of your recommendation (LOVE IT) and am looking at Todoist. Would you mind sharing an overview of how you actually use Todoist, please? Thank you so much!!
I know I’m late to this conversation, but i have to say regarding mistakes, if I have to rewrite over the mistake, I use regular old wite out tape. If I don’t need to write over b it, I just strike through it and move on. Perfection is not the goal.