Working Your Plan

My love of planners and colored pens and stickers dates back to my junior high school days. Chandlers. Anyone remember those? I grew up on both coasts and landed in the middle for high school so Chandlers might have been a regional thing.

I loved writing my to-do lists and assignments and social activities in different colors. Even then, there was something very satisfying about putting a line through completed tasks.

Chandlers gave way to At-A-Glance (I preferred the Weekly At-A-Glance) and then The Planner Pad (more on that in a minute.) Classic analog methods for recording appointments and activities and tasks that needed to get done.

When I started traveling a lot, it became necessary to go digital with my appointment calendar. It was just too hard to schedule something on the fly with a paper calendar sitting at home on my desk. Google now knows where I’ll be and when (as if adding my calendar is the only reason Google knows!) For a couple of years, I still kept the paper calendar, but I finally simplified my life and gave up the paper calendar. However, a paper planner is still very much part of my daily life.

Last week in my blog about Time Wasters, I addressed the sticky note junkies out there: I’ll urge you again to find yourself a notebook, or a planner to write those notes in. You’ll have a permanent record that the task got done and you’ll have that satisfaction of crossing it out (instead of just tossing the sticky note when it’s complete – or worse yet, losing that sticky note and either never completing the task, or forgetting that you did it and doing it again!)

Planners and electronic methods for keeping track of our lives have certainly evolved and become more sophisticated over the years. It seems in the last five years, there has been a plethora of newly minted “perfect planners.” I succumbed – and purchased – many of them.

“Achieve more while doing less. The Full Focus Planner allows you to focus on the work that matters so you can achieve your goals.”

“Get more done, feel better. Panda Planner is a scientifically designed daily planner that will empower you to take back control, reclaim your happiness and flourish in every way.”

“Why Be Just Busy When You Can Be Good Busy? Say Goodbye to Overwhelm & Get Your Good Busy On! Good Busy Planner is a personal organizer that has been carefully designed to help you stay organized, bring clarity of thought, draw attention to the necessary, and maximize your good busy whether you are a student…”

I was introduced to mind mapping and goal setting and daily intentions and priorities and master task lists. There were places for me to write notes and list things I’m grateful for. If only I were disciplined enough to sit down every morning (or the night before) and focus for twenty minutes and fill in all the required blanks on those pages! I just could never make it a priority.

On a practical note, the more prompts that were included on each page, the smaller the space to write my answers. Not all of these planners laid flat on my desk, so it was hard to jot down a passing thought. I didn’t last more than about six weeks with any one of them.

I tried electronic versions – Evernote and Goals on Track. I even learned that I could “cross” things out on my Evernote to-do list. Not nearly as satisfying as using a pencil (or colored pen), but visually it achieved the same effect.

I lasted about two years with my Bullet Journal (BuJo). “The Analog Method for the Digital Age.” I love the concept – and harking back to my Chandlers days, I bought washi tape and stencils and stickers to get my creative juices flowing. Some of the spreads in their Instagram feed are truly spectacular. The idea of the BuJo is to basically have a mind dump and put all your to-do tasks on a page by week or month (I chose month). At the end of your chosen time frame, any tasks that aren’t completed would be transferred to the next month or crossed off as unnecessary.

In his book, 15 Secrets Successful People Know about Time Management, Kevin Kruse calls to-do lists “nagging wish lists.” They cause “unnecessary stress.” He maintains that “highly successful people don’t have a to-do list…if you truly want to get it done, schedule time for it.”

In other words, put it on your calendar. Schedule a chunk of time to get those tasks done (he does not however, really explain where those tasks are written down, i.e. a to-do list). I agree, scheduling a block of time daily, or several times a week to tackle your to-do list is a great use of time. It makes planning easier and will help you avoid feeling like you’re always one step behind.

                                  Plan your work and work your plan.
                                                                                             Napoleon Hill.

Last month, I came full circle and returned to the simplicity of The Planner Pad. Since it can be ordered to begin any quarter, I was able to begin now.

“Get organized and get your life back with the planner that’s guaranteed to work. With our exclusive funneling method, nothing slips through the cracks. Your life becomes more manageable and less stressed, so you accomplish more.”

It sits flat when it’s open on my desk. I can use my colored pens without them bleeding through the pages. When I need to make a note to remind myself (or someone else) to do something four months from now, I can easily turn to that page and make that note.

I don’t feel guilty (or “less than”) for not filling all the boxes that those other planners wanted me to complete (because, like I said, The Planner Pad is back to basics – it’s not asking me what the best thing was about my day…)

I use it as a glorified to-do list, but because of the way that it funnels, it’s easier to work my plan and get everything done in perfect timing. (I believe timing is always perfect. We’ll explore that more next week in this space.)

How do you keep your to-do list? Do you write it down? Or keep it all in your head? Do you wake up in the middle of the night panicking because you forgot to do something? Are you a sticky note junkie (and have you now been inspired to change your ways?) Please share what works – and what doesn’t – below.