Components Of A Well-Planned Day

A well-planned Saturday at home basically involves having food in the refrigerator and Netflix. But for the rest of the week, especially on work days, the plan needs to be better in order for my family and me to survive.

Survival basically means that none of us have harmed each other, we all ate and exercised, homework and paid work was done, and we didn't make tomorrow absolutely miserable by piling on mess from today.

There are some components of a well-planned day that help harmonious survival to be possible. The components include schedules, tools, task lists, notes, routines, and a meal plan. In my example below, all of them are written down on one page. But, depending on your real life, you might only need to write some of them.

*Schedules

Scheduling every second of your day is way overrated, time-consuming, and, in my opinion, crazy. (This should not imply in any way that I never choose crazy. I certainly do things that even I know are crazy, pretty much daily. But I am here to help you succeed, not fail. So do as I say and *mostly do* instead of following my questionable bad examples.)

That said, a schedule is necessary. It tells you WHEN you need to be doing WHAT and WHERE. If any of those components are in doubt or unusual, write them down.

I can just jot CP and know that I need to leave for carpool to the kids' school, without writing the where. But an appointment across town might require an address.

My schedule includes set time events. In the example above, that includes carpool and a funeral.

It also includes unusual changes in the routine. Because I am reading at the funeral, I need to get dressed for it in the middle of the day. That is unusual, as I would usually wear the same clothes all day.

Finally, the schedule includes very important tasks that need to be scheduled. Yoga class has to be scheduled because it is only offered a couple of times a day. Exercise is worth planning and scheduling. Work has to be scheduled because, even though my schedule is not set, I have to work a certain number of hours a week and, without scheduling, they wouldn't get done.

For some people, the schedule is so routine that only deviations need to be written down. For example, people who work every week day from 9 - 5 need not write that down. Back when that was the case for me, I did not use a daily page for my schedule.

For others, like those who have client appointments all day, the schedule might be extremely detailed. They might need an entirely separate page just for the daily schedule.

*Tools

Tools basically refers to my list of what needs to leave the house. (See the blue stripe in the pic below.) My yoga bag, my laptop case, my work tote, snacks, water, changes of clothes...if it needs to leave the house, it goes on the list.

Again, if you always bring the same things, you only need to write the unusual. My days really vary, with three part-time jobs, volunteering, and work out groups. So I always list everything.

*Task Lists

You need to know what MUST be accomplished.

I add things that I want to accomplish, but that isn't required. I like having it all on the same page with schedule, but when my life was less insane, I used different pages.

*Notes

Notes aren't always necessary. But, sometimes, you need notes about what is happening.

*Routines

Routines only need to be on your planner if you are starting (and learning) new ones or forgetful about them. I am the latter.

*Meal Plan

If you are a chef who can whip something up from whatever you have on hand, or single and eat in the cafeteria, don't bother. But for the rest of us, a vague idea of what we are going to eat really does help.

Etcetera.

Beyond A Calendar: New Ways To Use Your Planner

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Yesterday I was stuck in a dollar store, browsing to kill time while my husband and children got hair cuts next door. The store had a display of calendars. Understand, none of the calendars were anything that I would actually purchase. But I like to examine the features.

For example, "mom" calendars these days have separate little squares for each family member. This confuses me. 

Mom either needs to know because she is driving/cooking/chaperoning/dressing the kids or she only needs an FYI - in my mind that means two columns are needed, not a random five columns. And what if she has more or less than three kids? I used a Daytimer Family Plus for a while, but the squares were a waste for me. (I loved the layout otherwise.)

What I really focused on, though, were the little pocket calendars. They are about the size of a checkbook and have little sayings or designs on the outside. Inside, they are simply a monthly calendar.

Honestly, for a person who has no stressful planner needs - doesn't input appointments on their cell phone, isn't running a household, isn't a student, and uses something like Outlook at work - one of these would likely succeed in keeping track of a schedule. Add a pretty, tiny notebook, and you might survive the world with a pocket calendar. Maybe. 

But a pocket calendar, or a wall calendar, for that matter, simply cannot do what a planner can do for you.

This is my favorite pocket calendar (not like the ones in the dollar store)..

A smart phone might work, if you use it in all the ways that a person can use a planner and if you aren't a person who learns from writing things down. But it would take a lot of work, strategy, and input. I, personally, don't like a lot of work.

A planner, on the other hand, is a tool instead of a mere calendar.

With a planner, you can go so far beyond a calendar.

*Mind Dump

Experienced planners know what a mind dump is - taking everything that is bothering you or keeping you worried or awake and dumping it onto a piece of paper. Mind dumps are not a new idea. Counselors have suggested for decades that you write down your problems before bed (or at 3 a.m. when you wake in a panic). But instead of their silly notepad next to your pillow idea, try your planner.

Valuable ideas, thoughts, and reminders have been lost on random sheets of paper. If you dump your thoughts, but fail to dump them in a place where you can process them later, they are gone. How can you rely on that?

I brain dump directly onto my dashboard (a blank page at the very front of my planner).

*Brainstorm

Brainstorming is different than a brain dump. Brainstorming is purposeful and generally limited to a particular topic.

If I am thinking of ideas for a blog, I might brainstorm.

At the beginning of setting up any project, I brainstorm. 

For example, for Christmas, I need to think of everything that I need to plan. Gifts, Santa, wrapping paper, parties, travel, decorations...everything gets brain dumped, but it's a topic-specific dump, without much filtering. Then, I organize the ideas and create a project.

*Sketch

Sometimes, you need a visual of a project. How long will each step take? What order should the outline of the legal memo take? A planner gives you an instant notebook, available to you whenever and wherever you are.

*Draw

A smart phone doesn't let you draw a picture of what you are envisioning. Now, I know that many of you are not artists. But for those who need a visual, paper has a strong advantage over technology.

I don't draw beyond a rogue doodle, but I sketch charts for goals, to visualize progress.

*Note

At a meeting? Meeting with the teacher?

A planner is an excellent place to take notes. I suggest a two-column approach.

*Order

A planner allows you to put initial tasks, subsequent tasks, and follow-ups in that order.

That's pretty hard to do on a smartphone.

*Organize

A planner lets you separate appointments, tasks, notes, and projects.

*Achieve

I'm been trying to lose weight for a long time. The only thing that is helping me achieve that goal and actually working? My planner. 

I open it to log calorie intake and exercise. I make notes about what I can do to burn calories in limited time and which snacks are yummy and low-cal.

*Record

A planner gives you a place to record the confirmation number when you book a hotel, that you owe your sister $10, and that it's time to get your hair colored.

*Plan

Finally, unlike mindlessly entering tasks or appointments on a cell phone, and planner, by its nature, helps you actually think about and plan what you will do. You have limited space and have to make decisions on the front end, when you are thoughtful, instead of in a rush later.

If you enjoyed this posts, don't forget to read my other popular posts (in the right sidebar).

Etcetera.

Using A Planner On An Empty Day

Warning: today's blog post has one isolated instance of naughtier-than-usual language. Proceed at your own risk.

(You KNOW you are still reading. Shame on you! :) )

Tomorrow morning, a Saturday, is a rare day for my planner. The Saturday square on my monthly events/appointments calendar - empty! 

Just a blank square, with nothing that I HAVE to do for the whole entire day.

On one hand, I plan to watch a season of Gilmore Girls (thank you Netflix!), read some trashy romance novels, and maybe work on one of my own books (none of which are even close to ready to submit for publication).

Maybe I'll make some "slutty coffee" (which is the VERY INAPPROPRIATE nickname one of my best friends gave to my cafe au lait with a splash of hot chocolate, LOUD ENOUGH FOR THE WHOLE COFFEE SHOP TO HEAR). (Yes, shouty caps were completely justified.) Or I might go for a walk.

But my planner is not a useless part of this gloriously relaxed day.

I have some things that I would like to get done, maybe. (Perhaps drinking that naughty coffee would help.) (Truly naughty coffee would have a shot of whiskey, right?)

In addition to a potential task list, my daily MUST DOs are on a sticky note. Honestly, I could skip one little day of those and survive, though.

I'll also use my planner as we run out of groceries, to add to my list.

And my project pages will be where I record my calories and workout. Saturday is my cheat day, but I still like to track.

I might use my weekly menu for dinner ideas or my notes section to look up at-home exercise days. I might like the author of my book and jot a note about that on a book ideas page.

A planner is not just a calendar. It's a working tool intended to help you accomplish, remember, and, yes, even relax.

Etcetera.

Do Famous People Use Planners?

Sometimes, in the planner community, you see a rash of "did you see that Filofax in XYZ movie?" or "so and so uses a planner!" But, seriously, do the rich and famous use planners?

I do most of my blogging based on my own life. Unfortunately, I am not rich. (I've never wanted fame. Plus, check out those Cajun eyebrows. Nobody EVER became famous with untamed brows like that!)

But I would guess that a lot more rich and famous people use planners than people think. After all, they are successful (mostly, except Paris Hilton, who is just lucky), busy, fashionable (usually), and can afford expensive bags with lots of room for a planner. Planners probably fill a need to reflect and think that is important to their lives.

(You guessed it. If I were rich, I'd buy planners, bags, and someone to clean my house and drive me around. Oh, and a Truth Teller. Everybody needs to be TOLD, at some point, and do I really want that awkward moment when I TELL them? No, I don't. Hence, the Truth Teller.

"You are an uncoordinated, thoughtless fool who cannot seem to park between the lines."

"Write it down, Genius, or you'll forget again. Your brain is mush."

"No, you cannot get Ebola by talking to your cousin from Dallas on the phone."

"You called at 2:30 ON A SATURDAY. Are you insane? People nap at 2:30 ON. A. SAT. TUR. DAY. Do I need to speak slooooooooower for you?"

"You deserve that rash. Karma."

Truth Teller pays well, by the way, since I'm rich.)

One can dream.

Etcetera.

Bonus Post: I'm Blushing

A very sweet blogger at Planner Fun wrote this today.

I write this blog as a form of thinking and self-therapy. I write this blog to connect with the planner world. And I write this blog in case I help someone.

Guess I did help somebody.

{Blushes}

Etcetera.

Don't Organize That

How many articles have you read about organizing?

1? 2? 3? 4? 5? 6? 7? 8? 9? 10? 100? 1,000?

I am obsessed with reading about organizing (and writing about organizing and learning about organizing) (and planner porn, which is totally worthy of its own parentheses).

I learn a lot in my research. I incorporate lots of tips into my day. (Use totes. Have a launchpad. Write it down in your planner. Sort by color/style/size.)

But I also practice self-control.

(I looked through all of my archives for one picture of something in my life that is actually organized. I found this menu plan board. That IDEA lasted a week. A week! I plan meals while at coffee shops or in the grocery store - not at home. So this did NOT work for me, no matter how good the article was.)

Because, seriously, just because the blog says to organize does not mean that you HAVE to organize it. (See? I should listen to me.)

That's right. If your cluttered toothpaste/floss/hand cream/cotton ball drawer is working for you, no need to go out and get baskets at the dollar store.

As a personal example, my closet has phone covers mixed in with hairspray. It doesn't sound like it works, but the phone covers are rarely used and take up space that I am too short to reach. The hairspray, used daily, is at shoulder level. It works.

Don't waste time, money, or space organizing things that aren't bothering you just because someone else says to fix them. They are not broken.

Instead, make a list of problem areas. If something looks messy, or you are losing stuff, or your hairbrush is with your toothbrush and there are hairs in the bristles (gag), organize it. Otherwise, don't.

Etcetera.