Simple + Stress-Free Tips for Setting Up a New Planner

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a paper planner junkie.

I’m not even sure when it started. Maybe high school? For sure I remember having a planner in college where I’d write in all my class times and work schedule. (I also remember being “so busy” back in those days. Bless.)

My point is, I’ve spent a lot of years trying out different systems and styles when it comes to setting up a new planner. I’ve learned I need simple, I need actionable, and I need a system that allows for flexibility because #life. Same for you, lady? If so, this post takes everything I’ve learned and rolls it into simple + fun ideas to get you started!  

Keeping a planner can sometimes feel like another thing we have to do. I hope this post makes the process easier for you and helps give you some clarity on how a daily planner can actually work for you, not be another item on your checklist.❤️

A few notes before we dive in:

1. The planner I use is Emily Ley’s Simplified planner, but you don’t have to use the same one! This is just what I’ve found works best for me. I’m not an affiliate in any way either, just a raving fan. 😉 (Sidenote: I’ve also noticed that she partnered with At-A-Glance to offer less expensive planners where we all shop: Target! You can check them out here if interested.)
2. I also like to keep my planner VERY SIMPLE. I’ve had planners in the past that leave room for mantras, recording water intake, tracking workouts, meal planning, to do’s, appointments, etc. etc. etc. If this is for you, then by all means, jump in! But what I know about myself is that trying to keep track of #allthethings will just burn me out. Planner clutter = Mind clutter to me. My stance is to keep things SIMPLE + ENJOYABLE.
3. Having said that, I fully believe that we can use our planners in different ways. Here, I talk about how I use my planner to help keep me on track towards my goals. At the end of this post, I’m also going to list a few ideas of other ways you can use your planner. My hope is that this post will spark a little creativity and get you thinking about how you can use your own planner to get the most out of it.
4. Last, don’t forget to use trial and error to discover what works for you! I believe a planner should be a personal thing. It should work FOR you, not be an exact carbon copy of what someone else is doing. So don’t be afraid to get your planner a little messy till you figure out a system that works for you!

Ok, now that we have some ground rules set, let’s dive into the “how to” of setting up a new planner.

First, analyze the previous year.

I haven’t always done this. Normally, I like to just dive into the year ahead and get excited about all the new possibilities. What I’ve learned, however, is that if we don’t take the time to analyze what systems/habits/ideas/dreams/goals are working and what aren’t, it’s pretty tough to create anything new. So. To provide some examples, let me share a few things that worked and a few things that didn’t from August 2020 through July 2021:

What worked:

1. Sticking to my morning routine. When I get up at the time I say I’m going to get up, my day just. flows. better.  
2. Picking up/cleaning the living room and kitchen every night. Less physical clutter = less mental clutter for me. I don’t need to conquer every room in the house (’cause you know the play room in the basement is an absolute PIT), but I can tell my stress levels are MUCH lower when I wake up to a clutter free living space in the morning.
3. Slowing down. I’m still not great at this, but man I was sure tired of feeling overwhelmed back in 2019! I feel like I’m (finally) getting better at saying no, delegating, and making time to let my soul breathe.

What didn’t work:

1. COVID. I mean, I couldn’t exactly control this one, but can I get an AMEN?? OMG, 2020!🤯
2. Not getting to bed at an early enough time. When I go to bed late, I oversleep or drag through the next day. Neither option is great. I want to be better at just GOING TO BED.  
3. Not keeping up on the landscaping. This sounds silly, but we have an insane amount of landscaping around our house. If I don’t keep up on it, it overgrows pretty quickly, and let me tell you, it definitely got away from us this year. I’d like to formally apologize to my neighbors. (Whoops.)

analysis

Overall, I feel like I grew a lot over the past 12 months. I’ve gotten better at being more present, slowing down, and stepping outside my comfort zone. I can’t wait to see how this growth continues through the next year! (And also, my evening routine needs some WERK this year. I don’t want to go another 12 months surviving on 6 hours of sleep if I can help it. I’d like to treat myself a little better than that.)

Next up, the bucket list.

This is one of my favorite things to do every year! The Simplified planner has a designated page for this topic, but if the planner you’re using doesn’t, no worries. Feel free to use a blank page or note page in the planner, or even open a word doc to write this out.

The goal is to think through the next 12 months and write down a few big things you REALLY want to do. Your bucket list can range anywhere from goals and accomplishments, to events and trips. As a personal example, I want to be sure to take my kiddos to the lake next summer like we do every year. I also want to take and international trip this next year with the Hubs. (Please COVID, don’t ruin this for me!🤞)

Whatever it is that you want to make sure you do over the next 12 months, fill it in here. Don’t forget to dream a little, my friend. And don’t be afraid to write things down even if they don’t end up happening. I know 2020 wrecked a lot of stuff for us, but I don’t want that to overshadow the possibilities of the year ahead.

As a last little tip here, don’t forget to go back and revisit this list often so you can work toward checking off these items as you move throughout the year.  

Third, insert any birthdays, anniversary’s, and big dates for the year ahead.

If you’re wondering, yes, this can get a little time consuming. I wish I could tell you otherwise! However, I’ve found that having these dates written down in advance gives me a chance at planning ahead.

Additionally, the founder of the Simplified planners, Emily Ley, shares an idea that I also hope to implement this year. She recommends taking a moment at the beginning of each month to grab cards for the these special dates coming up.

I would like to note that I am really, really (really, really, really) terrible at this. I think of the person on their special day, but I don’t always make the time to send a card or thoughtful note. This is something I hope to work on over the next year.

Last, Goals!

I break this down into chunks to make it less intimidating (+ more doable/less overwhelming!)

Quarterly.

One thing I learned in 2020 is that a year is a reeeaaaaallllyyy long time. (amiright?) And so much can change in 12 months! So besides my bucket list of fun things to do over the year, I don’t really set any giant or specific yearly goals. I choose to set goals quarterly instead because I feel like I can at least kinda see 3 months out.

So, each quarter I look back to see what I was able to accomplish, what needs tweaking, and what I want to do moving forward. Sometimes I have to pivot and change plans all together. Sometimes I need a little more time to accomplish a goal. And sometimes I can check something off my list for that quarter (which makes my Enneagram 3-ness v happy!😬)

I think it’s worth noting that I don’t always accomplish everything I set out to! This is tough for an achiever personality type like me. I want to accomplish ALL the things. But I’m learning to slow down, to be present, and to be ok if it doesn’t always work out on my perceived timeline. My new anthem these days: Forward movement > no movement.

Monthly.

At the beginning of each month, I circle back to my quarterly goals and see how I can break them down into monthly chunks.

Then I write down the things I want to accomplish and place it in the sidebar of my monthly layout page in the planner. I also head back to look at the last month to evaluate what worked, what didn’t, and what I was able to accomplish.

Weekly.

Pretty much copy and paste my process for both the quarterly and monthly goals and you can guess what I do each Sunday to prep for the week ahead.😉

Only 2 extra things I want to note and drive home here:

1. Taking a few minutes each Sunday to look ahead at your week and evaluate what you want to do/what happened during the week before IS WORTH IT. Is it nearly impossible to find 15 uninterrupted minutes to sit down and do this? Yes. Yes, it is. So what should only take 15 minutes will probably take more like 30 by the time you help a 3 year old go potty, fix 12,945 snacks, and referee all the sibling squabbles. Even so, IT’S STILL WORTH IT. My brain is just at so much peace when I’ve taken the time to look ahead at my week and write down on each daily planner page what I have coming up.
2. I also pick just 3 main things I want to accomplish in the week ahead. Sometimes it’s an actual “to do” item and sometimes it’s a simple reminder like, “be more present with kiddos.” But that’s it for the week. Just 3 things. Don’t kid yourself, I could make a list a mile long, but to what point? I know I won’t get it all done and I’ll end up chasing tasks instead of priorities.

Daily.

Here’s the thing I’ve found to help me the most (and I talk about this a lot), but I had to change the way I look at my daily to do lists. Each morning, I look at our family calendar, my personal content calendar, and my 3 main goals for the week to decide what really needs to get done today. Then I pick just 3 things and list them under a heading I literally call, “The big 3.”

Beyond that, I will add just a few other to do’s for the day. But I remind myself that these are less important and it’ll be ok if they don’t get done. My main goal is to accomplish The Big 3. 

I also do this early in the morning. If I can take a few quiet moments, sip some coffee, and figure out what my day ahead looks like, I’m much more likely to accomplish my goals and get done what I need to. I promise this doesn’t take me more than 5 minutes every morning and the peace of mind is SO WORTH IT.

Other ways to use your planner.

If goal-setting seems like a little much, that’s ok! As I said, you absolutely do NOT need to set up your planner the same way I do mine. Here are a few other ideas for setting up your planner for the year ahead:

• Track workouts
• Track water intake
• Write down a daily mantra to inspire you throughout the day
• Meal planning
• Family schedules
• Side hustle goals and notes

The opportunities to customize a planner that fits your needs are nearly endless!

Wrapping Up.

And there you have it! If you take nothing else away from this post, I hope you know that finding an organized system that works for you is worth its weight in gold. It may not be the exact system I’ve written about above and that’s ok. I just know that setting up a new planner each year helps me stay focused, organized, and at peace, and I desperately want the same for you, friend!

**OVER TO YOU: What’s one thing you took away from this post that you’ll be trying this year?