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I’ve been asked, “which planner should I buy?” approximately 1,000 times in the last month, and I need you to know two things. First, this is my favorite question, and I will chat with you about it any day of the week! Second, you can check the full list of my favorite planners and planning accessories here. But in this episode, I’m sharing my 2023 planning stack and how I use it to bring order to my business and life.
HOW TO FIND THE PERFECT PLANNER FOR YOUR BUSINESS
I want to start with a disclaimer. A planner will not change your life. Let me repeat that: buying a new planner will not magically make you more productive. The perfect planner is the one that you use! Your planning system and your consistency in using your system will do far more for you than a pretty planner ever will. (And if you’re thinking, “planning system whoobie whatee?”, you should check out The Business Edit™!)
With that being said, you don’t need to spend $50 on a high-end planner to increase your productivity. A simple notebook would do (if you have the right planning system). But aren’t we all just more inspired when we have a beautiful planner? So if investing in a pretty planner with the right layout helps you to actually use the planner consistently… go for it!
With all of the disclaimers out of the way, let’s dive into my 2023 planning stack.
GOAL PLANNER
I’m using my own goal setting system that I have mapped out on Rhodia grid paper, hanging on my peg board above my desk. These are the layouts that will eventually be in my planner for business owners, and I can’t wait to get them into your hands! If you want to be the first to know when my planner line launches, join the planner waitlist here.
WEEKLY PLANNER
I’m a huge fan of weekly planning layouts, but I still plan my top three tasks for each day. The week always runs more smoothly when I outline each day ahead of time. You can steal the weekly planning checklist I use to map out each week here.
Right now, I’m using a weekly Hemlock & Oak planner for my daily and weekly to-do lists. I used a weekly Hemlock & Oak planner last year too, and I love this company! Overall, I’m a huge fan of any planner that provides a grid layout, because it allows me to tailor the planner to my planning system, while keeping everything neat and organized. Sometimes I revert to a graph or dot grid journal, but I don’t like having to set everything up from scratch each week.
I also ordered a Common Planner from Sterling & Ink this year. It was backordered so I won’t be able to test it out until March. I have high hopes for this one though!
JOURNAL
I’m using a Hobinichi Techo Weeks planner with a clear cover as my daily journal. Instead of using the daily slots for to-do lists, I’m jotting down a few sentences about each day. I use the open space on the weekly layout for extra things I want to journal through or reflect on.
I have a big goal to read 100 books this year, and I’m using the extra pages in the back of the planner to journal about each book I finish, including my takeaways and favorite quotes.
Lastly, I’m also incorporating some scrapbooking into it by taping in magazine quotes, ticket stubs, thank you notes, etc. So far, I’m LOVING this journaling system, and I haven’t missed a day in over 6 weeks.
Pens and Highlighters
I stocked up on office supplies from Jet Pens at the beginning of the year and bought a Uni Pin Pen (.28mm). It’s the best pen I’ve ever used and it’s only $1.75. It has a really fine tip which makes it easy for me to write in the tiny Hobinichi grid. It also has waterproof and fade resistant ink, which makes it a great pen for journaling. But honestly, I love it for everything! You can also grab it in a .33mm size here.
I also ordered a neutral highlighter set from JetPens, and I love every single color and style in this bundle. JetPens also has other starter sets you can get to see which brand of pen or highlighter works best for you.
Digital Planning
You already know I’m a ClickUp gal! You can grab the exact ClickUp template I use to organize my business and life here.
Links and Resources Mentioned in This Episode
- My Favorite Planners and Planning Accessories
- My Organize your Business ClickUp Template
- Amanda’s Favorites YouTube Channel
- Best Laid Plans Podcast
- Join the Planner Waitlist
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