Is it time to get your personal and creative life in order? If the answer is yes, it may be time to use one of the simplest tools on earth: the planner.
Planners help us stay organized, accomplish our goals, and plan for the future.
While I am a fan of my Google calendar, Trello, and Meistertask, I still believe there is something special about writing in my planner.
Keeping a planner to organize your creative life has many benefits, especially if you have a lot going on.
I used to think I could keep everything organized in my head. But the more I had on my plate, the more I had to remember.
Over the years, I have tried many planners — Franklin Covey Day Timer (my first!) to Erin Condren Daily Life Planner to the Cultivate What Matters PowerSheets.
Once I learned how to make planners work for me (see also ‘How to Use a Daily Planner Effectively‘), the more I was able to accomplish, especially in my creative life.
Planners are a great way to manage what’s going on in your life. Plus, studies show that using a pen can better process information and increase our learning ability.
My planner helps me organize my projects, task lists, ideas, goal lists, wishlists, and anything else I need to document.
But how do you use a planner to keep organized? In today’s post, I outline nine steps for organizing your planner to help you manage your personal and creative life.
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost, if you purchase using the links.
Step #1 — Find a planner that fits your personal and creative life
The right planner can make all the difference in helping you stay organized. But how do you know which one is best?
There are many planners to choose from — monthly planners, bullet journals, academic planners, daily planners, annual planners, and more (see also ‘Best Self Planner‘).
Because I have so much on my plate as a business owner, author, editor, and coach, I use a printed planner and a Google calendar.
Get a planner that works for your needs. With so many styles of planners on the market, it shouldn’t be hard to find one that best suits your needs.
I believe you should use one planner for everything. However, I know some people who like to use one planner for their business life (like for their full-time job) and another at home for their creative life. If this is you, no shame. Do what you need to do today to keep moving forward. But ultimately, you may find it easier to move everything to one planner.
Step #2 — Schedule deadlines, events, and appointments
Next, write your meetings, deadlines, events, and appointments in your calendar. This way, you can track exactly when things need to be done and what days you are busy. You can reference your planner each morning and know what is expected of your day.
I like to record this information as I plan for the entire year. But I also add schedules, events, and appointments to my planner monthly, weekly, and daily.
Step #3 — Create task lists for everything
You should always reserve a planner section for a to-do or task list. I used to keep this information in my head, but as I got busier, I had to devise a different system.
Whether grocery shopping, tidying the house, or making creative products, jot it down in your task list and check it off once you’re done.
If you keep your planner with you at all times, then as soon as you have a new commitment, you can write it down to ensure that you don’t forget.
Step #4 — Categorize your tasks
I always find it best to categorize my tasks. This allows me to focus better on each task and ensure that I am making progress on all fronts. This ensures that I am taking care of all aspects of my life and not letting any one area fall by the wayside.
The categories that I use to organize tasks are:
- Business,
- Faith,
- Medical,
- Self-care,
- Home life,
- Connections, and
- Fun
Step #5 — Prioritize the tasks within your task list
Creating a task list itself will keep you organized for sure. You’ll have everything you need to do in one convenient space.
However, if you’re anything like me, it’ll take no time for that list to become overwhelmingly long.
How you prioritize your list can be up to you; some people work best with color-coding tasks, while others prefer using symbols or numbers.
In his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey popularized a theory from President Eisenhower called “The Decision Matrix.” This matrix consists of four boxes that describe different types or levels of importance and urgency. The quadrants are:
- Important And Urgent
- Not Important But Urgent
- Important But Not Urgent
- Not Important And Not Urgent
These labels can help solopreneurs and creative entrepreneurs identify what they should think about, not waste unnecessary thought or energy.
Step #6 — Add time assignments to your tasks
One way to stay on top of your tasks is to add time assignments. Estimate how long each task will take and assign a time slot for each one. This will help you better map your day and ensure you’re using your time effectively.
To keep track of everything, I use color coding. For example, a yellow dot by a task may mean I have a day to complete a task, whereas a blue dot may mean I have a week.
Step #7 — Start all tasks with a verb
This may seem a little pointless initially, but I promise it helps. Reading your task and knowing immediately what it will involve pushes you to do it that little bit easier.
So, for example, instead of writing’ rent,’ write ‘pay rent’ or instead of saying ‘social media,’ write ‘post social media graphics.’
It’s a small thing, but it works!
Step #8 — Create a top-three list for the day
If you have a lot to do in one day and find it stressful to look at a long list of everything you need to get done, try using the top three rule.
For each day of your planner write down the top three most important tasks/goals for your day that you need to achieve.
Once you have done this, you can move on to the other tasks if you have time. But you’ll know that you’ve prioritized the main objectives of the day.
Step #9 — Use the two-minute rule
One thing that has kept me organized is sticking rigidly to the two-minute rule.
And by this, I mean if you are about to write down a task or job that takes two minutes or less to complete – do it immediately.
Suppose it will take you as long to write it down as it is to do the job on the spot. It would help if you did it done immediately while you remember.
Final Thoughts
There are so many different ways to organize your planner, and it’s important that you find the one which works best for you.
If you need more inspiration, check out Haley Cairo’s video on how she organizes her calendar and planner.
Also, feel free to share any tips that work for you.