A planner can be one of the greatest tools that anyone can use to achieve an organized life. Using a planner keeps the ideas fresh in your mind and can give you a very specific to-do-list. This way you do not forget to do the important things that have to get done because organized mind, organized life.

There are a lot of different planners out there and it may seem overwhelming, but I will break down using a planner into 5 easy steps. Then I will suggest some planners to get you started on your journey to an organized life.

*This post contains affiliate links the full disclosure is here

1) Plan Early

One of the greatest ways to make sure that your day goes smoothly is to wake up a little earlier and plan your day. Over this last week, I set out to do that with a challenge I called the Plan Your Life Challenge. While I was waiting for my Day Designer Planner to come I actually took advantage of the free printouts that are on the Day Designer Site.

It was super refreshing to wake up early and sit on my balcony, drink some coffee or some tea, do my devotionals, and plan my day. It focused me so I knew the exact game plan for that day.

Since I knew the game plan for the day, the day did not seem as stressful, and I was able to accomplish more things than if I would not have written it down.

2) Motto for the Day

Picking a motto for the day also will also make you feel empowered to take the day on. This motto can be a quote that you love a bible verse, or just really a mini-pep talk to yourself.

My main mottos for the day were scriptures from my devotionals over this week. It helped me focus on the things that I needed to over the course of the day.

There were a couple of days though where my mottos were like mini pep talks. I would simply write you’re killing it or slay. These showed me even when I was getting discouraged over all the new things I am trying to do and learn that I am actually doing exceptionally well.

3) Color Code

Color code everything! Adding color will not only bring so much fun and joy to your planner it can also help you see things more clearly. If all of your lists are in the exact same color then you will not be able to see the transitions in your day as clearly.

Many of us wear many different hats and this causes us to have to switch modes throughout our day. Color coding can help you prepare for the different modes that you are moving throughout the day.
The pens that I currently use are paper mate inkjoy ballpoint pens, and they came in a pack with 8 colors. I love these pens because they clip very nicely to the front of my planner. Then I always have them when I need them. Inkjoy gel pens are also amazing. Really any of the colored inkjoy pens you can not go wrong with.

4)Make a to-do-list

To-do lists are the ultimate way to have an organized life. I love my to-do list. I seriously get giddy over the ability to mark things off of my list. If I have made a list for the day and it is the end of the day and something isn’t marked off you bet I am going to try to do that thing.

To-do lists are perfect for this exact reason they motivate you. These lists will make you more likely to finish what you have set out to do in a day. If you are not easily motivated a to-do list is a perfect way to get motivated. If you are motivated a to-do list will just take it to the next level.

To-do lists also help you remember everything you need to get done. For me, if it is not written down it is not getting done. But if it is on my list it will get done. The fact of the matter is if it is not on my list I will forget about it, and I’m sure you forget would forget too.

5) Reflect and Give Thanks

This I have to admit has been one of my favorite things that I have done with my new planner. I have a day designer planner and they have a specific section for gratitude daily and then at the end of the week, they also have a gratitude section (note: not all of their planners have this). This has made it easy for me to reflect on my day and give thanks.

At the end of the day, I also try to look at all I got done for the day. This helps me think that I have accomplished something. Before I did this maybe I would have done a lot but I would not think I did. This then would make me discouraged going into the next day. This isn’t a problem when I reflect over my day and pat myself on the back for all the things that I actually got done.

Then I write down one thing that I am thankful for. This one creates a spirit of thankfulness in my life and it also shows me how many blessings I have. Overall, this practice of reflecting at night clams you and help you get a good night sleep knowing that you got things handled.

Want more articles about an organized life? Check these out!

The One Way to Help Your Child Succeed In School

How to Make Back To School Organization Easy with Two Stations

How to Pack The Best Teacher’s Bag

The Best Planners for an Organized Life

Now that we have the step we need to know the planners to get us there. There are two that I am particularly fond of and those are Day Designer Planners and Erin Condren Planners.

1)Day Designer

I personally have the Day Designer planner and there are so many things that I like about it. I have one of the models that have daily sheets and these are so helpful because they have room above the page where I normally write my mottos. They also have their own quotes on each page. They have a to-do list and notes area.

There is also a space in Day Designer planners for the day to put your top three. These are the most important things that have to get done that day. If these three things get done at least you were able to get all the important things done. Day Designer also has a lot of pretty designs and looks beautiful.

One downfall is that all their designs are not the same. Some are weekly planners, some are daily planners and it isn’t super clear in their names which layout you might get. If you want daily sheets you have to look at the pictures really clearly to make sure the design actually has pages for every single day.

Another downfall is that in the daily planner the Saturday and Sunday pages are condensed into one page and there isn’t as long of a to-do list. For someone whose Saturday is almost my busiest day of work, I would enjoy a whole page like the other days of the week. I understand the notion of the workweek, but for many of us, the workweek is different.

Buy a Day Designer Planner you won’t be disappointed.

2) Erin Condren

Erin Condren has some beautiful planners. The amazing thing about hers is they are customizable. So if you want pages with an hourly breakdown you can have them. If you prefer it to be blocks of space to just write in for the day instead you can have it that way. They make it a little easier for you to make your planner the way that you want it to be.

By far my favorite planner of hers is her teacher planner. It has so many extra amazing pages in it. It is not only a planner, it’s a grade book, communication log, substitute planner, and so much more.

She has a bunch of different planners also, and not all of them are the same so like Day Designer planners you have to know which one you actually are getting. The fact though that you can customize it makes it more likely that you can make it what you want it to be.

These planners are not set up as well to do what I have listed above. They can but you may have to get extras. There is a snap-in to do list that you can snap into the page for the day and erase it at the end of the day and move it to the next page. This doesn’t cost that much more and you could take it with you when you get a new planner for the year.

This snap-in also has an area for notes where you could put your motto for the day and your gratitude at the end. I probably wouldn’t want to do it this way because I like to look back at the end of the week and look over what I am thankful for.

Erin Condren also has a bunch of accessories so that is really nice to further customize your planner to what you want. If you find that you like the Day Designer planner more though you can also get some of these accessories and put them in that planner. If you would like you to buy accessories for a planner you have to see all the ones Erin has because her selection is amazing.

Organized Mind Organized Life

Planners are the best way to have an organized mind and an organized life. If you have not worked with a planner before I suggest that you try one of these. I know that even making sure that I take the time over the last week has been so helpful to me. For those of you who use a planner what are your favorite tips for your planner? Also, if you enjoyed this content make sure to share it so that others can benefit as well.