Okay, be honest, who else is a total planner nerd?

The rush you get as you pick out a new planner…the smell of the fresh empty pages…motivational quotes in between each month… colors bursting from the pages… And omg, are those stickers in the back?

There’s something really freakin cool about a planner. There are so many empty pages that will soon be filled in with all the amazing activities of your life; birthdays, anniversaries, sushi date nights, mani’s with the girls, vacations, road trips. And then the not so fun things of course; bills, work, doctor visits (if you’re reading this, I hope you’re not letting your mom make doctor appointments for you anymore). Call me crazy, but I think it’s super cool. What you do makes up that planner and all in all, makes up your year.

There really is no excuse to not get shit done when you have a planner. It’s like a book that helps you keep yourself accountable and organized but also lets you get a little creative!

And that lovely part on the side that says “notes,” use it to write your goals down for the month. Everyday you open your planner, you have no choice but to see your goals. Ask yourself everyday; am I closer to my goal more than I was yesterday? Am I taking the right steps? What else can I do to accomplish these goals? It’s like a self reflection to stay on the path to success. Other ideas are to use it as a place to keep track of your bills or write out a to do list.

If you’re like me you have every color pen you can imagine. And not just any pen, you have a certain pen that makes your handwriting look just amazing. You have stickers galore to make all the really exciting things pop! And you practice writing new fonts in the margins!

If you’re like Leonard then you have a very thin professional planner with everything in black ink (unless you can’t find a black pen, then you steal your wive’s fancy pens) And you cross off each day as you go! And yes, for my boy readers, it’s totally masculine to have a planner. It’s actually attractive because it shows you have your shit together. (Am I right, ladies?)

The last few years I was getting the Lily Pultizer planner and I’m still obsessed but this year I jumped ship and tried Erin Condren. Mainly because I wanted to use our wedding pictures for the cover. I’ll keep ya’ll posted on if it’s really as hyped up as we all hear! (And not to seclude anyone… Erin does have boy planners too!) And yes, to my fellow planner nerds on a budget, you can totally find a bomb ass planner at tjmaxx for like $12! Basically get a planner that you’re going to be excited to use! Find tricks that will help you. If drawing a glass of water for each cup you drink helps you then by all freakin means, draw those cups of water girlfriend! If adding a motivation quote to the page fires you up then gets to googling the best motivational quotes. It’s your space to design and create YOUR year!

I also found these really cool clip-ins. One is a dry erasable grocery list so you can just pop it out and take it with you to the store. One is a wellness log that you can use to meal prep for the week, track how much water you’re drinking and write in what workouts or physical activities you are going to do. And one is a monthly bill tracker! I waited til they had a sale and got them all for like $10!

For some reason, I can’t get myself to throw my old planners away. It’s like throwing away a journal. Throwing away all the monumental things you crammed into just one year of your life. One day I’ll look back and laugh at entry that says “10 days til your final; did you start studying yet?” or the sad face found on each month indicating I started my period. Every little day, whether it was a Netflix and chill day or the biggest interview of your life, make up who you are and what you’re doing to get to the next step in your life.

One thing I need to work on is filling my off days with more experiences. I can’t lie, I’m a home body. I love to chill on my off days but I need to fill in those empty days with new things whether it be a hike on a new trail, trying out a new cafe, or going on a mini road trip!

Okay ya’ll, happy planning! Feel free to shoot me a comment, I’d love to hear what planners you use, what your tips/tricks, and what’re some of your goals are!

xoxo,

keanna