Another true confession - I’m a list person who never really learned how to use lists. I make them. They’re everywhere. Sometimes I amuse myself by imagining Seinfeld paraphrasing himself “See, you know how to make the list, you just don’t know how to *use* the list and that’s really the most important part of the list, the using. Anybody can just make them.”
I’ve tried lots of things to get more organized. When I’m organized I’m happy and productive. In those rare, elusive moments of bliss I realize that THIS is what I was meant to be, if only I could figure out how to stay that way! I’ve tried a few different planners but nothing seemed to work for me. They were either far too bulky with insane amounts of space for information that doesn’t apply to me, or too simple and uninspiring to hold my fickle interest for more than a month or so.
And then I saw these planners and had a glimmer of hope. It seemed as if someone had looked into my mind and pulled out the perfect organizer - the one that I would have designed myself if only I’d known myself well enough to know what I needed. I ordered the first quarter of 2010 to see if it was the perfect fit for me that it seemed to be, and was absolutely thrilled when it arrived. It really is everything I had hoped for and more. It’s spiral bound so that it lies flat when I want to write in it, or leave it open on the desk while I organize. Each quarter of the year comes in a separate planner so that they’re small and easy to slip into a bag to carry with me. The covers can be wiped clean. There are tools for easy goal planning, reminders for things that need to be done around the house (and a space to delegate them - hooray!), spaces for my own to do lists and monthly calendars for the whole year so I can plan ahead even if I only have one quarter planner with me. Oh, and did I mention the goal planning tools? All with an emphasis on balance. I could use some balance.
The weekly planner pages have space for each day’s appointments, and then lots of space for tasks, errands and even a health tracker to make sure I’m getting my fruits and veggies. And water. And exercise. Oh, happy day! All of my elusive lists gathered together in a sensible, organized way - all in one spiral-bound spot so that I can pick them up and take them with me wherever I need to go! This planner is very visual, separating the to do list into separate lists that make it easy to view at a glance. And then for the gold-star-on-the-forehead girls like me, a happy little place to check those items off so that I can see my progress. I love check boxes on my lists that are all bound together in my handy, dandy planner.
And as if that weren’t enough - every week has a menu planner and shopping list. Two more lists that I’ve always loved but never quite managed to pull off effectively. No more lost shopping list on a scrap of paper somewhere - It too is conveniently bound into my planner. Right next to the menu. And then, to top it all off, spaces to note blessings, and ideas for improving in the future, and even journal notes or quotations or mileage and expenditures. I’ve wanted to be a journal person almost as long as I’ve been a dysfunctional list person! I love having a place to make my notes and journal about my week in this little planner which already has important things that happened calendared and checked off. It’s the ideal journal, really, for me anyway! I wish I had one of these from my grandmother - her insights and blessings noted conveniently in the same little book as her menus for feeding her family, her social calendar and especially her goals. What a treasure that would be. I like the idea that I can leave that kind of treasure behind for the future, even if I never do quite manage to journal properly.
I know this is much ado about a planner, but when I find something that I’ve been looking for so long I always naturally want to share with all of you. And when I contacted Pamela at www.TheSuccessChoice.com for permission to use her images for my blog she was so very generous. She offered readers of this blog a discount of 15% at her store! All you have to do is enter the code IVORY at checkout to recieve the discount. I know I’ll be using it to purchase the rest of the planners for 2010. Thanks Pamela!
If you’re skimming because I’ve been going on and on for way too long about a planner, here’s the vital information:
www.TheSuccessChoice.com
15% off of your order
Code: IVORY (at checkout)
Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas,
Barbara
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Barbara Anne Williams
Bits of Ivory
Bramble & Vine @Etsy and @1000Markets