Trying to find planner peace

Planner peace is something that I have heard a lot of bloggers and vloggers comment on and whether or not they have found it. I don’t think that anyone can find ultimate planner peace and use the same system for years on end without refining it. I have watched a number of Youtube channels where there is a video titled ‘Planner Peace’ and then a few months later there is a video uploaded for a completely different system.

I have yet to find planner peace as my requirements have changed over the years and the more I have looked into planners the more systems I have tried, some have lasted longer than others but I have yet to find the ‘Utopia’ that Planners aim for.

My current system is a cross between an ring bound system and a bullet journal and is in two ‘books’. I like the idea between a bullet journal but I don’t fancy have to transfer my ‘collections’ to a new book every time the journal was filled. This is where the ring bound system has proven useful.

My planner is from Paperchase. It did have ‘Make it Happen today’ printed on the front but it started to rub off quite early after purchasing it so I just rubbed the rest of it off so that it looked better.

I have different tabs as any ring bound system does. I didn’t like the tabs that came with it as they were to dull so I made my own using scrapbook paper laminated to strengthen it.

My first tab is a diary where I keep my appointments, events, when I am out of the office and  when things are due. I suppose this would be the future planning in a traditional bullet journal. I am using the diary that came with the planner.

I have only got to the end of the year in as it was originally an academic year but I prefer January to December so I will be purchasing a new diary insert soon.

The next tab is the weekly plan. Again this is a filofax insert and is the daily planner. On this I put things that I need to do this week as a general list. On the back there is a notes section on which I put my meal plan on along with any other general notes I may need.

My daily to do list is in a separate notebook which also contains my brain dump which are just random notes and thoughts that I just need to get out of my head so I can focus on other things.

I tend to write this first thing in the morning as it depends on how I am feeling and what I have got on that day as to what I intend to achieve. This works better than planning out the whole week as I am more likely to do what is on the list. I am going to spend more time and make it look a bit prettier (damn you Pinterest).

The next tab in my planner is my running to-do list which is for non-date specific things that need to be done. I have a separate list for my craft projects which I am trying not to add to until I have got some of the projects which are already on there completed.

A list of birthdays and anniversaries make up the next section in the planner. Having this section means that I don’t have to remember to transfer them all across to a new diary every year.

My ‘Life’ Section contains my monthly goals and ways I am trying to simplify my life. I will also put in things that other people have done to simplify their lives and maybe try to incorporate their ideas.

The List section is my equivalent of the collections in a Bullet Journal. I have currently got school holidays, writing challenge, photo challenge,  where I am up to with box sets and my wish list which is a list of things I want to buy.

The final section is notes which is just everything else.

I don’t know how long I will stay with this format, but it is currently working for me and seems to offer the most flexibility.