The New Day Planner

Last week, I got a new day planner. Yes, I still use paper.

Jamie set me all up with a fantastically color coded Outlook calendar at work, and I love the electronic version of a calendar for work. I love the reminders that pop up and the way I can move things around easily in a job that requires a ton of flexibility in the world of calendars.

But in Bekahland - I like paper. And one of my favorite things to do in school supply season is to buy new calendars. I remember last August, when Isaac and I were falling apart, there was something very comforting about gathering up my determination, walking through the store with a shopping cart, and putting a brand new day planner inside. I came home and resolved that though my entire world may be crashing beyond my ability to repair, I would start over - and I would begin with an organized life.

Last week when I walked through the store again, I felt a similar resolve. Finding new routines with my job, especially knowing said routines are likely temporary until I move, has been difficult. So I threw in the cart not only a new planner...but pens and highlighters as well. Time to color code Bekahland.

I find that sharing ideas can spur others on toward good habits (in this case organization), so here's what I did. Take it...leave it...or tweak it for your own use!

A must in day planners (for me) is that there be a monthly calendar (like you see in the picture above) and also a two page spread for each week. I like to be able to see a month at a glance, to see what commitments I have, but on the weekly pages, I like to see those commitments again, alongside my tasks to be accomplished.

So here's how it's working for me this year.

On the monthly calendar pages, work commitments are written in red, personal commitments are written in purple, writing, speaking, and other ministry commitments are written in green, God-time commitments are written in blue, and chores are written in black. (Very few chores show up on the monthly spread - mostly just if I have something important to remember - like an unusual bill coming due or something.)

This way I can see at a glance how my life is balancing out. I'll be able to quickly see if something is non-negotiable (because it's for work and therefore is in red) or if I'm getting too many personal commitments or not enough God commitments - things like that.

I'll use that same color coding for writing events on the weekly spread, but I added the highlighting to those pages. When an appointment is for entertaining people in my home, I'll highlight it in pink. When the event is an appointment I need to attend, like a manicure or a haircut, I'll highlight it in blue. When I'm spending time with friends, I'll highlight it in orange. When something is urgent, regardless of the subject, I'll highlight it in green. And I'm highlighting the names of those having birthdays and anniversaries in yellow.
This way I'll be able to see at a glance the kind of prep work any given week will entail. Like if I see pink -I'll know someone's going to be at my house, so a day or two before that, I'll need to clean it. If I see blue, I'll know I need to account for some travel time that day. If I see a lot of orange, I'll know I'm spending a lot of time with friends...which typically means I'm not taking enough time to care for myself. And when I see yellow, I'll know I need to plan for gifts and cards.

You might be saying "Man that's a lot of work." Right now it probably is. I haven't memorized the system yet. But I think it will help me take stock of my life and figure out what things need more balance!

And besides that - it's just pretty.