A Newbie’s Guide to Planners

Getting organized is rough. Like most college students, in high school I never had to do much of anything in the realm of organizing in any way. It was easy enough to skate by just writing down assignments on my hand or asking a friend when something was due. So I never developed the skills that help students be successful in school.

Organization seems like a scary concept that involves restructuring your entire life, giving up fun, and becoming some sort of super duper planning machine. Fortunantley it doesn’t have to be that complicated or that scary. Getting organized can help to reduce a ton of school related stress because once everything is organized, it makes it a lot easier to be productive.

In this post I’m going to be sharing a few different planning methods to get yourself super prepared for this quarter.

Bullet Journal

A ton of people love making to-do lists. There’s something incredibly gratifying about making a  list and crossing out a task once you’ve completed it. A bullet journal is essentially a big ol’ customizable to-do list and traditional planner hybrid. 

Most commonly bullet journals include a table of contents, month on a page spread, and then a section to make to-do lists, notes, or some people even choose to add sections to journal.  Since, bullet journals are a DIY project, all you need is a notebook (lined or otherwise), I prefer those of the Moleskin brand and pens. From then on it’s all about creating the method that works for you!

When using a bullet journal, the most important thing to create an achievable list of maybe 3-7 academic, personal, work tasks that you want to achieve each day. Bullet journals are a great option for those who prefer an organizational method that is flexible and as minimalistic or complex as they like. 

Online Calendar

Phones, computers, and tablets are technology that most people generally carry with them everywhere that they go. In a lot of ways having a calendar that is accessible on any platform is a lot more convientinet than having to lug around another book like thing in your backpack.

I prefer to use Google Calendar because it integrates really well into my life. However, there are a ton of other online calendars like iCal and Sunrise Calendar. In using your online calendar as planner, make sure to put all of your assignments/tests/exams from your syllabi as all day events. This way when you look at your phone/computer you’ll be able to see the upcoming things for all of your classes.

Online calendars are great for those who perhaps have a lot of appointments and just want to keep track of the basics like when an assignment is due. I also like to use my online calendar as a time management tool. I just plan out my entire days hour by hour so I can schedule breaks, how long I’m going to spend on assignments, and a ton of other things.

Traditional Planner

Physical paper planners are pretty familiar to most people. They’re something that your parents and teachers stressed the importance of in high school, but basically you ended up just writing the assignments on your hand or asking a Facebook friend what assignments are due.

Planners don’t have to be stressful or boring. Make using your planner a habitual part of your day to develop the habit of using it.  Start your day by looking over what assignments are coming that week and prioritize what you want to get done. At the beginning of every quarter, put in all of your assignments/club meetings/appointments, so you refer to your planner on a daily basis. 

My favorite thing about using physical planners is that there are so many kinds. There are binder styles, coil planners, and more. The myriad of types makes it really easy to find a planner that works for you.

I’m fond of using the MAMBI Happy Planner. Basically it’s a coil planner that you can add pages to for customization. Also, the planner comes with a ton of stickers, which make it a lot more fun to plan in it (plus I may have bought a bunch more too).

I totally suggest using whatever kind of planner method helps you get the most done. It’s super important to develop planning skills while you’re in college, so you’re able to manage your stress level and school assignments. 

Photos by Nala Williams

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