We all know that time of the year when you get to recycle last year’s planner and go shopping for the next one. Whether you’re a fan of Lilly Pulitzer, themed planners, or anything personalized, the searching and buying are energizing. I, surprisingly, was headed into my freshman year of college sans planner. The horror, I can hear all of you whispering, wondering how I kept track of my entire life without a book to write it all down in throughout high school. You see, I didn’t keep it all in my head. I was one of those who would say “Yes, I will be there,” and then went scrambling for a scrap of paper to keep track of that date or slyly type into my phone when I needed to have that assignment turned in by. By the grace of my summer birthday, a sweet (probably unknowing) friend of mine gifted me with my first planner. A cute Lilly ‘Wild-Confetti’ theme, spiral bound (stickers included).
THIS THING LITERALLY CHANGED MY LIFE
I didn’t even know who I had turned into. I was that girl who treated her planner like the holy Bible, entrusting it with every date, time and school assignment. I even became the girl who PLANNED when to plan, when she would look at her planner each day (by the way, I look at it in the morning, for those of you wondering).
I like to claim I’m organized, but in reality I could barely keep it all straight. My planner was a lifesaver.
(Isn’t she a beauty?)
I challenge all of you to try out the planner lifestyle. This doesn’t mean you have to drop $25 on one with stickers and pockets and a new theme every month. Try a simple, $8 one from Target or Barnes & Noble (still super stylish). Make sure it has the layout you like, whether lots of space for writing each week day or a section with blocked out calendar for each month. Give yourself time each weekend to write down important events you want to go to or meetings and assignment due dates. Don’t try to go crazy-organizational at first: you will get super overwhelmed. Try then to get your planner out in class when your teacher brings up assignments, or go over your syllabus when you get it each semester.
The key is making your planner work with you, not for you. Write down what you truly think you might forget and check back at the beginning of each week. Cross off each item, make boxes to check mark or highlight when you have done something you wrote down.
So yes, planners really do work. Good luck fellow Hawks; there is hope!