Back to School: Getting the Most Out of Your Planner

Good morning lovely humans!

We are halfway through the week, which means only a few more days until classes resume at GVSU. As part two of this Back to School series, I wanted to share with you all some tips and tricks to getting the most out of your day planner.

Now, some of you may know that I am NOTHING without my planners. So dramatic, I know, but they basically contain my entire life. I love knowing that I can flip open to any page and know exactly what to expect for that specific day. I want to share with you the system I use to keep myself organized and prepared, but also keep myself from getting overwhelmed when things get busy.

  1. Color code. This is one of the major tips I can offer because it helped me SO much when I first started using day planners. With my full schedule of classes, sorority events, work, blogging and managing to have a social life, it can get pretty confusing. I advise you to set each topic to a color and whenever there is a meeting, due date or event, write it in. Yellow for classes, green for work, or blue for fun dates with friends, it’s all up to you!
  2. Start goal setting. Each month I like to create a monthly goal checklist. Whether they are small goals that have to do with school, or bigger goals that may take time. It always keeps me pushing towards a better version of myself. It’s great to reflect at the end of each month to see how far you’ve come too.
  3. Keep it brief. When it comes to the big monthly calendar, try to keep your words short. There’s a lot that can happen during one month, and too many words can be overwhelming.
  4. Bullet journal. On your weekly/daily view, try bullet journalling different things that happen in the day. I sometimes like to bullet journal details of assignments that are due, or even good things that happened that day. It helps me to remember when I look back that although not each day was good overall, there was still some good in each day.
  5. Take it everywhere. What’s the point in taking the time to write in your day planner if you never have it with you to reference to? Take it with you to class, work, and where ever you may go to ensure that you always have the information you need with the flip of a page.
  6. Make a date with yourself. Take the time to not only sit down and pencil in those dates, but make sure you’re actually going through it every day. Whether it’s in the morning while you’re having your coffee, or right before you go to bed. Reading through what is happening each day can better prepare you and keep you much more organized.

What are some of your favorite ways to organize your planner? I would love to know! Comment below 🙂

xo

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