Don’t let my large collection of stickers fool you, I still feel a bit like a newbie when it comes to planning. (I’m an expert shopper though, hence the large collection of stickers!). I’ve always had a paper planner, and loved the feeling of being organized, but it wasn’t until the past year or so that decorative planning really grabbed my heart. It has become a HUGE creative outlet for me, and I am so thankful for the community I have found with fellow planners. Truthfully, I feel like “planner babes” are one of the most welcoming creative groups I have ever been a part of!
My planner journey started oddly enough at a PTA meeting. I brought my brightly colored planner with me to the meeting, but there wasn’t really much to it at that time. Maybe some colored pens and a small handful of stickers but not much else. However, it was enough to catch the eye of another mom who was sitting nearby. During the meeting, she leaned over and whispered, “Are you into planning?” A little surprised, I glanced over at her table and noticed a colorful planner and planner pouch sitting neatly in front of her. A planner friendship was born! It turned out that this mom was already meeting up with another mom that was into planning, and they invited me to come along. It actually took me a few months to say yes (hello, introvert!), but once I did, I loved it! And we even recruited a couple of other moms that had never placed a sticker in their lives, and who now gossip about all the planner sales with us! It turns out that planning led me to a beautiful, authentic group of moms who I truly don’t think I could do without!
That journey is what brought me to planners, but a whole new world of planners opened up to me once I started using Happy Planners. I had no idea that there were planners for all the things. My Type-A personality lit up! I now have planners for my everyday life, my business life, my faith life, my memory keeping, my mental health, and so much more. There is something about tracking your life and documenting it, about planning big things and little things, about filling your planner with inspiring quotes and soothing colors. It makes me so happy, and I am proud to say that I am a planner addict!
Several people have reached out to ask what my typical planning week looks like, so I thought I’d share a little. Throughout the week, I work on pre-planning in one planner type every day. The schedule looks a little like this:
- Monday – Memory Planning
- Tuesday – Faith Planning
- Wednesday – Wellness Planning
- Thursday – Catch-All Planner
- Friday – Work Planner
I decorate each of those planners throughout the week, and then generally spend time on Sunday afternoon filling in the planners with the plans for the coming week. Every morning, the first planner I work in is my Faith Planner, which I write in during morning quiet time. After that I check in with my work planner and my catch-all planner to see what is coming up for the day. At lunch, I sit down with my wellness planner for a few minutes. And in the evenings, I usually check back in with my catch-all planner, fill out some gratitude notes, and then decide if I need to fill out a daily page for the next day. The evening is also the time when I work in my lettering planner, practicing some daily lettering. It may sound like a lot, but all of these have become a part of my routine, and I love it!
So, yes, I have a lot of planners and yes, I love working in my planners. They have helped me to keep all the things organized, set and accomplish goals, make some life-long friends, and connect with a whole new community that I didn’t even know existed. I am loving planning and will be continuing to share planning videos on my channel, because hey, that’s what I’m excited about these days! I’d love to hear if you are a planner and what your planning story is. Let me know in the comments below!
Keep it creative,
-The Scrappy Wife