All our lives we’ve been told the things we should + shouldn’t do:
Paint inside the lines.
Eat your veggies.
Memorize poems.
Put your opt-in box at the right hand side of your website
Follow the recipe.
Read the instructions before assembling.
Brush your teeth.
Call your mom.
Comb your hair.
No rollerblading inside the house.
Elbows off the table.
Stop crying.
So when my Life is Messy Bootcamp alumn, Karen Lema asked for assistance on how to best use her Life is Messy Planners, I really debated whether or not I should hand out a manual.
I decided to put together this blog post instead. Hopefully I’ll provide enough guidance to kickstart your best year ever + leave enough wiggle room for your big juicy creative imagination.
Keep on reading if you care to steal my black belt planning moves. Ka-POW!
Getting Started
First things first. I can’t stress enough the importance of having a robust system you can trust – a calendar where you can collect all your “I wills” + turn them into “I dids”. This is not only the place where you jot down your action items, but also track your big picture landscape. Be sure to pick a calendar system that you like + goes well with your style and personality.
Today, I’m gonna talk specifically about how to use my Life is Messy Planners, but you’re welcome to use these guideposts + adapt them for your own management workflow. No judgement.
To tell you the truth, from the very beginning (my gosh, has it really been 5 years since I first conceptualized these planners?) there hasn’t been an official rule book to operate my Life is Messy Planners, and I did that up purpose.
Traditional planning has always felt quite artificial to me + irrelevant to real work, which is why I’m guessing most people drop their New Years resolutions by the time February shows up. Sad. I didn’t want to create another calendar solution people feel chained to. No way Jose!
I envisioned more like a roadmap, a lighthouse that provides just enough direction for your journey to the top of your metaphorical Mount Everest:
Enough structure to take your brilliant ideas from light bulb to done without becoming a correctional facility.
Enough wiggle room to unleash your unique gifts + honor your most valued forms of currency freedom + happiness.
That being said, here are some humble tips to get started that don’t make you feel like a military sargent is shouting in your ear that your lack willpower:
Go to www.lifeismessyplanners.com to purchase your planners, if you want to (wink).
You’ll get an instant e-mail with your link to download your planners.
Set your printer to fit the entire page.
For your visual delights, use a color printer.
Preferably, print on 8.5 x 11 inch paper or cardstock.
Fill in directly on your computer, or
Fill in with your fave writing + coloring instruments.
To keep your sheets tidy, use a ring binder.
Hole punch your sheets.
Divide your sections with cool tab dividers.
Get your hands on fun washi tape + stickers.
Pin your urgent sheets to a corkboard for easy reminding.
Now let’s jazz it up!
Getting The Tools You Need
Over the years, I’ve gathered a short but might powerful list of my favorite supplies + tools + equipments to use alongside my planners. And here they are. Mayi’s favorite thing (that are not expensive at all):
3 Ring Binder
Washi Tape
Kraft Tab Dividers
Hole Punch
Micron Pen Set
Star Stickers
I mean, you don’t really need any of these, but then again you don’t need a superhero cape + yet you kinda want one, don’t you? With your initial n’ all. I know!
Organizing Your Planner
This is how I intuitively categorize + organize the sections in my Life is Messy Planners, in case you’re curious:
Cover
Yearly Calendar
Big Picture:
Goal Generator
Goal Getter
Habit Tracker
Resolution Tracker
Calendar:
Daily To Do Planner (2)
Weekly To Do Planner
Monthly To Do Planner (12)
Month At A Glance
Yearly To Do Planner
Mental Detox
Personal:
All Out Of
Chore Chart
Don’t Forget Contacts
Happy Birthdays
Home Improvement
In Case of Emergency
Oh Happy Day
Party Planner
Password Keeper
Personal Avatar
Recipe Cheat Sheet
Shopping List
Trip Planner
Weekly Fitness Planner
Weekly Meal Planner
Business:
Blog Planner
Customer Avatar
Idea Picker
One Page Business Plan
One Page Project Planner
One Page to Newsletter
Super Power Finder
Sweet Spot Finder
Money:
Yearly Money Tracker
Creative Brainstorming:
Brainstorm
Creative Brainstorming Pages (5)
Journal
Quotes
Extras:
Decision Maker
The Stop List
Things To Do
This is a Checklist
If you dig my method, you can totally borrow my Messy Tabs to help keep things tidy. You’re very welcome!
Tips To Rock Your Planners
You may wonder how I maintain my system up n’ running. How I keep at it, in spite of the day-to-day resistance. Well, it’s not always as pretty as I would like, (please ignore the tower of dirty plates in my kitchen sink) but here are some tips I’ve found trigger all sorts of success fairies:
Buy a planner that you absolutely LOVE – the style + the size + the shape + the format + the colors, so that you take pleasure each time you use it. Your planner should make you smile, not cringe into a fetal position.
Put EVERYTHING into your planners – names + dates + notes + appointments. Consider it information central. Your brain isn’t stupid, if it knows you don’t keep everything there, it will not take your planner seriously.
Have a place where you open your planner + work on your planner – a workstation with the appropriate furniture + tools to serve as a central cockpit of control.
It doesn’t hurt to designate a special pen to be your companion during this mission. Every time I get out my Hello Kitty pen, I know it’s time to conquer the world.
Maintain ONE, and only ONE planner.
Recite the mantra, “If it’s not schedule, it doesn’t exist.”
In your planner, keep schedule of appointments, including appointments with yourself.
Block out time each day to work on your planner + plan the next days Daily To Do Planner sheet.
Take your Daily To Do Planner (or your Oh Happy Day sheet) with you EVERYWHERE you go.
Use tabs to organize your sections + stickies to mark important items that need your attention.
Now, that’s what works for me.
What is working for you? Do you have a magical marker to scribble your tasks? Do you spill pancake syrup on your sheets for good luck? What is it? Tell me how you set yourself up for epicness, in the comments below.
See you in the chat!
xo,
Mayi Carles