Danger Zone: Other Planner Channels
While I write my morning pages every day at 6am, I sometimes enjoy watching other planner channels as background noise. Generally, I enjoy watching planner channels that detail the planner that I’m using. Generally, I’ll watch other people who use Planner Perfect or Franklin planner. Sometimes, however, those channels will feature other planners, and then I get curious and this is what makes me get into trouble.
We see these other people on YouTube or Facebook having success with other planners that we haven’t tried yet, and I think it’s just human nature to be curious if they would work for us too.
In general, I’m really good at sticking with a system (at least for a year). I can’t justify flip-flopping between planners multiple times per year because:
It simply costs too much money.
It derails my productivity.
I need to maintain use of my planner to keep my life together.
I would like to say that I’ve found my safe space - my own little perfect planner niche, but who’s to say that another planner wouldn’t work better for me? I am currently very satisfied with my system, and it works really well for me. (I’m not going into each of my planners right now, because I did that at the start of January). I do think that I have enough planner space to catch every area of my life that I want to detail (I have three main planners), but not so many planners that they feel like work to me. (Even though they are “work” because I talk about my planners on my Youtube channel). It’s very special to me however since it doesn’t feel like work.
I think the dangerous part is that your mind starts to wonder…and to wander. That’s how all things happen - you see something on social media or t.v. or in magazines and you think about it for a while and then the next thing you know, you’re searching it up to see how much it is.
I think I did that with my first Hobonichi (I loved Hobonichi, but I didn’t like how thick the book got - that’s why if I ever use a bound notebook, I won’t ever use Washi or stickers in it. It would simply be a notebook for notes and writing).
There are people who haven’t seemed to find that elusive “planner peace”, and they’re constantly searching for the perfect planner that will work for them. There are people who just want to experiment (maybe for themselves, or maybe they’re doing reviews for social media). Whatever the case, in the end, it becomes a waste of money. Either you stop using some of the planners during the year, you miss filling out spreads for weeks at a time, and then you conclude it’s because the planner just didn’t work for you.
Truthfully, I don’t believe in planner peace. I think you need to make the planner work for you, but it means work…like actually putting in the time and dedicate your time to your planner.
Like I said earlier, there could be a better planner out there for me that I just haven’t found yet, but I’m consistent with what I have and it ‘s making me the most productive person and the best version of myself that I could possibly be in this moment. If there is another planner out there, I’m not interested. I like what I have and so to combat the interest in other things, I stick with watching videos that use exactly my size planners. (I’m not going to be the person that gets the same planner in every single size available)!
Am I maybe missing out on other valuable content? Maybe, but I’m also using my planner to it’s fullest capabilities and keeping myself too busy and productive to warrant watching YouTube for hours anyway.
I put this in your hands now: can you stick with your system for an entire year and see how you like it at the end of the year? Remember to review your planner systems and setups every quarter, but at least once a year. Maybe you just need a little tweak every so often - not an entire planner overhaul - food for thought!
Thanks for reading!
Cheers!
Sandra Dahl
