Functional Planning Mainstays
Good morning and welcome back to another blog! I love talking about planners, and today, we’re going to get down to basics. So in my opinion, there’s decorative planning and there’s functional planning, but it’s not black and white for me. There are many people who call themselves functional planners, but they still like a little deco in their planner to make it pretty. Today, I want to talk to you about what I consider functional planning, and the must-haves I need to maintain functionality of my planner.
Planner Cover: I used to use a basic planner with a heavy duty cover. Since switching to my Franklin Covey Classic Binder, I find the pockets and zippered areas indispensable. You can add all sorts of goodies, including your pens, stickers, a ruler, Washi cards, decorative elements, task cards, etc…It gives you the room to take your tools with you on the go, and keep them secure at the same time. The planner cover also protects your planner pages and valuable information.
2. Room for a To-Do List: I currently use a combination of Franklin Covey Day on two pages as well as weeklies. This design type allows for a schedule and a to-do list on the same page, as well as a week-at-a-glance. Usually, my to-do list each day is a mile long and tends to grow bigger as I go through my day, so I need a lot of room for writing.
3. Notes Pages: Since I use the day-on-two-pages layout, the right page is a notes page. I usually have my planner laying open to the current day on my desk. Throughout the day, if important information comes up, I can write it down. Sometimes I’ll be on a phone call and I’ll write phone numbers or appointment dates down here. The thing to remember is to forward that information to the proper area before you forget. If the information is important, I’ll record it on the index. (See below). I also have a notes/projects section at the back of my planner. This area is used for specific projects that are part of a bigger goal, or a subject that I may want to write a lot of notes on.
4. Index: The index is an area at the beginning of the month where you write down information from a particular day. It helps you to find the information you have recorded in your planner. For instance, if I wrote a phone number on my dailies on March 15, and I’ve written it in the index, now I know where to go to retrieve the information. This is particularly helpful when you have dailies as there are so many pages, you don’t know where to start looking.
5. Tabbed Dividers: I used to use a Happy Planner that I Frankenplanned. (Meaning I would buy five or six different planners, and keep one month at a time of each planner for a particular life category at all times. I needed a way to differentiate the planners within my one book, so I used top tabs. (Since Happy Planner has the month side tabs, I couldn’t see past them). I’ve extended this idea to my Franklin Planner. I have a seven ring binder, so I keep many different divider sections so I know how to reference my planner pages. I carry top, side and bottom tabs. I wouldn't say each has a particular use, I just have a lot of categories I like to keep within my planner.
6. Paperclips/Divider Pocket or Sticky Notes: There’s a reason why these things are all in one category. If I’m on the go, they all really act like the same thing. If for example, I’m handed a piece of paper or documents, I can tuck them in the pockets of my planner so I won’t lose them. A secondary option is to use a paperclip or magnetic clip. The third option is if I need to write something down, but I’m not sure of the exact date, I can write it on a sticky note and transcript it later. Either that, or I can write it down on my daily notes page for that day.
These are some of the things that I personally cannot live without. These things help me to maintain the functionality of my planner. What about you? Do you consider yourself a functional or decorative planner, or a combination of both? Let me know in the comments!
Thanks for reading and we’ll see you next time!!
💕 SAN
