6 Reasons Why You Should Start Using a Planner
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The first time I started to use a planner was my first year of university, back in 2014. My school gave out free ones so I thought, well it is free... and ever since then, I never went back to not using one. Using a planner has seriously changed my life! Planning is everything and I think it's super enjoyable.
It can be really hard to try and keep track of everything going on in your life. All of the day-to-day activities, events, anniversaries, birthdays, and the tasks you need to complete to achieve your goals or keep up with household responsibilities. It can all be extremely stressful trying to monitor absolutely everything going on! If we try to cram everything into our brains, chances are you're going to forget about important things. Everyone can benefit from using a planner!
The current planner that I have been using every day is purchased from Marshalls and is by Fringe Studio. I absolutely love my planner and I would easily repurchase the same brand next year!
6 Benefits of Using A Planner
#1 Keeps you organized.
The most obvious, and biggest benefit of having a planner is organization. You can use a planner to plan literally anything in your life. It can be used as a daily checklist, weekly checklist, or monthly checklist. You can place in appointment dates, family/social events. You can even use it to track things going on in your life like finances, habits, self-care and the list goes on.
#2 Better time management.
Writing everything out and having it right in front of you helps you prepare for your day. Seeing exactly what's happening on certain days, and what time everything is happening makes planning out your life extremely easy. Using a planner can easily assist in scheduling your time effectively. Schedule every event, appointment, any errands or tasks you need to complete so that when the day arrives you know exactly what you're doing and what to tackle first.
Planning out your days is super important! Staying on track is a great habit to develop and using a planner is an easy way to help get that started.
#3 Improvements in productivity.
Knowing exactly what's going on allows you to place your energy into things you know that need to be complete vs trying to remember every little thing in your head. Writing everything out allows you to visibly see what is important, what needs to be done right away, and what can be done later. Thus allowing your energy to go towards important tasks and leading to a more productive day.
#4 Stress relief.
We often become stressed out because we feel like our plates are full and we have little to no time to empty it off. when I started using my planner during my university years it helped to reduce my stress in school, and it seriously worked.
As you notice, all of these benefits are linked together. The more organized you are, the better time management you'll have, and thus you'll be more prepared for your days. Having this much control can assure that your life doesn't become a gigantic mess of events and you won't have all of these unnecessary feelings of stress and negative thoughts like "I can't get this all done".
#5 Sense of accomplishment.
Who doesn't enjoy completing everything off of their to-do list? I love checking off my to-do lists. Nothing feels better than knowing you're completing everything you need to and doing it in the most efficient way possible. Each time you check something off your list knowing you are getting closer to achieving your goals is extremely satisfying. Checking off your entire list before the end of the day or even morning? Totally awesome.
On a side note, sometimes writing everything down, planning your day, and staying organized can actually help to boost motivation as well.
#6 More "you" time.
Once you have your life organized and all planned out, you'll be able to determine when you'll have some free time to squeeze in for "yourself". Ensuring you're taking care of yourself makes a huge impact on your life.
I know our lives can get quite busy, hectic, and stressful. That's just life. But the more you control you have over your life, the more likely you won't feel as defeated at the end of the day. I think it is super important to find time to care for yourself. You can even track down a simple self-care routine to squeeze in at any time of the day that works best for you.
Do any of you use a planner? If so, could you go back to not using one? I honestly don't think I can. I love planning!
