Customized Planner
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to design my own personal planner. So last year, I started with a plain three-ring binder or as I liked to call it, my Five Dollar Planner. I kept everything organized in various sections by removable sticky tab dividers, and by the end of the year, I fine tuned my planner organization system to the point where I was ready make my own customized planner.
When it came to creating this planner, I designed it completely from cover to back. For the covers, I cut some leftover mat board scraps to be slightly bigger than the inner pages. Then I used a wide variety of materials to decorate the covers from metallic paint to handmade paper. Once everything was dry, I varnished the covers to provide durability and then as a final touch, I added metal corners. After the covers were completely assembled, I designed the inner pages, which included:
- Monthly Calendar
- Monthly Goal Sheets
- Health & Fitness log
- Home Maintaince List
- Wish List
- Website Goals/Planning
- Ideas
- Daily/Weekly Goal Sheets
- Prayers/Affirmations
Some of the pages were designed completely from scratch and others were obtained from online resources. While it might seem to be a daunting task to compile and create a customized planner, the majority of the work was completed over a weekend. The covers were the most time consuming factor as it takes over a week to allow enough time to let each layer dry. The end result has been a very productive tool, and probably my only complaint is that the 1″ black wire coil I selected to bind the planner might not be big enough over time as I paste collages and various resources inside the pages.
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All I can tell you is that this planner is absolutely powerful. Natalie designed the planner so that she spends very little time in it, instead spending her time actually accomplishing the goals she sets rather than writing everything down exhaustively. Its quick, simple, and there is a place for nearly everything. We like to set goals as a couple. I use the Franklin Covey Day Planner myself, but she has shown me the great benefits of building a planner specifically to my own needs so eventually, she will probably be helping me to create and bind my own.
Not to mention, its neat to have a planner that is essentially a piece of original art.
I just want to thanl you for your post. I too have struggles with planners and would like to find someone to design the sheets I want in my planner. If you know someone please send me a link or there information.
Thanks
Thanks for your comment. It inspired me to create an updated post that shares some of my template resources as well as changes that I made to my planner for this year. Feel free to check it out here: http://surrealmuse.com/2010/02/28/customized-planner-2-0/
In particular, I provided a link to some free software from the folks over at DIY Planner that will allow you to design your own planner templates. Hope you find these additional resources helpful.