1 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:09,119 --> 00:00:14,160 Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. 3 00:00:14,800 --> 00:00:18,200 Speaker 1: Today's tip is to choose your planner for next year. 4 00:00:19,079 --> 00:00:22,560 Speaker 1: Having a good planner that meets your needs vastly increases 5 00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:26,960 Speaker 1: the chances that you make planning into a regular ritual, and, 6 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:31,440 Speaker 1: as longtime listeners know, planning is the key to making 7 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:37,000 Speaker 1: a complicated life work. Today's tip comes from Sarah hart Unger, 8 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 1: who is my co host on the Best of Both 9 00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:43,520 Speaker 1: Worlds podcast and who recently launched her own podcast called 10 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:49,080 Speaker 1: Best Laid Plans. Best Laid Plans covers all things planners 11 00:00:49,080 --> 00:00:52,920 Speaker 1: and planning, from reviews of products and systems to interviews 12 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:57,120 Speaker 1: with productivity pros. October is a great time to choose 13 00:00:57,120 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 1: a planner for the upcoming year. You don't have too 14 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:03,880 Speaker 1: many commitments yet, so you can still think about time holistically, 15 00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:06,720 Speaker 1: but you may be starting to have some things that 16 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 1: go on there. If you start thinking about this now, 17 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 1: you can choose something great for two one. Sarah says 18 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 1: that before diving into a storefront, online or real, think 19 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:21,720 Speaker 1: about what you want your planner to do for you. 20 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:26,240 Speaker 1: Some people rely on electronic calendars for scheduling and what 21 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:29,400 Speaker 1: their planner to mostly organize daily to do lists and 22 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:33,680 Speaker 1: provide an analog place for goal setting. Other people love 23 00:01:33,720 --> 00:01:36,640 Speaker 1: being able to sketch out their week's schedule on paper, 24 00:01:37,880 --> 00:01:41,559 Speaker 1: so think about which best describes you. In my case, 25 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:44,720 Speaker 1: I use a paper calendar for time specific stuff, and 26 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 1: I use a planner for listing priorities and notes. The 27 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:52,120 Speaker 1: options might seem endless, and Sarah notes that several brands 28 00:01:52,160 --> 00:01:56,360 Speaker 1: allow for nearly infinite customization, so it can be easy 29 00:01:56,440 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 1: to get bogged down, she says, but here's the truth. 30 00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:03,919 Speaker 1: There is no planner piece, she says. You can choose 31 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:07,480 Speaker 1: something that feels good enough rather than hunting for something 32 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:10,600 Speaker 1: that is perfect. Because it's likely that a number of 33 00:02:10,639 --> 00:02:13,800 Speaker 1: systems will work just fine. You can try it out 34 00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:17,240 Speaker 1: and if you hate it, there is no law against 35 00:02:17,320 --> 00:02:22,239 Speaker 1: ordering a different planner and starting in February seriously, So, 36 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:24,639 Speaker 1: as Sarah says, you just have to make sure your 37 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:28,280 Speaker 1: essentials are there. The top things to consider are the 38 00:02:28,360 --> 00:02:31,440 Speaker 1: size and weight. Do you need this to fit in 39 00:02:31,480 --> 00:02:34,079 Speaker 1: a bag you take to and from work or will 40 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 1: it just sit on your home office desk all the time. 41 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:40,960 Speaker 1: You might also note the paper quality, though Some people 42 00:02:41,040 --> 00:02:44,080 Speaker 1: care more or less about this note the format, is 43 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:46,680 Speaker 1: it bound or does it have the option to move 44 00:02:46,760 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: pages around? Again, some care more or less about this. 45 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,639 Speaker 1: But if you can't move any of the pages, you 46 00:02:52,720 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 1: might have to think a little bit harder about how 47 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:58,480 Speaker 1: you organize the whole thing. And let's be honest, we 48 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: all want our planners to look nice. As Sarah says, 49 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:04,800 Speaker 1: a beautiful planner with a great layout is more likely 50 00:03:04,880 --> 00:03:08,520 Speaker 1: to get used. She uses products from Hobanici that she 51 00:03:08,680 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 1: orders from Japan. There are lots of great products from 52 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:16,440 Speaker 1: Golden coil, inkwell Press, full Focus, Planner, Amplify, and so forth. 53 00:03:17,280 --> 00:03:20,320 Speaker 1: Me well, I use a notebook that I bought at Target. 54 00:03:20,960 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 1: You probably need to know yourself here. Finally, Sarah says, 55 00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:27,320 Speaker 1: don't short change yourself when it comes to writing instruments. 56 00:03:27,919 --> 00:03:31,120 Speaker 1: Decent pens are in the grand scheme of things, not 57 00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:35,120 Speaker 1: terribly expensive, but a good pen can make writing more fun. 58 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 1: I always say life is too short for bad pens, 59 00:03:39,120 --> 00:03:43,560 Speaker 1: and there we are in absolute agreement. So today, take 60 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,560 Speaker 1: a little time to look at the planner market. Think 61 00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:49,000 Speaker 1: about whether you need something that's more like a calendar 62 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 1: or more like open pages. Think about what size you need, 63 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:56,360 Speaker 1: and sure, go ahead and judge your planner by its cover, 64 00:03:57,320 --> 00:03:59,640 Speaker 1: but know that whatever you choose, it will most likely 65 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,240 Speaker 1: be a KAY, and if not, you can change it. 66 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:06,080 Speaker 1: The key, as Sarah says frequently on her Best Blade 67 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: Plans podcast, is to have something you want to look 68 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,720 Speaker 1: at frequently, so you start looking at your planner frequently. 69 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:16,200 Speaker 1: When you think about how you'd like to spend your time, 70 00:04:16,839 --> 00:04:21,200 Speaker 1: you vastly increase the chances of spending time well. And 71 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:26,040 Speaker 1: that is something we can all get behind. In the meantime, 72 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:30,359 Speaker 1: this is Laura, Thanks for listening, and here's to making 73 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:39,680 Speaker 1: the most of our time. Hey everybody, I'd love to 74 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:42,680 Speaker 1: hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions, 75 00:04:42,800 --> 00:04:46,520 Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook 76 00:04:46,640 --> 00:04:51,440 Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the 77 00:04:51,520 --> 00:04:55,760 Speaker 1: number four then Breakfast p o D. You can also 78 00:04:55,760 --> 00:04:59,159 Speaker 1: shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i 79 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:02,280 Speaker 1: heeart media dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled out 80 00:05:02,279 --> 00:05:05,000 Speaker 1: with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward 81 00:05:05,040 --> 00:05:13,240 Speaker 1: to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of 82 00:05:13,279 --> 00:05:16,599 Speaker 1: I heart Radio. For more podcasts from I heart Radio, 83 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:20,600 Speaker 1: visit the i heart Radio app Apple Podcasts or wherever 84 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:22,000 Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows.