How to Pick the Perfect Planner Part One: Goals (+ free printable)

I’ve been well and truly won over by the planner fanatics this year. Anyone who knows me will understand how disorganised I am. If you took one look at my filing system (ie, 10 minute walk around my house to all the areas I keep important documents, for example; the kitchen table, the coffee table, on several areas of the book shelf, bedside table, desk, etc… the list goes on… and on) you would get a sense of it too. I want to make 2016 the year of getting it together (imagine dramatic waving hands) and instead of waiting for January 1st to roll around I’m making a start on it now. At least then it might not be a total shock to the system in the new year.

One of the big game changers for my big getting it together (again, arms) plan is to find the perfect diary/planner/agenda to accommodate all my organisational needs. I want to have everything and anything I could possibly need to know at my finger tips at all times. And while I’m aware that a planner isn’t going to magically make that happen, sprinkle it with a little will power and it might just kick start a new, more organised routine.

So, full of positivity I skipped over to my laptop and started my search, only to be abruptly overwhelmed by the choice and variation of planners on offer. Who knew this was such a huge world? Well, apparently a lot of people, but this was big news to me. I turned to my Instagram buddies for answers. A wealth of knowledge later (see for yourself) and I’m even more confused. More options and more glowing reports. So, I figured if this is confusing me, then it had to be to others too! Why put all this research to waste when I could write about it and help someone else with planner fatigue?

A few hours later and this has turned into a four part series with free printables. Wow, that escalated quickly… Hopefully this will be a great resource for anyone wanting to know how to pick the perfect planner with which to organise all aspects of your life. We’ll be covering:

• Goals (blogging, planning, organising and motivation)
• Business (Goals + money management, freelancing/contributing, business plans)
• Home (travel planning, meal plans, getting things done, organised and tidy life)
• And finally build you own style planners where you get to pick the best bits.

This weeks theme is goals. It’s time to smash them! Here are my favourite 5 goal setting (and achieving) planners in all their motivational glory. Make sure you scroll all the way down to the bottom of the post to get your free goal planning printable sheets download as well!

1. Life Planner – Lollipop Designs £22

The Life Planner is a collaborative effort from Lollypop Designs and Blogtacular so it’s designed very much with bloggers in mind. It’s a very affordable option and it offers everything you need to plan your tasks ahead of time. The planner includes a year’s worth of to do lists, weekly planners, monthly planners and a brain storming section.

The planner is completely clear of dates and other details, so you can customise to your own preferences and begin planning any time of the year! Ver useful if you want to get a head start before 2016. I have a trial version of this planner and instead of using it as a day planner I use the pages to plan content and kit materials for We Make Collective.

2. Visionary Journal – Keep Chasing the Stars $55

I love Monique’s story behind her inspiration for creating this planner. I think it’s something most of us can relate to (if you can’t PLEASE tell us your secrets!!) and it means that the planner focusses on making those big, long term goals happen!

Over the course of 90 days you plan your monthly focus, your weekly execution, and reflect on what you have achieved, what you need to improve and how you’re going to do it. The pages feature some really interesting productivity tools that I think could go a long way to helping you recognise what your motivations are and where you might be going off track. These include a reward section (YES!), a brain dump, a habit tracker and a place to let things go. The last one I feel is particularly important. No one want unnecessary tasks clogging up you work schedule!

3. Life Planner – Erin Condren $75

I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Erin Condren planners. The website has so much information on the planners, along side so many product videos to show all the different ways they can be used. It’s really easy to imagine how you could tailor it to suit your own, individual goal planning needs!

These planners are also perfect for anyone who wants to get creative and inject a bit of fun into their daily organisation. You can personalise the cover and it comes with stickers to help you make everyday a little brighter… well, in your planner at least!

4. Get to Work Book – Elise Blaha $55

At the moment the Get to Work Book is just edging out towards the front of the pack. I can’t actually put my finger on what is drawing me towards this more than the others but some of the highlights include monthly tabs, project break down pages and reflection pages. I follow Elise’s blog and listen to her podcast and it’s clear that a lot of thought has gone into designing this planner.

I also really love the style of the daily pages. Set up vertically over a two page spread, there’s room for a lot of notes and daily tasks. From my own way of working I know that organising task lists a week in advance helps me get things done on time. This seems like the perfect arrangement for my working style.

5. Day Designer – $49-$59

The Day Designer has a huge following on social media so it must be doing something right! For me it’s a close contender for the top spot here. I think my favourite feature is a whole page per day layout that you can even try out before buying the planner. Perfect to see if this style of planning works for you.

This seems like a fantastic day to day planner but has less focus on planning long term goals. I’m starting to think I might have to get two, or even three planners! Is that too much…?

If you’re as confused as me on which planner to buy but you want to make a start on getting more organised then I’ve created these free printable planning sheets. You can print them any size up to A4 (11.7inches x 8.3inches) and they are ideal for working out what you need from a planner and which layout you would be most productive using.

To get your files (AND the next three sets of free printables in the series) sent straight to your inbox just subscribe below.

Happy planning!