My Favorite Day Planner

Happy Friday! I can’t believe that it’s been a week since I let you know that Monograms & Pearls was here. You’ve all been so kind and supportive in the things you’ve had to say about this beloved little project of mine. I’ve been working hard on several new stories that I can’t wait to share. But I’m learning in this blogging world that planning is more important than ever…there is no winging it. When I left my web guru this morning, my head was spinning with all of these to-dos: a long-term editorial calendar, social media objectives, newsletter ideas…oh my.But the up side is that I’m a planner. Almost certifiably so. And anyone who really knows me knows that I’m obsessed with three things: a clean house (a must!), skincare (especially eye creams!), and planners (best invention ever!).I have always loved a great notebook–especially a monogrammed one–for making to-do lists, but it wasn’t until my first job out of college that a co-worker introduced me to a planning system. The idea that there were books, classes, and loads of organizational accessories rocked my world.I stuck with this classic system until about a year ago when I was on the hunt for something less corporate and a little more me. A friend suggested I check out Day Designer. I was immediately smitten with their tagline, “a strategic planner & daily agenda for living a well-designed life.” At its core, this planning system is intended to help its users be more intentional about everything they do. From goal setting at 10,000 feet to punch lists for everyday, this system has been a wonderful way for me to get my arms around what could be chaos: five kiddos, four million meals to prepare, a sweet mom who is battling cancer, my freelance clients, and my newest baby–this blog. When I don’t write things down on paper, I almost become paralyzed from moving forward. But when I can see what I have to do in a neat and tidy list where I can cross things off, I suddenly have super powers.An added bonus with Day Designer is that you can sign up to have them send you daily tips on how to live a “well-designed”  life–everything from little nuggets of inspiration to different tricks that other users have found to make their lives better. There is an entire community of high-strung planners out there just like me (I have found my people!). This can be very reassuring on those stressful days.My only concern jumping on board with Day Designer was that it has a spiral bind. But I have to say, it’s not like those grade-school notebooks that got caught on the sleeves of my sweater. It’s very durable whether I throw it in my yoga bag or my work tote. And they did their homework on making the cover super tough. I love the “Palm” design on mine as it makes me think of one of my favorite places in all of the world…Palm Beach. And the planning pages are printed on the most amazing paper…I have yet to have a single one of my pens bleed and make things look un-pretty.Day Designer just this week announced a whole new series of cover designs for their classic planners that will go on sale at the end of the March. I definitely suggest checking them out and giving their Instagram handle @thedaydesigner a like.One of my favorite yogis started class this morning saying that 60% of any task is just showing up. Being mindful and “planful” for me is doing just that.On that note, let’s get this weekend started!xo