My non-plannerd friends are constantly asking, "why do you need a planner?"
(If you do need a planner, this one is inexpensive and this one is gorgeous, but you buy inserts separately.)
I don't want to admit that I have the memory of most 80 year olds or that I have the attention span of a 2 year old, but...some days, I do.
I either do something immediately, or I write it down.
But when I read other blogs, I notice their entries tend to look like this:
9 a.m. Doctor
12 noon Lunch with Sally
To Do:
Paper Due Monday
Wash car
Um, yes, so that stuff goes in my planner, too. But you know what else does?
*Food Planning
Food planning, from a grocery list to a weekly dinner menu to what I actually plan to eat tomorrow.
(Weekly dinner menu is on the top left pink portion of this spread, while reminders of when the kids are bringing lunches to school are on the homework spread in the middle - folded back so I can still see the weekly spread.)
Reminders to process (usually, wash, cut, and freeze) fruits, veggies, and leftovers that are in the fridge, so that I don't waste food.
A note to defrost chicken in the morning or put something in the crock-pot. And a note to turn the crock-pot off when I am done cooking. Here's the crock-pot that I use.
*Kids' Homework
Homework tracking for the kids. (I still make them write it in their planners. This is just so I can double check, since they are in only 1st and 3rd grade.)
*Medicals
Medical journal, reminders to refill prescriptions, and calorie logs.
*Work
A list of work tasks to do tomorrow.
*Household Upkeep
A list of areas in the house that need organizing or extra scrubbing.
*Budgets
A budgeting page to track spending.
*Routine Appointments
I even write down stuff like "trash day" and "carpool," even though those things are routine, because otherwise I forget to plan for them when scheduling other stuff. It's not like I'll forget to pick my kids up from school. But I might schedule a continuing education class during carpool, and that carpool reminder jogs my memory to call hubby and tell him to cover carpool on Friday.
I don't have a ton of binders. I have two. My everything (FC Compact) and my work (FC Classic), mostly because my work is confidential. That's it. But everything that I *might* need to remember goes in my planner, so that I don't forget.
What are you forgetting to write down? What things are getting mixed up in your life because you don't note the details? Whatever it is, make an effort to add it to your planner, so you can see the bigger picture without missing the details.
Etcetera.
7 comments:
This is an excellent reminder!! I'm off to jot some things down. Thanks!
Well, definitely food. I love to cook and think about what to cook but rarely write it down. I often want to make something but can't remember if I have the necessary ingredients on hand, or forget to take something out of the freezer. I can pull together a meal from almost nothing so it's never been a crisis, but I think I might enjoy it better if I put a little thought into preparing for it. Great post! I am really good at remembering to write down everything at work, but not so fabulous at doing so in my personal life.
Things that I do every week & won't forget still need to go in my planner so that I remember how much time they take. Otherwise, I will plan too much in one day.
Oh, my gosh...I know all this, but, something about reading it in black & white makes my brain actually process it. I admit there are a lot of days I get lazy and don't do this.
In France we said that we have "une mémoire de poisson rouge" we can traduct as "a goldfish memory : one tour of the fish bowl and I forget".
This is an excellent reminder you give us!
I've never really considered marking down garbage day, but then they changed the day on me so I have to keep track of it.
I am retired and I use a planner daily because I have too much to keep in my brain. The things I record are very different from when I worked.
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