[PODCAST 276]: Digital Additions that Work for Any Paper Planner

(The testimonials and images mentioned at the beginning of this podcast can be found toward the end. Enjoy!)

Do you love paper planners, but you lean more digitally on some things?

Today I’m sharing 5 specific digital additions that will support any paper planner, and by the end, you’re going to feel calmer, more aware of options that are available to you, and more excited to create your own optimal planning system,

A quick background on me… I received my first paper planner (Franklin Quest) for Christmas when I was 13 years old, and I used it all through high school, college, and my first decade of motherhood.

Then digital planning solutions started becoming the norm, but I loved my paper planner so much that I didn’t want to give it up.

As my responsibilities grew, however, and I started collaborating on more projects and tasks with my family and team here at LearnDoBecome, my paper planner simply couldn’t keep up.

So, over time and with a lot of trial and error, I figured out how to have the best of both worlds–a planner that I can use each day and color in with all my markers…and digital tools that can make my life run more smoothly, particularly when I’m working with other people.

Even if you’re 100% digital, the methods I’m sharing here will be helpful. But if you’re one of the MANY people who have found paper planners, bullet journals, or even just the basic practice of writing notes and ideas in a blank journal to be lovely and restorative, I think you’ll be excited to see how this works!

(As always, please share your best tips and tricks in the comments!)

Digital Tool #1: A Digital Calendar for Appointments.

An optimal calendar has two parts–one for appointments and another for flexible tasks.

I personally use my Google Calendar for appointments, and I use my paper planner for the flexible tasks. (We’ll talk more about the flexible tasks in a moment.)

Although paper calendars can be awesome for tracking appointments (mine has a monthly calendar and a daily schedule), there are at least two big advantages to using a digital calendar.

Advantage #1: You can easily reschedule without having to erase/cross out, etc.

Advantage #2: You can share your calendars with others. You can easily search online how to do this, but Eric and I share our Google Calendars, and there’s a toggle on/off ability. Plus, you can create additional calendar layers to customize. For example, I have one layer for private notes like my friends’ birthdays that Eric doesn’t need to see, and then I have my general layer which shows all my appointments so Eric knows when I’m available. I also share my son’s calendar, so I can see his work schedule. Then at LearnDoBecome ,we have multiple calendars–a vacation calendar for the whole team, a calendar for our live classes, etc. Again, those can be turned on and off as desired. It takes a moment to set this up, but this makes it so much easier to coordinate with others.

Sometimes I still use my paper planner schedule on the daily or weekly view to map out the sequence of my appointments and tasks, but my digital calendar is the guide on what “has” to be done.

Digital Tool #2: A Digital Task Feeder

I wasn’t sure what to call this because this is essentially what helps me decide which tasks I am going to do on a certain day.

I’ll start by explaining the problem it solves, and then I’ll share how I specifically create mine.

The problem with a paper planner is that you may not always have a specific spot to write down something like “call to check in on the job application on the 26th of May.” If you have a ringed planner like mine, you might not have May’s pages in your planner at the moment. If you’re using a bullet journal, you likely haven’t created specific dated pages for months into the future.

And even if you do have the pages available, sometimes you might decide to move a task to a different day, so then you need to rewrite it over and over again.

It really doesn’t matter which digital tool you use, but if you have a way to type in a task for a specific day in the future and know it’s going to come to you digitally, that allows your brain to rest. And if you need to make a change on the date assigned, it takes just a second.

You could make it an all-day task on your digital calendar–or there are tons of different apps, add-ons, and digital project management tools available.

Currently, I use a software called Asana for this. There’s a section called “My Tasks,” and I just type in the task I need to do–with any related links, photos, or written instructions, I assign it to myself, and I give it a deadline.

Then each morning, I look at Asana, and I create my task list for the day. I try to keep this incredibly short, but it takes just a moment to think through my goals, responsibilities, energy, family circumstances, etc., and then I have a simple, focused list to help provide some structure.

I don’t schedule every minute, and I value being responsive to my family and moving at a pace that makes sense, so this isn’t a stressful list, but I like to be able to check in on this a few times throughout the day to keep me moving on things that I’ve already decided matter most.

I’m currently using a daily planner (as opposed to the weekly one I used last year). This one has plenty of space for tasks, and I find that it’s helpful for me to group them.

Quiet time tasks at the top (during my work hours).
Flexible, easy tasks I can do in the middle of a bustling household in the middle.
Errands at the bottom.

You could obviously adjust yours as needed, but I hope this helps!

Digital Tool #3: A Digital Routine Feeder

This is pretty much the same as the digital task feeder. I also create these inside Asana, except this is for recurring tasks.

I have a special list of my personal/family routines and my work routines that I review each week during my Weekly Review.

I don’t set deadlines for ALL of these–because many of them are optional (Multiple-Choice Perfect Day), but when a routine task is a MUST, and I’m concerned I won’t remember to do it, I add a deadline and make it a recurring task. (You can see the little arrow next to the day of the week.)

These show up in “My Tasks,” so I review them each morning and add them to my list.

“Water Plants” is a personal example because I have killed so many, and if I don’t write it down, it doesn’t get done. When I bought a bunch of plants last year, Eric guessed they would all die within a few months. One of them did because somehow we overwatered it, but the rest are still alive because I have routines organized in Asana. 🙂

“ARISE Newsletter Suggestions” is a professional example. Inside our ARISE membership, we send out an email each week just for the members. Sometimes there’s a private podcast, a replay of our class, bonus content, information about our prize for the month, etc. Alia runs the details for us, but I like to send ideas each week, so this pops up to remind me!

Digital Tool #4: A Tiered Projects List

Instead of just one Projects List, we recommend that you have a Current one (7-8 total, organized by Me, Family, and Paid/Volunteer Work), a Next in Line list, and a Someday list.

You may also want an In Progress/Waiting one for things you can’t move forward on because you’re waiting for a deadline or another person to take action.

Most people create task lists that are big conglomerations of projects, routines, calendared items, and one-step tasks.

Projects are multi-step tasks that can actually be completed. Something like planning a vacation, organizing a big closet, or writing a book.

Having these in an external project management software, divided into the categories I mentioned, is a game changer because you can move them around according to priority, and you can include all related links, resources, etc. right there with the project.

I might use my planning pages to brainstorm projects, but then I put them into my project management software, which I check each week as I update my lists during my weekly review.

This is an example of how we organize our professional projects at LearnDoBecome:

Digital Tool #5: The Next Actions Related to My Projects

When you’re working on a project, it’s often helpful to brainstorm all the steps that are necessary in order for the project to get “done.” You can create random lists inside a paper planner, but it’s often hard to remember where they are, when to look back on them, etc.

Inside my tiered projects list, I record as many next actions as necessary for me to have clarity on that project. (It’s nice to know how big or small it is.)

Each week, as I’m planning out my project work, I can either add a few next actions to my next actions list–or if I need to do a specific task on a specific day, I add a deadline, and it pops up in “My Tasks.”

You’ve heard me talk about “My Tasks” quite a bit–and yes, this one list delivers calendar-specific tasks that are related to a project, calendar-specific tasks that are routines, AND calendar-specific tasks that stand alone.

But I feel SO much peace around my paper planner because I have a simple digital system supporting me in the background.

I know which projects I’m focused on, which routines I want to accomplish, which commitments I’ve made, and what, exactly, I want to do each day in order to move forward on my goals.

It does take a little practice, but I only spend minutes in my planner each day, and it enables me to get the most important things done AND have plenty of time to relax, replenish, build relationships, and be present in the moment.

I hope this is helpful for you! I welcome your questions and comments below and wish you the BEST as you build your system!

xoxo

April

And if you’re looking to create a full system to help you organize your mind, I hope you’ll check out our free training, “How to Finally Stop Drowning in Piles!”

Thanks for being here with us!

Testimonials from Our STEPpers!

It has been SO fun to receive dozens of messages, Facebook posts, and testimonials from our STEPpers each week, and I wanted to share a few here with you today.

This first one comes from Frances: