There are lots of planners on the market, varying in size, layout and binding options.
Most are designed with daily, weekly, or monthly layouts, so here's a straightforward breakdown explaining the differences.
daily
A daily planner dedicates an entire page to a single day and usually includes a half hour / hourly breakdown so you can easily make a note of your schedule in detail, as well as noting your appointments and meetings.
Not only perfect for people with very busy schedules, a daily layout can also be useful as a productivity tool, to time block your tasks over the course of the day.
weekly
A weekly planner usually dedicates a two page spread to a single week. It will include space to note the week's schedule and appointments, but in less detail than a daily planner - this can give you greater flexibility, particularly if your days are not heavily orientated around meetings and appointments.
Weekly planners tend to have space for organising your tasks, with areas for notes, reminders and trackers, and are perfect for seeing an overview of your entire week.
monthly
A monthly planner is great for people who like to see an overview of the entire month. You can use it along side your weekly or daily planner, or simply use it on its own if you tend not to have too busy a schedule, or don't require as detailed scheduling such as the weekly or daily layouts.
If you run a business, monthly planners are a great tool to plan and map out social media posts, marketing campaigns etc across the entire month.
undated
So, that's the various layouts explained, let's talk about different formats...
ringbinders
The most versatile format for a planner is an organiser with a ring mechanism. The biggest benefit of this system is that you can build your own planner to suit your needs, adding inserts and reordering them as you wish. You can easily customise your planner to make the most sense for you, with everything in one place. You can find a large variety of inserts to add to your planner; from simple to-do lists and notes pages, to health and wellbeing logs, and budget and spending trackers.
bound planners
Another option is a bound planner, whether wire bound or book bound, these make a compact and lightweight option. It does mean you forgo the flexibility of a ringbinder, with no ability to add pages, but if you don't require a comprehensive system with lots of additional sheets, a bound planner is perfect.
Disc bound planners are an option if you want the feeling of a bound planner but the flexibility of being able to add pages.
digital planners
Digital planners are quickly growing in popularity, but personally, the stationery lover in me prefers the tactile nature of putting pen to paper in a physical planner.But going digital is certainly a very convenient option for taking your planner on the go, as depending on the device you use, it will be lightweight, convenient and easily accessible.
bullet journals
If you're a creative person, keeping a bullet journal can be a great way to unleash your inner artist. All you need is a blank notebook (usually with a dotted or square grid design) and you can design your pages with the exact planner layout that suits your needs.
It's a great way to regularly practice some creative mindfulness, by putting time aside each week to design your upcoming pages.
If you're not sure where to start, there are some amazing ideas online to inspire you! However, bullet journaling may not be ideal if you prefer more structure, or you tend to plan and schedule far in advance.
I'd love to know what your favourite planner system is, and what makes it perfect for you?
Pop a comment below!
Elizabeth x
