It’s still your year: 17 creative ways to use your planner

Are you feeling like packing up your 2021 planner?

If you do, you are not alone.

As a planner lover, I was so excited to dive into my 2021 planner. I spent time intentionally deciding the design, layout, and purpose of my planner. Oh, I had all the ideas.

Then ‘Rona.

All of the plans I had laid out are canceled. No reason to track day dates with my hubby, family trips, extracurricular sports for our fellas, or vacations. Just like that, it felt like a sudden break up with my planner.

For a few weeks, I didn’t touch my planner. What was the point?

If you felt like me, don’t pack up your planner just yet.

There are just a few innovative ways I use my planner. I am sure you are going to find a few favs you’ll love.

1. Scripture Writing

Using your weekly spread, write down scripture you want to memorize or scriptures to help you stay rooted in God’s truth. Feeling stressed, worried, or anxious? What does the Bible say? Write down the scripture you find to keep you encouraged and build your faith. Plus, you can include scripture writing as a part of your daily devotion time.  

2. Prayers

Depending upon the layout of your calendar, you can use the space to record, prayers over your family, your community, or for specific people. Each week you can choose a different person to pray over specific areas like health, salvation, relationships, finances, and more. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you.

3. Habit Tracker

Now is a great time to use your planner to track habits you want to start or even habits you want to break. You can use the monthly layout to track healthy patterns you want to improve like exercising, drinking water, taking your vitamins, or reading.

4. Gratitude Journal

Taking time each day to write down what you are grateful for each day is good for your heart and your mental health. Instead of focusing on what we do not have or cannot do, let’s focus on all we do. Consider focusing on gratitude in an area of your life you are struggling to see the good.  

5. Blog Schedule

If you are thinking about starting a blog or maybe you want to run your blog more efficiently, then your planner can be your friend. Take some time to plan out your blog posts well in advance. Schedule time to write, edit, create graphics, and promotion.  

6. Quote Wall

Quotes can be inspiring and encouraging. Whether you use the monthly or weekly layout, write down quotes that speak to you during this time. You can choose a theme a week or an area you need some encouragement. Have fun with it.

7. Goal calendar

Do you want to use this time at home to meet some of your goals? Maybe you want to start training for your first 5K? Write the book you’ve been putting off for years? Launch your business? Or prioritize improving your marriage? Use your planner to plan out your long term, short term, and daily goals.

8. Mood tracker

Being at home, you might be feeling a plethora of emotions. Helping to identify triggers of anger, sadness, or anxiety is helpful. How did you feel when you woke up today? Were you irritated or positive? If you woke up feeling out of sort, how were you able to turn it around. Knowing your moods and spotting patterns will help with developing healthy responses.

9. Memory Keeper

Friend, your planner is a great place to keep up with all of the good memories of your time at home with your family. Taking time each day to job down the little moments like how you felt dancing with your spouse in the kitchen, hearing your kids sing during praise and worship, or having a friend call. Use a smartphone printer to print out a few pictures and place them in your planner. You will never get these moments back.

10. Reading Journal

Reading books while home? Use your planner to keep up with information learned, techniques you can master, or personal growth steps you want to implement. Summary notes of each chapter are direct and capture what you want to remember.

11. Doodle a day

For my artistic friends, this is for you. Choose your favorite pen and start creating. Make an effort to doodle or sketch whatever speaks to your heart. You can choose a color theme a week, focus on letter writing, or a specific technique. Let your creativity flow.

12. Dream keeper

You can use our weekly spread to help you remember different dreams you might have during this time. Do you have reoccurring dreams? What is God revealing to you in your dreams?

13. Affirmations

Write down daily affirmations to speak the best over your life and the life of those around you. Writing your affirmations, especially when rooted in scripture, remind you of who you are and what you are capable of doing.

14. Meal Planner

You can use your weekly spread to help you plan your meals for the week, which also helps you with your weekly grocery shopping. Meal planning can also help you with your fitness or health goals.

15. Garden Planner

Your planner is a beautiful place to track what you are growing, when you planted, and approximate time of harvest. You can journal the progress of your plants, what you are doing well, and what you need to improve. Take pictures to brighten the pages of your garden planning.

16. Health Tracker

Right now, you may notice an increase in stress and anxiety, which might have a negative impact on your sleep or blood pressure. Your planner is the perfect place to keep up with any changes to your sleep patterns, blood pressure, migraines, blood sugar levels, or changes in your skin. Tracking these changes will be helpful if any changes persist, and you need to talk to your doctor.

17. Happy List

A happy list is a fun way to use your planner. Create a special place in your journal of all the things that make you happy, like a cup of coffee at your favorite café, hanging out at the beach, or letter from your spouse.  

Okay, friends, let’s choose to make 2020 still our best year yet. Get those planners out and get creative. I wanna see what you decide to do. Tag me on Instagram @mlp_media