4 things to consider when setting up a new planner
As the end of 2022 approaches, we are continuing to see more planner releases and setups for 2023. It’s an exciting time to be part of this community seeing everyone’s ideas for new planner setups.
Around the time when writing this, I was brainstorming setting up for a home reference planner to keep at home. I knew I wanted to set something up from scratch, but that was it. If anyone is in the same boat as me, I hope the following list comes in handy. Here are some things to keep in mind when setting up or buying a new planner.
1. Budget
I’m sure I don’t have to tell anyone this, planners can be expensive 😂 This can also depend on the season in your life, maybe a new planner change isn’t in the budget for this month. Set yourself an amount you are allowed to spend.
If you’re not sure about where to start with this, consider whether you are going to buy a new ring planner, discbound notebook or whatever is going to act as the bare bones for your set up. Once you know the cost, work your way in thinking about inserts, dashboards etc. What do you need to start using this functionally? Because remember, you can always add to the planner later. You just need the essentials to get you started.
2. Size
This part will depend on which planner type you are going with for your setup. For example, if you were looking to set up something in personal size, you would probably be leaning towards a ring planner. One thing I usually tend to forget when switching between sizes is that unless I decide to work on my handwriting, 9 times out of 10 it is going to remain the same. For some people, this may mean pocket size or A6 is out of the picture.
Another thing to think about is accessibility when purchasing items for your planner. For example, the most common planner sizes for ring planners are pocket, personal and A5. A6 and personal wide are definitely becoming more popular, whilst other sizes in between have limitations when it comes to finding planner goodies for your planner. That’s not to say there aren’t options out there, it really depends on what you’re looking to include in your planner.
3. Usage
How often are you going to be using this planner? Is this going to include your daily task list? Or maybe it’s something more similar to the reference planner I am trying to put together which will mostly stay opened on my desk to go through each day or at least a few times a week. If this planner is going to be your everyday carry, portability may be something that you need to consider and goes hand in hand with considering the size of your planner.
Depending on what you will be using your planner for, your set up might be leaning towards a more simple and clean look or vice versa. Going back to the task list example, maybe a pocket sized travelers notebook with a plain grid insert is enough to meet your needs. If this planner will live at home 24/7, maybe you need something with a lot of white space to utilise your sticker stash you would have access to all the time. The options are endless.
4. Archiving
My last suggestion is to actually think ahead and consider what comes after when you’re done using your planner. Do you have a storage system in place to archive your planners or inserts? Or maybe you’re not planning to keep old inserts once the year is done. Like the rest of these tips, this will depend on your intentions with your planner, whether it would be worth keeping certain parts of your planner for future reference or just recycling all the used paper.
I tend to get very nostalgic and enjoy looking back at past planners during different times of my life. This might be the same for you 😊 Though I will say, there are certain planner sizes I know I will probably never go back to which do take up space. If you’re in similar situation, maybe it’s time we work on destashing and recycling some things 😂
So there you go! I hope this list helps with your brainstorming. Let me know in the comments if I missed anything or if there is something that has always worked for you when setting up a new planner.
And make sure you have fun with the process. If it gets too stressful or overwhelming, take a step back and return to it later. Or reach out to a planner friend! My DMs are always opened if you get stuck 😊
Happy planning guys! xx
Tash
@creatively_tash
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