Today I thought I would share with you how I use my diary each month. Staying organised can sometimes feel like a major task but with these easy tips, it doesn’t have to be! Here are simple ways to stay organised and manage your day like a boss.
I am a member of the Amazon Affiliates Program. This means that if you purchase any products using the links on this page, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost to you! Earning through the affiliate program is how I can continue to create quality content for you, my reader. I only link to products that I have tried and loved so you can be certain that you’re getting an honest recommendation.
You need a diary!
First of all, the type of diary that I use is a bullet journal. I know not everyone likes to put in the effort of designing their own page layouts however, a bullet journal gives you so much flexibility! I want to have a diary that can be used for everything. Reflection, appointments, birthdays, planning, habit tracking. You name it, I can do it.
The current bullet journal that I’m using is the LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Medium Size A5 in Navy. I also loved the Lemome Bullet Journal in Grey, which is made with environmental material and absolutely no animal products! It was the first bullet journal I bought and I loved the soft texture and dream tree cover!
Other people prefer electronic diaries so that they can be synced up to all their devices. This is especially useful if you’re a business owner with clients or staff members as you can keep track of your meetings.
Today, I want to focus on a paper diary and how it can help you.
How I use my diary to stay organised
Monthly Overviews
The first page I create in my diary is a monthly overview. This page is for birthdays, important events, goals and notes. I create a space for my goals near the top as this tells me that I’m making myself a priority. That’s okay. Birthdays come under goals but I haven’t included that on the page as I don’t have any in July. The rest of the page I leave blank and I write notes in as and when I need to.
My second page is my content planning. This is for my blog and my IGTV videos. I only create a calendar for Monday to Friday as I don’t plan specific posts for the weekend (only daily blogging). I write my ideas down in pencil as I’m often changing things around. More often than not, I try to plan the month in advance so that I have an idea of what I want to create. Mondays are IGTV videos and Wednesdays and Fridays are blog posts.
This page doesn’t have to only be relevant to content creators. Anyone who is self-employed or freelancing could use this template too. This could be a calendar for meetings or essential tasks that must be completed.
Weekly Spread
I’m often changing my weekly spread as I try different routines. This month I’m working on time blocking to keep myself on track for a productive day. I have one line per hour and I keep a column on the right hand side for notes and exercise goals.
Again, I only write in pencil as sometimes my priority tasks change and need to make amendments. I leave space to write notes for the week in general and I don’t time block on a weekend.
Meal Planning
I talked about how I meal plan in an earlier post this week. If I don’t meal plan, I spend more time gazing at the fridge wondering what to cook rather than actually cooking. This eats into my day (no pun intended) and I end up losing productivity time. As you know, I’m a firm believer in intuitive eating so I’m not suggesting you decide exactly what you’re going to eat at all times. Making bigger portions of food at dinner time and eating leftovers for lunch the next day is a great time saver. Plus you’re more likely to eat something that will give you an energy boost.
Visual Cues
Having a space in your home where you will regularly see notes is really useful. We don’t always have our diaries near us or opened which makes it easy to forget small tasks. I like to keep a whiteboard on our fridge to keep on top of the little things. Often, I plan a couple of evening meals in advance to make sure that the meat or fish is being cooked within its use by date.
If you have a home office, you might prefer a pin board or a white board at your desk to stay on top of essential tasks. If you don’t spend a lot of time in the kitchen, sticky notes around your dressing table may suit you better. There are lots of options for where you can put your visual cues and I can guarantee that you’ll remember more!
Set yourself reminders
The last thing that I want to talk about that you can do to stay organised is set yourself reminders. These could be on your phone but I personally love to use my Amazon Alexa. If I need to ring someone later in the day, I ask Alexa to remind me about 5 minutes beforehand.
Setting alarms is also a great idea if you’re time blocking. It’s very easy to be submerged in a task and forget to stop. Setting a timer will keep you on track. It also keeps you accountable on whether or not you’re giving yourself realistic time slots for certain tasks.
Buy yourself an Amazon Alexa HERE!
I hope you’ve found something useful among these simple ways to stay organised! My diary is definitely the glue that holds me together.
Let me know how you stay organised!
Always remember to take a ‘paws’!
Charlotte x
