I started using a planner and here’s how it changed my way of functioning

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who are organized and those who are not. Taking into account all my experiences, I can easily say I fall into the second category. It isn’t that unorganised folks don’t understand the value of planning, but we lack it as an inherent skill.

This means that the art of organisation needs to be developed. Now, Marie Kondo has been extremely influential in helping me understand that getting organised can really improve the quality of life, and help declutter mentally. It was, however, my friend who helped me take action by giving me a planner this new year!

I had been telling her that I need to learn how to plan better in 2021, in order to make it more productive, and be prepared for things coming up to help me feel better mentally. Lo and behold, she presented me with the perfect planner that was divided into months, weeks and days. It contained stickers to denote urgency and prioritisation. In addition, it also contained a budget section for each month and a habit tracker. The very first page contained a section titled ‘Big Goals for 2021’ and space to create a vision board. Overall, it is super comprehensive and even comes with certain tips for planning.

I decided to use this gift from January itself! Honestly, it has helped me immensely this month. In fact, a study from the Dominican University of California found that writing your goals makes you 33 percent more likely to achieve them than solely making mental plans.

Over the past month, I have:

1. Been able to prioritise

Being able to write down my tasks at the beginning of the day has helped me improve prioritisation. When I list out my tasks, I’m able to understand what needs to be wrapped up earlier than other things. This enables me to schedule my day in a way, where I’m able to manage time better and increase productivity.

2. Have mental clarity

I hadn’t quite realized this before I started using a planner, but knowing what you have to do in the week, being aware of your deadlines and the events to be attended during the month brings about mental clarity. What’s more, knowing what your schedule is like helps you achieve mental peace, and prevents you from feeling like life is chaotic.

3. Reduced stress and distraction

I felt way less stressed because of the stability I experienced by using a planner for this month. Planning ahead for the day enabled me to not only reduce stress levels, but also helped me get less distracted. It brought focus into my routine and helped me finish all my tasks for the day, minimising delays and managing my time better.

Using a planner has made me more organised and I hope it stays this way all year long!