A client recently asked me, “I’m getting ready to purchase my planner for 2010. What do you recommend?” What a timely question!
There are two basic types of planners, and no, it’s not digital versus paper! While there are many different planner categories, I’ve found that broadly speaking, there are executive and appointment planners. The executive planner is usually week-at-a-glance, and has large, open calendar spaces to write notes, your daily appointments, etc. The appointment planner is usually larger, two-day-at-a glance, and includes time intervals on each sheet.
If you like leaving yourself room for notes, and you generally don’t have back-to-back appointments, I’d recommend the executive style. I like viewing a week at a time to put my meetings into perspective. Your wall calendar is a good example of this type. If you have several meetings each day and really only need to know what’s going on “today”, then I suggest the appointment planner. This type is also beneficial if you think including specific tasks, in addition to appointments, in your calendar helps you to plan your day, i.e., “10:00 Return Jon’s call”, “2:00-3:00 Proposal for Jon”.
Should you make the switch to using the planner on your PDA? If you’re already comfortable recording your calendar activities in Outlook or ACT!, then this will be an easy transition. You can also utilize search functions and keep your notes all in one place. Digital calendars are appointment planner types, and work well for people with multiple appointments and need aural reminders or those who frequently reschedule meetings.
However, if writing an appointment down solidifies the meeting in your mind, you should stick with a paper planner. Still can’t find a paper planner that meets all of your criteria? Why not design your own? FranklinCovey can create a planner just for you: http://dyo.franklinplanner.com/ Try to not combine both paper and digital, as something is bound to be dropped in the transfer process.
So, while there’s no “best”, I do tend to stay away from planners that have lots of “fluff” – address book, journal, time zone maps, etc., only because I don’t use these features and would rather not pay for them! Think about what information you’re wanting to record in the planner, and then find one that fits what you’re wanting to input.
Still have questions? I’m here to help. Having a planner that works seamlessly for you is one of the BEST tools to stay organized.
