Ever since I can remember, I’ve used a planner in my life; sometimes it was when I was playing house with my little sister to organise our “doll family”, other times it was to organise my school work and my exams. For the past 7 years of “adulting” I’ve used it to manage every single area of my life.
Having a planner has always helped me keep track of things, stay on top of everything and make sure I’d get things done.
But when I discovered the CEO of my own life planner at the end of 2021, I knew I’d found the best planner yet, so today, I’ll be sharing how I use it to keep my life organised and productive.
Why I chose the CEO of My Own Life® planner
One of the main frustrations I had in the past for other planners was that they didn’t have everything I needed for my life.
Maybe they were too basic, or they had a lot of good things but were missing other pages I needed in my life, so I ended up buying lots of separate notebooks or keeping papers everywhere.
Over the past few years, my life has become busier and busier; I went from working part-time and running my freelance business to finding a full-time corporate job and running my blog and other projects on the side.
I also became even more conscious about my health and was determined to implement some habits to look after it.
Not to mention that I’m in a relationship and have many commitments, and I also want to make an effort to be intentional about my social life.
For so long, I felt overwhelmed about it all and felt incomplete in my organisation system, but that changed when I discovered the CEO of My Own Life® planner.
As soon as I discovered it online, I knew I had to place an order, and I can safely say that I’ve had the most organised, productive, and peaceful six months I’ve ever had!
This life planner is complete in every detail, has everything I need to help me stay on top of things without hitting burnout, and I can confidently rely on it to manage not just my life but also my blog and the other projects I work on.
How I use my CEO of My Own Life® planner
I usually spend about an hour each Sunday planning my week. Here’s how I plan my week using the CEO of My Own Life® planner (the weekly edition).
- First of all, I put down my goals for each specific week by filling out the boxes at the bottom. I try not to overwhelm myself, so I only write down about 2 to 3 goals in each area which are: Business/Career, Home, Health, and Personal.
- I then move on to planning my days: I always write down first when I’ll wake up and have my morning routine and when I’ll have my quiet time in the evening and go to bed.
- Then I write down which time I start work, when I have my lunch break, and when I log off work.
- Next, I fill out whatever empty slots I have in the daily schedule with the goals I set in the boxes; for example, I usually write down that I want to write one blog per week, so I allocate that goal to one day where I have time to work on it for about 1.5 hours.
- Another important step that I need to make sure I take is fill out any commitments I make during the weekend with other people. That could be meeting up with friends, going for date night, or calling someone. I can’t skip this step, or I know I’ll double book myself or forget that I even agreed to meet up with someone.
- For any additional things that I need to plan during the week I use the notes pages at the beginning of each week. That’s typically where I write down my meal plans, my master to-do list (things that I don’t schedule on a particular day but that I try doing whenever I have some time), and the types of workouts I want to do each week.
I tie in my weekly planning to another sheet on the planner, which I’ll talk about below as one of my favourite features.
My favourite features in the CEO of My Own Life® planner
Now that I’ve shared with you how I plan my week using the CEO of My Own Life® planner, I want to share my favourite sections of the planner.
- The habits tracker
This is definitely one of my top pages because I am the biggest fan of habit trackers!
I am extremely intentional about my habits because I’ve learned that if I want to see progress in my life, I need to focus on small, daily activities.
I love using this habit tracker as I can split all my daily habits into relevant categories to avoid getting overwhelmed.
I typically have a category for my morning routine where I write down each thing I do in the morning. I then have one for my blog and the activities I need to do daily or weekly, and then I have a personal one which includes things like going for a walk every day or reading a chapter a day, and so on.
The last box in the habit tracker is usually filled with different activities or things that happen on an ad-hoc basis.
If you would like to learn more about implementing habits in your life, check out this post!
- The monthly budget
This is also another page that I absolutely love because I’m so intentional about my finances as I have big goals and need to stay on track.
This is the first budgeting sheet with all the things I need to track my money; the spending, earnings, savings, and even a notes section.
It’s truly incredible, and it allows me to have a complete picture of my finances every month, and it’s keeping me on track with my savings goals!
- The reading sheet
I’m a book worm, and I once made my own reading sheet to keep track of all the books I read. But to find one in this planner was so incredible that when I saw it, my eyes lit up!
I now write down which book I read as soon as I finish it and how I rate it.
My goal is usually to read one book a month, and so far, I’m doing great! I love having a place to keep track of it and then look back at the list and see the progress I've made throughout the year.
Final thoughts on how I use the CEO of My Own Life® planner to stay organised and productive
I hope you enjoyed reading this post. If you are a busy bee like I am, then this planner will help you stay on top of things and also keep your sanity.
I love using this planner because it reminds me that whilst working hard is necessary and important for our success, we also need to be intentional with scheduling rest and looking after ourselves.
The bottom line is: if you want to stay organised and productive, you need to get the CEO of My Own Life® planner now!
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Benedetta is a multi-passionate blogger, founder of The Planning Geek. She loves planning and organizing her life, and helping other women to organize their life and business for success. In her free time, you can find her by the beach (or the park when in London), reading a good book, or exploring new restaurants and trying new delicious food. You can find her blog at theplanninggeek.com, on Instagram, and on Pinterest. |
2023 Planner Guide
Whether you’re new to Ella Iconic or wondering which new 2023 CEO of My Own Life® planner to add to your collection, this guide will explain the range of options available and help you find the planner that best fits your needs.
CEO of My Own Life® planners are designed to prompt you to plan for every area of your life: professional, family life, your health and fitness, as well as your personal life. Read 2023 Planner Guide here.
