NH&G: Sell me on your (paper) planner

[emoflamingo]

I am awful with digital planners and I really can't use the one on my phone (an android) because I dislike it.

I had one that I loved from Wal-Mart is a spiral bound planner that has both a monthly view and a weekly view with hourly slots so I can keep things organized, but the one they have now from that company does not have the hourly slots and it has a weird cover so it doesn't lay flat when you open it.

I want one like this, I'm not picky about how it looks on the outside (mine is currently gray so I'm good with solids and designs) and this is my lifeline to keeping things together, so I'm cool with spending some money on it (within reason).

I need to go to Target to see what they have but it's across town and I never have time to do that. (bonus to my new house: it takes 20 minutes to get to Target and I rarely go because I'm lazy so I don't spend as much as often!)

[mrs.jacinthe]

I'm no help. I just use a desk calendar/planner from Anne Taintor. It only has the weekly view and no hour slots (which is my preferred format).

[darkling_glory]

I have one of the Erin Condren planners that everyone on MM was posting about. It's a little large, but I LOVE it!

It has a monthly view and then weekly breakouts. I use it as a central calendar and then the folders in the back help me keep lists or mail or coupons together.

I'll PIP.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using proboards

[darkling_glory]

PIP

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using proboards

[darkling_glory]

PIP

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using proboards

[hausfrau]

I'm a big fan of Moleskine planners. The softcover and hardcover ones both can withstand a lot of abuse through a year. My favorite layout is the weekly planner + notes because it has a whole week on the left side and then a blank page on the right. I can write down interviews and meetings, etc., on the day, but on the right side include any notes, extra phone numbers or email addresses I need right there. Moleskines come in several sizes too, so you can have something that will fit in your purse or larger for a tote bag.

I've actually been transitioning over to iCal and playing around with Google Calendar, so this is actually my first year in probably 15 years that I haven't had a paper planner.

[emoflamingo]

darkling_glory, thanks, that helps! I had another friend suggest one of those. I like the hourly ones because it helps cut down on confusion when I schedule multiple things on the same day, but that one is pretty nice too.

hausfrau, I wish I had an iPhone because I'd just use iCal and sync it to my computer at home, but the iPhone for Virgin Mobile is insanely priced (because there are no contracts = no deals for the phones), so I ended up with an HTC Evo V instead. I use the Outlook calendar on my work computer, but I have no way to sync it as well.

[hausfrau]

May 13, 2013 11:54:59 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

hausfrau, I wish I had an iPhone because I'd just use iCal and sync it to my computer at home, but the iPhone for Virgin Mobile is insanely priced (because there are no contracts = no deals for the phones), so I ended up with an HTC Evo V instead. I use the Outlook calendar on my work computer, but I have no way to sync it as well.

I work with all Macs and use a Mac at home, so that makes the iPhone so much easier of a choice. That sucks that Virgin Mobile doesn't offer any price incentives for it.

You might also look into a calendar app if you want to experiment with something that isn't Google Calendar. Business Calendar is a pretty great app that gives you a lot of options and is beyond better than Google Calendar. Jorte and Pocket Informant are also pretty popular. Pocket Informant is kind of the least good of those three, but you can sync with Toodledo, which is a bonus.

I hope you find something that works well for you! It can be frustrating to have a planner that doesn't work the way you need it to.

[ktzmoh]

I'm a moleskine addict. I'd highly recommend their planners.

[womet]

If you like the look of the Erin Condren planners but don't like the price, Plum Paper designs sells similar ones on etsy (http://www.etsy.com/shop/PlumPaperDesigns).

[my4girls]

I love my blue sky planner. you can get some of the styles at Target. I love the one I have- the cover is a clear pocket, I tuck papers in it that I need. and it's big enough (5 x 8) but not huge like the erin condron ones. I can fit this in all pmy purses

www.amazon.com/July-2013-Weekly-monthly-Planner/dp/B00BSDV9CG/ref=sr_1_19?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1368468729&sr=1-19&keywords=BLUE+SKY+PLANNER

[OG Jo]

JennaSue made an EC-copy planner you can print out for your own use.

jennasuedesign.blogspot.com/2012/10/almost-free-monthly-planner.html