The FranklinPlanner method of task management is to prioritize your tasks with the ABC 123 method—setting apart the things of greatest importance to help ensure you are putting your greatest efforts toward the things that matter most to you. A version of this method will also work wonders for your work space. Here’s how. Just …
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“It’s WORK! How I hate it! I’d much rather play!” – Dr. Seuss, Horton Hatches the Egg Can you remember when you were younger, when time seemed to move slower and moments seemed to last longer? With fewer hours, days, and weeks for comparison, nothing mattered more than the immediate present. It took years of …
Do you have a personal mission statement? Most of us think of mission statements in corporate terms. Large corporations, non-profit organizations, universities, and philanthropies have mission statements. These messages are usually directed toward the people involved in the organization as well as the person who would buy their product, enroll in their school, or donate …
Before you can use your time effectively, it is essential to define what constitutes an effective use of time. You spend each minute of each day doing something, whether it’s advancing your field, strengthening your relationships, or getting caught up in the latest game app craze. Stephen R. Covey provided an excellent framework for categorizing …
Memory could be defined as our ability to capture information and retrieve it when we need it. How many of us can do that? Our brains have almost limitless capacity to retain information, but the challenge comes when we want to retrieve that information during the chaos of the day. Even if we believe we …
Before we start talking about excuses, we need to understand that “excuses” is the proper term—not “reasons.” Reasons are perhaps the most important part of what makes us tick. They’re based in our values—the underlying principles upon which we base all of our actions. Reasons are the why of our actions, and the why is …
Continue reading “6 Excuses Why We Don’t Plan, and How to Overcome Them”
You’ve heard sayings like “The best offense is a good defense”, right? Here’s a new one to add to the list: “The best daily plans come from weekly planning.” To achieve any significant goal, you need to look beyond the day-to-day cycle of actions and reactions and make a larger plan. These five steps will …
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“No man is an island, entire of itself” – John Donne The most effective planners know how to coordinate their personal planning system with the rhythms of those around them, whether it’s sending a student back to school or spearheading a project at work. From setting up meeting appointments on the company’s Google account to …
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For some of us, time is a constant, plodding taskmaster—demanding our attention and dictating our actions. For others it’s a welcome adventure—a powerful tool that we use to make the most of our skills, sharpen our talents, dabble in hobbies, and work toward goals. What’s the difference? It isn’t time. Time is unchanging and beyond …
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This week we celebrate Independence Day in the U.S. It’s a time to ponder the great men and women who dared to dream of a free nation ruled not by a monarch, but by law. Among those amazing founders was Benjamin Franklin. He was a great statesman, businessman, father, inventor of bi-focals, swim flippers, lightening …
Continue reading “How Ben Franklin’s 13 Virtues Shaped the Franklin Planner”
Have you ever had a moment that changed you? We can probably all think of events in our lives that acted as hinges for our life’s direction—pivot points that altered the course of our lives forever. The day she said yes, the birth of our children, the death of a loved one—all of these big …
Continue reading “5 Planner Accessories You Didn’t Know You Needed”
If you’re lucky, or maybe just well prepared, the summer months give you time to relax with a good book. As you plan out a reading list, consider these insightful and life-changing entries: 1. Project Management for the Unofficial Project Manager by Korey Kogon, Suzette Blakemore, and James Wood Whether you’re taking on new responsibilities …
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As with all successful efforts, it takes some initiative to use a planner. But when you look at the alternatives, using a planner eliminates many stressful situations from your life. Here are eight examples. 1. Avoid double-booking If you’ve ever accidentally double-booked your schedule, you know how stressful it can be when you get a …
This may sound strange coming from FranklinPlanner, but the truth is, time management is an oxymoron. We have no control over time itself—it moves at the same rate continually, whether we keep up with it or not. That means, of course, that you can’t save time either. It isn’t something we can keep in a …
Memorial Day is intended as a way to remember our brave neighbors, friends, and family who gave everything they had to ensure our freedoms and to help maintain freedom for others. Because it’s a Federal holiday, many of us have the day off work so we can devote time to celebrating and remembering. How we celebrate varies. It’s …
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Before spring is over, universities everywhere will hold their commencement ceremonies, celebrating their students’ years of academic achievement. By this point, these students will have had close to 16 years of structured days, each naturally flowing toward the next. After throwing their caps in the air, however, their future will become their own responsibility. If you’re graduating this spring, …
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We all want to improve or maintain our health, and we know that the best way to do that is through exercise. So why is exercise so hard to fit into our lives? Here are some things we can do to help ensure we have a successful workout. Use Your Planner Planning ahead will make …
Most of us would love it if we could eliminate the time it takes to get to and from work. It would be nice to walk out of our office and be instantly on our own time, running our own errands, catching little league games, or helping prepare dinner. But we can’t—we have to spend …
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It’s strange how easy it can be to find discontent in your life. You might be looking at your neighbor’s green grass on the other side of the fence, or peering out from your cubicle at the walled office next to you. It can be tempting to compare yourself unfavorably to those around you, highlighting …
Continue reading “Using Your Planner as a Gratitude Journal”
Your planner is a great way to manage your daily tasks, but it’s much more than that. A planner is a tool to help strengthen your identity, sort out the values that matter most to you, create a personal mission statement, and to set and reach both short- and long-term goals. Managing simple daily tasks is …
