If you are new to the planning space, finding a planner that meets your needs can be tricky. What are you supposed to look for?
- Page quality?
- A local or international brand?
- Something plain and simple or something pretty?
Needs vary based on preferences; as a pro planner having over 10 years of experience using such products, here's what I think can be a good starting point for anybody looking to purchase a planner.
- Meeting your needs - This varies from person to person. In essence, a planner should make sense to you. For some people, looking only for a basic high-level overview, a monthly grid may make sense. For those who enjoy long-form writing and task noting, a daily planner would be a good fit. For others who want a completely customisable option, bullet journaling could be what works.
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Identifying a size - There are many sizes for planners, and the right size makes such an absolute difference. You would need to identify where you see yourself using your planner the most. Your desk, on-the-go, or at your work? Even the size of your desk may matter, so identifying a size from A6 to A4 and B6 to B5 is important.
- Thinking about your style - Would you be okay with a simple black and white way of planning, or do you want to add pictures, stickers, and ephemera?
These are some of the very basic items to think of before purchasing a planner, because as a start, it will give you a lot of clarity and make a choice that could be close to perfect.
If you're new to planning, my personal suggestion is the Atelier Neorah daily or weekly planners. Here are a few reasons why -
- It's pretty customisable - if you like a simple, minimal planner or you want something cutesy, the Neorah planner can accommodate different styles.
- Multiple size options - there's something for everybody, so once you've identified your planner size, you can pick one that makes the most sense to you.
- Yearly, monthly, weekly, daily views - this is one of the reasons I loved the planner. You have these different views, which is perfect for tracking important events and dates. Absolutely love the weekly layout to plan my week ahead. So good!
- Massive, daily pages for a lot of writing - it's so important when you want to jot down tasks, write something special that happened that day, or even add photos or stickers.
- Hard cover and soft cover versions - if you want to slide your planner in a jacket or keep it as is, you have options.
All in all, I've used it for 3 years, and I keep going back for it because it's that good and user-friendly. Always the A6 size.
Hope you found this article helpful.
If you would like more information about this planner and see how to use it, check out my YouTube channel.
xoxo,
Curvy Noodle