The best planner for writers is any planner that will help you achieve your writing goals. I always say the magic is in the planning, not the planner. And honestly, the planning is just half the battle. You must follow through to see any progress. But I’m a huge fan of the Day Designer planner because if you put it to use, it can help you not only make time to write but also design a life worth writing about.

Slay Your Writing and Life Goals with Day Designer

As soon as you open the cover to your new Day Designer, you’ll start to fall in love. The cover page prompts you to choose a word for the year, which is something I and nearly every writer I know is a big fan of doing. The planner also includes pages to help you assess where you are in every area of your life. And there’s a worksheet to help you reconnect with your values.

I think both of these exercises will help you set the right goals for the year, goals that will help you live your best life. After your self-assessment, you’ll have a clear idea of what areas of life you need to focus on most in the upcoming year. Remember, you can do anything, but not everything — at least not all at once. So focus on goals that will improve those areas of life in which you aren’t as fulfilled as you would like to be. Also, be sure to set goals that align with your core values.

You know how the saying goes — a goal without a plan is just a wish. That’s why the Day Designer worksheets not only help you set goals but also guide you through developing a plan for achieving them by prompting you to break down each goal into action steps.

Why Day Designer Could Be the Best Planner for Writers

The reason I believe Day Designer could be the best planner for writers is because, if used diligently, it can put an end to the claim that you don’t have time to write.

The planner has charts to help you plot out your ideal week and ideal month. Each planning page includes space for you to write down your to-do list and space for you to schedule when you will complete each task. So instead of just hoping you will have time to write, you can schedule a time to write and treat that time like an appointment that you can’t miss. Even if you can only write 15 minutes a day or one hour a week, that’s better than nothing.

How I Use the Day Designer

The Sunday Slay. That’s what I call the time that I spend each Sunday planning the week ahead. Here’s how it works:

First, I use the Day Designer notebooks to make a list of all the things I have to do and want to do in all areas life for the upcoming week.

Next, I break out my planner and assign each task to a day of the week.

But simply making a long to-do list isn’t enough to get things done. That’s why I schedule exactly when I’m going to do each task and the Day Designer daily planning page has a space for that, too. (Pro tip: Always overestimate how long it will take you to complete a task so you won’t find yourself faced with a time crunch.)

Scheduling when I will do each task not only keeps me on track but also keeps me from trying to do too much in one day.

On Sunday, I schedule when I will do each of Monday’s tasks. On Monday night I schedule when I will do each of Tuesday’s tasks and so on.

I can use the planning page to make note of my top three tasks of the day (those three things that MUST get done), what deadlines I have that day, important reminders, and even my dinner plans.

I use the “Dollars” section to remind myself to pay taxes, pay bills, or send invoices. The space for “Daily Gratitude” helps me maintain an attitude of thankfulness every day. And each planning page includes a motivational quote, too — another feature I know my fellow writers will appreciate.

Head to DayDesigner.com today to pick out your favorite cover design and buy your 2024 planner.

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