The Best Weekly Planner

Buying Guide

When life gets busy, it’s easy to forget an important appointment if you don’t have it written down. For this reason, personal planners can be a lifesaver. In addition to keeping track of monthly, weekly and daily obligations, many planners also help with other tasks. While browsing the available models, you’ll want to keep in mind your own needs as well as the style that best motivates you.

Decide whether you need a traditional weekly planner that goes from January to December or an academic planner that starts in July and ends in June. Students, teachers and even parents of children who have to follow the school calendar would all benefit from the academic planner. No matter which type you select, look to see if the planner has an extra month or two tacked on. Some overlap to help you crossover from one year’s planner to the next.

Check the planner’s binding next. You not only want it to be durable but also easy to use. You might find one with a twin-wire spiral binding that allows you to flip through the pages with ease. You’ll also be able to swing the pages from front to back so that only the page you need is showing front and center.

Examine the weekly planner’s cover. You don’t want a cover that will easily rip, as it won’t make it through the entire year. Some planners have an extra-strong cover that is sometimes thicker than a nickel. It won’t get damaged during your daily commute if you choose to keep it in your backpack or briefcase. 

Look for a planner that not only has monthly pages, but also weekly pages. The weekly pages give you extra space to list more details for tasks that need to be accomplished on specific days of the week. Not only does the planner have reference calendars, but also a list of major holidays and extra sheets of paper for notes.

Consider any extras that make the planner stand out. For example, there are planners with more than 50 journal pages, colorful stickers, mind map and vision board pages, inner pockets, multiple ribbon bookmarks, pen loops, an elastic closure and sometimes even an attractive gift box.  Other planners may have tabs to identify the months, sticky notes and even a ruler.

• Always check how thick the planner’s pages are. If you plan to stick with typical pens or colored pencils, the page thickness won’t matter; however, if you prefer to use gel pens, they will bleed through paper that is too thin.
• If your planner comes with extra pages, there are a bunch of things you can do to make good use of the space. You could keep track of your water intake, write down a monthly meal plan, list inspirational quotes by your favorite authors or motivational speakers or even create a reading list of the books you’d like to get through by the end of the year.
• There are a variety of products on the market that you can use with your planner. Washi tape and stickers add a decorative touch to both the inside and outside of the planner, while sticky notes let you add temporary reminders to the pages of your weekly planner.
• If you’re giving the planner as a gift, consider having it engraved. Office supply stores, book stores and even stores that sell trophies are all capable of engraving your planner for a fee. Of course, you can always buy a set of fancy letter stickers and create a customized message on the front of the planner yourself. This is cheaper but still allows you to add a personal touch to the gift.
• At the end of the year, you can take a stroll through your planner and reflect on all you’ve accomplished. This may even spark some ideas of goals you’d like to pursue in the upcoming year.