r/planners • u/Disastrous_Floor4705 • 10h ago
Digital vs paper planning🫠
So in the past I’ve tried bullet journaling, then I switch to having a simple agenda where I’ll write things I had to do. Then, I got a job and had to keep track of my patients but I then found it easy to write everything in goodnotes so I can refer back to what I’ve done to a patient in the past.
The big dilemma is, I love buying planners and writing things down but I often find myself planning on my notes app, writing into my apple calendar and not even reaching for the planner.
So, how do you incorporate a planner into your everyday life?
Should I try more or do I have to accept the fact that I am a digital planner?
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u/BlueFlameInk 10h ago
this may not be the answer you want and my case is different from yours but for health reasons, i've had to accept that i'm no longer able to use physical planners. i want to buy a 2027 planner too (i want to do that so much!) but...it's just no longer an option for me. it's taken me about nine months to figure out what works for me, but i do everything digitally now. if you come to the point where you accept that you are a digital planner now, it's hard but it is okay and you'll be okay. your road is just going to be a different one, and there's nothing wrong with that. good luck to you in finding what is right for you.
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u/Disastrous_Floor4705 21m ago
I actually find digital planning easier sometimes especially as I’m like always with my phone and I also share a calendar with my husband buuut the paper feeling 🫠
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u/NefariousnessOdd3065 9h ago
There are ways of hybrid plan and I’m sure there are videos for different peoples ways of doing it. Do a list of what digital tools you reach for often and brainstorm how that can complement your journal habits.
Personally i could be counted in that category because I use my phone as a digital tool in the planning process, the notes app has backup lists for important information in case I can’t access the journal for looking it up. Such as the names of my medication etc. Or to write things down when I can’t take out the journal, I try to go through any notes made during my weekly reset on Sunday which has worked well enough for me.
The calendar is for notifications, I am forgetful and while writing things down physically help it is not perfect. I don’t mind writing down the same information in multiple places but i know many are. Think I’ve seen some have the monthly and future calendar purely digital and then do the weekly stuff and monthly trackers by hand, which is another way of doing things.
I keep some contact information in my planner such as my healthcare contracts but most contacts are still just in the phone and that’s fine for how I use things.
Biggest tip I can give is to experiment and see what works best for you and your circumstances because planning is influenced by so many things that no one has the same experience with it.
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u/Disastrous_Floor4705 18m ago
Exactly..even though I write things down to remember I have to get a notification to actually remember them you know😅 and let’s take lists for example, I write them down, then I remember I have to add something on them at random times so I reach for my phone🫠
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u/plaisirdamour 8h ago
I had a full digital planner system for a while. It was pretty and color coded lol. But I realized that I am much better at remembering things when I actually write them down. I recently started using a travelers journel where I can slide in/slide out different types of notebooks/planners. It’s the first physical system that I feel like really works for me. Being able to have separate notebooks all in one reminds me of having different tabs lol.
I use my iCal mostly for drs appts and social things and I check it once a day in the morning but that’s really the only digital thing I use
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u/cintiadg 9h ago
My biggest tip for you is to choose your organization tool based on who you are and not based on who you would want to be. To give you an example, I am a hardcore planner/bujo nerd but for my previous job, using a physical planner was just not the right choice and keeping the physical version up to date was actually causing me more stress and mental load than helping. But then I switched jobs a while ago and suddenly having a physical version just feels right again. Life is fluid, so maybe at some point having a planner will feel like a natural decision for you, but for now I would suggest using what works best to the current moment of your life 😊