Ever thought to yourself (or, perhaps, screamed aloud in the middle of your kitchen...meeting...whatever):

"My system is falling apart."

or maybe,

"I love my lists, but I need more structure!"

Meet, Julia - a "messy lefty" and new mama to one-year-old daughter who was experiencing both of those feelings at one time (hi, relatable).

On top of feeling out of sorts in those ways, Julia is currently right between the season where your schedule needs to be more fluid (brand new baby) vs the season where you need more structure.

After chatting with Julia for a little bit and learning about her planning style, we considered The Anne, thanks to its categorized daily lists that make it easy to divide and conquer tasks. We suggested she put her brain dump in the notes section of her planner layout and pull from that in order to assign days to get the tasks done during her weekly planning session.

However, Julia shared that seeing a full brain dump each day can feel too stimulating and sometimes leads to decision paralysis.

From there, we pivoted her into The Scout, where the notes space is more hidden - offering structure while keeping visual noise to a minimum.

To support her home, work, and renovation plans, we recommended a few Laurel Denise tools designed to bring clarity and momentum:

Tidy Up Inserts to create a simple housekeeping master plan, then intentionally move those tasks into weekly and daily planning.

2-Week Project Breakdown Pages to organize multiple home projects in a clear, manageable way.

A Planner Pro Tip from Mabby

During the session, Mabby, our resident planner subject matter expert, shared a powerful insight around calendar alignment. Julia realized that since using Laurel Denise planners, she’s truly a Monday-start person, even though many of her other planning tools still follow a Sunday start.

Mabby’s recommendation:

Update your phone calendar to a Monday start so it aligns with your planner.

If you use a Monday-start wall calendar and find your Sunday-Start family gets confused, draw a line between weekdays and the weekend to help Sunday-start family members read it easily.

We are so excited for Julia to find planner peace with her Scout planner layout!

Remember: When your planner, calendars, and visual cues are aligned, your planning system works with your brain - not against it. Small adjustments like these can make a big difference in clarity, consistency, and follow-through.