Planner Gal
Nancy
Study No.
Nancy is the Art Director here at Laurel Denise. Her illustrations can be found everywhere and her editing and video skills are all over our YouTube and social media channels. She wears a lot of hats. Her friends, her beloved pup named Fred, wellness, book club, and partner keep her schedule, well, full (and happy!). She uses washi tape, sticky notes, and highlighters in her horizontal planner to create sections that work just for her.
Tip from Nancy (1 of 2):
When Commitment is Hard
"These tiny sticky notes give me the flexibility to switch things up in my planner. I use them for meal planning and for the ever-adjusting social media plans at Laurel Denise. Plus, they are so cute and perfectly sized that I basically squeal every time I pick up a new one which is always a win!"
Tip from Nancy (2 of 2):
The Magic of Washi Tape
"I could go ON AND ON about the Life Changing Magic of Washi Tape and the many ways I apply it in my trusty Horizontal Weekly. I use it to create vibrant and customizable divider tabs for different sections, making it really easy to navigate and find important information. I also like creating semi-permanent bookmarks for frequently used pages by folding some washi tape right around my page edge. Instant quick reference!"
Planner Gal
Emily
Study No.
Emily uses a digital planner for precise details of her schedule, but part of her wellness routine includes a time for daily reflection and journaling - pen to paper. Because she loves planners and all things stationery, she puts her general plans in her monthly view, uses her weekly pages for her journal, and her notes section for her end of the month reflection. This planner layout allows her to look back on her journal AND what her schedule looked like, allowing her to really reflect on her feelings and what her life was filled with at any given time.
Tip from Emily:
Add Fun!
"If there were ever a time more appropriate to use stickers just because they make me happy, it would be in my journal! I decorate each month at the beginning of the month, before my reflecting begins, and it brings me so much joy! Laurel Denise has THE cutest stickers - I can combine them or use an entire sheet on just one month. I can't recommend them enough."
Planner Gal
Maya
Study No.
Maya is a stay at home parent who manages the schedule of her 2 children, while keeping her home organized, meals prepped, and friendships thriving. She's an active member of the PTA and treats herself with weekly self care plans and date nights!
Tip from Maya:
The Perfect Fit
"These sticky notes that are made to fit the Horizontal Weekly planner are life savers! Sometimes I don't want to commit to a plan, I want to call something out so I don't forget, or I want to be able to take just a list someplace (and not the whole planner). I seriously love these sticky notes! 10/10 recommend!"
Planner Gal
Laurel
Study No.
Shopping List:
Laurel is the owner and creative director here at Laurel Denise and her Vertical Weekly is basically another appendage. She uses her planner to manage running her small business - from marketing plans, to filming + manufacturing schedules - and to manage her family of 4. Laurel lives by her lists and loves to use her notes section, back pages, monthly to do, and weekly to do for all of her lists.
Tip from Laurel (1 of 2):
Divide Your Day
"The amazing thing about our planners is that you can truly customize them so they work for you. My visual brain needs to see time blocked plans and I absolutely live by my lists, but I need those two things to be in the same place. I use our washi tape or our highlighters to divide my page into a few sections - tasks at the top, time blocking at the bottom, and the schedule for my girls below that."
Tip from Laurel (2 of 2):
Big Picture View
"I use my monthly view as the big picture plan of my month. I don't include the details for my plan (like tasks or times associated with those plans). I put deadlines, birthdays, and my marketing plans there and the details go on my short page. I know this is a little different from how many people use a monthly view and wanted to be sure to point it out!"
Planner Gal
Aline
Study No.
Shopping List:
2024 Vertical Weekly Planner, Sunrise, Sticky Note Set, Vertical
Aline is a new mom and has a part time job (as the Queen of Customer Service at Laurel Denise!). She is task focused, but also knows she needs flexibility in this season. Her priorities are keeping her new baby happy and healthy, providing and organizing her home and meals, and keeping up with friends.
Tip from Aline (1 of 2):
The Freedom of Flexibility
"These sticky notes are basically magic and I use them to jot down random tasks that need doing and keep them in my notes section because, well, I never really know when I'm going to be able to do them. Moving them to my day I can get them done gives me a sense of completion and I can re-use them each week and month!"
Tip from Aline (2 of 2):
My Favorite List
"My 'next month' list helps keep things that are coming up in my mind so that I can feel prepared. Out of sight, out of mind, and some things next month need to be prepared the month before. I keep this little sticky on the lower right corner of my planner."
Planner Gal
Sarah
Study No.
Sarah loves to organize her life by subject, rather than time or with a long task list. This requires a little bit more set up, but that’s nothing a good playlist, a delicious latte, and a Laurel Denise highlighter can’t fix. She keeps her detailed appointments on her digital calendar and uses her Laurel Denise as her very own task and list master!
Tip from Sarah:
Quick Checkboxes
"A huge to-do list can be overwhelming, so I divide my tasks into categories and use a quick dash of a highlighter to...well...highlight each task. Bonus points given because it is even more satisfying to check off when I've completed something!"
Planner Gal
Rachel
Study No.
Rachel keeps busy with a part time job, two little ones with plenty of activities, and a pup! She meal plans and preps each week, is a faithful book club attendee, has some volunteer work, and plenty of at-home management that keeps life full and fun. Her Vertical Weekly Planner gives her the perfect view for balancing all of the details and plans in her life!
Tip from Rachel (1 of 2):
Color Coordinate
"I would lose my mind if I didn't color coordinate in my planner. Each person (or pup), my work hours, and our family plans get their own color. This gives me a quick visual reference for who is doing what at any given time. Pro Tip: You can use erasable highlighters in case plans change!"
Tip from Rachel (2 of 2):
Habit Town
"Having my habit tracker right there in the notes section, where I can see it all the time, means I will actually DO the habit. I love using the notes space for this!"
Planner Gal
Tamia
Study No.
Shopping List:
2024 MINI Horizontal Weekly Planner, Evergreen, Workout Stickers
Tamia is a travel nurse in her mid-20's and her favorite way to practice self-care is working out! She's currently training for a marathon and uses her Mini Weekly to schedule and keep track of her fitness routines and to jot down exercise and meal inspiration. The mini is the perfect size for her on the go life!
Tip from Tamia:
Weekly Planning Column
"As soon as I figured out that I could use this little column for whatever I wanted, I realized it's the absolute best spot for my daily meal plan! That's such a huge part of my fitness goals and I wanted to make sure it was in an area I could easily reference."
Planner Gal
Giovanna
Study No.
Shopping List:
2024 MINI Horizontal Weekly Planner, Evergreen, Hooray Stickers
Giovanna uses her planner to help make sure she's taking good care of herself and finds that writing that information down (instead of using an app or two) helps keep her accountable. She likes to track moods in the monthly view and she uses the weekly pages to keep a journal, daily and weekly reflections and a gratitude list. Her goal in using her Mini Weekly is to look for patterns and how they positively and negatively effect her life as she strives to be her best self. This planner has already helped her see how time in nature helps her nervous system settle and she'll never go back to the apps.
Tip from Giovanna:
Gratitude
"Listen, I know keeping a gratitude list is nothing new. There are journals and apps and everything else and I promise I have tried them all. You know what makes me actually KEEP a gratitude list? When it's in the thing I use every single day! I could go on and on about this layout and how incredible it is, but that's my simple number one tip!"
Planner Gal
Jack
Study No.
Jack is a mother of two and works somewhere in-between full and part time, depending on the week. Since she’s part of a team, all her work planning is done digitally. However, she still needs a place to keep track of the activities of her talented kids, as well as her own appointments, errands, and meal planning for the family. The mini planner is big enough to keep her monthly, weekly, and daily to-do lists, while small enough that she can bring it with her when dropping the kids off at orchestra. Not to mention her daily priority space. This way she can make sure at least one thing will get done!
Tip from Jack:
One Big Thing
"This one priority a day method helps anchor my go, go, go mentality into an approachable measure of success for each day. I've loved it so far! It's really helped my mental health in immeasurable ways!"
