Start by visiting our Compare Our Planners page for an overview of our layouts and which planning styles work best with each one. That will help you understand what you're looking at.

Then, check out our How to Use Our Planner Systems page for inspiration on how to set up your planner. If you can "see yourself" in a planner, it helps make the hope of organization more tangible.

For detailed product introductions and in-depth planner features, don’t miss our regularly updated YouTube channel, where the Laurel Denise team shares how they use our planners to stay organized.

Planning can feel overwhelming at first, but we’re here to make it easier! Whether you’re a seasoned planner or just starting out, we’ve got you covered. Our YouTube channel is packed with content designed to inspire and guide you, and we share daily advice and ideas on Instagram Stories. You’ll also find practical tips in our blog posts, especially 6 Tips to Help You Get Started.

If you are truly just getting started with planning and aren't sure what people put into planners, check out this free printable on Getting Started: What to Put in Your Planner.

For even more inspiration, check out the "How to Start" and "Tips + Tricks" Highlights on our Instagram. If Instagram isn't your thing and you're already feeling a little overwhelmed, here’s some quick advice from Laurel to help you dive in and make the most of your planner:

Laurel’s Quick Planning Tips

1. Start with a Brain Drop
   Write down every task, appointment, and idea floating around in your head. Get it all out onto paper or a digital note. (For extra fun, use one of our notepads designed just for this.)
2. Input Deadlines
   Transfer the deadlines and projects from your brain drop into your monthly and weekly planner views. You can set this up one month at a time or map out your entire year in advance. (Pro Tip: Consider planning just three months ahead. Use sticky notes as placeholders for appointments in later months—your planning style might evolve, and this approach keeps things flexible.
3. Assign Tasks
   Take the remaining tasks from your brain drop and assign them to a specific day, week, or month. Focus on imminent tasks first, and place long-term ideas in the corresponding month’s list to revisit later.
4. Track Unassigned Items
   Keep a small sticky note or one of our Pop-In-Panels handy with tasks that don’t have an immediate deadline. Address these as you find time and mental capacity or delegate them when possible.

Remember: Planning Is a Process

We revisit this process often, starting with a brain drop and working through the steps to organize our swirling thoughts into manageable actions. No matter where you are in your planning journey, be kind to yourself. There’s no such thing as perfect planning.

If you have any questions or need more guidance, we’re always here to help. Happy planning!

In addition to the page you are on (scroll up if you missed it), we share new content on our YouTube channel almost every week and post daily updates on Instagram, featuring creative planner spread ideas and lots of fun. For layout-specific inspiration, explore our Instagram highlights, neatly organized by layout type.

Check out our Compare our Planners Page for clear details on each Laurel Denise planner layout.

Every Laurel Denise planner layout provides space for daily, weekly, and monthly task lists and notes, featuring the signature all-in-one view that sets Laurel Denise apart. The difference between our planners is (mostly) in the short pages, which are the daily and weekly pages.

In the Horizontal Weeky Planner, these pages have horizontal lines and don't have hourly time blocks. They are in the middle of the planner, around the coil binding.

In the Vertical Weekly Planner, these short pages have vertical columns with lines and allow for a time blocked schedule. They are in the middle of the planner, around the coil binding.

The Portrait Planner is bound with a spiral and the short weekly and daily pages are along the bottom of the planner. Each day has a vertical lined column in this planner.

In the Project Planner, there are no daily or weekly short pages around the coil (although you can purchase inserts for that). This planner has a more open concept with a large monthly view on the left side and a space for categorized lists or brain drops on the right side. This planner also features extra project breakdown pages in the back.

The Simple Monthly Planner is our most traditional layout, featuring a large monthly planner.

The monthly view is where your macro, or your big picture, schedule goes. Deadlines, due dates, travel plans, ANYTHING at all that you need to have a birds eye view of. (If that includes details like your dentist appointment at 2pm on a Tuesday, then so be it, but I would save details like that for the shorter pages.)

The weekly view is where you micro, or detailed, schedule and tasks go. These can be things associated to the items on your monthly view - they are the details of that view. These can also be things that stand alone - meetings, schedule, task items that happen in your daily life.

Check out this reel (and the "month vs week" highlight on our IG channel) for details on this.

As with all of our planners, these definitions are fluid. You can be like Nancy and include details in your monthly view (like that dentist appointment) and use the short pages to echo those details and include detailed tasks, you can be like Mabby and use the monthly view for your family's schedule and the weekly pages for your daily task lists, you can be like Laurel and use the monthly view for your marketing schedule and the weekly pages for your time blocked schedule and daily task list, or like many of the users out there who have found their best way. The recommendation above is the most overarching and basic use and will help you to get started with your Laurel Denise planner.