Never planned to plan
On a scale of 1 to negative 10, my organizational skills are a negative 15.
And I’m good with that.
Because you know what? If my mid-forties are going to be filled with waking up to random aches and pains, the causes of which I can’t pinpoint, then this period of my life should also be filled with the benefits of owning my personality traits and shortcomings like a boss.
Which is all the more reason that it was a touch out of character to find myself, two weeks ago, opening my second planner of 2021. (I broke up with the first one. If we’re assigning blame, it was a case of it’s not you it’s me…mostly…)
I don’t like planners. It’s not that I object to using planners, it’s just that I hate them in the same way I hate coconuts. Even though hate is a strong word. But I’m going with it. Because I really hate coconuts. And planners.
What I really object to is anything that makes me feel boxed in. But what I do like is creating things. Videos, blogs, instagram posts - I like making something out of nothing. And if I’m willing to be truly honest with myself, sometimes the process of creating that content takes thought and planning.
Which brings me back to using a planner.
Because here’s the ultimate question for me:
What is it that I most want to get out of 2021? (Besides a vaccine and some semblance of normalcy…)
I can absolutely answer that question. I’m working on a draft of my second book. I’m working hard to be a better coach. I’d really like to do a fully choreographed routine to “Blame It on the Bossa Nova” (I’m so close…)
And that’s the rub with trying to organize my thoughts. As much as I am happily a pant-ser (someone who flies by the seat of her pants), I am also a creative soul who doesn’t want to leave this world with a bunch of incomplete thoughts and projects.
So, to make this post a bit more useful and concrete, here are my top three reasons for adopting a…we’ll call it a system:
1. More space in my head.
Good grief is my head busy. Buuuuusssssyyyyy. There is so much going on in this noggin’ 24-7 that the less I need to keep track of in there, the more space I have to actually think about creative projects. Creating mental space is important, and I’ve not always been good at it. Having a place where my tasks and lists and goals can live is good for me.
2. Less distractions.
I walk around like my pants are on fire. Again, that has a lot to do with my personality. But one of my greatest struggles is getting back to a task after I’ve stepped away to put out a fire. The nice thing about having my planner (so far…again, we’re still dating) is that I have my top three tasks for the day written down. So even if I stepped away for something that took me a long-time, I can return to that list and know which task to engage in.
3. Keep track of my goals.
Ultimately, I have things I want to do in this life. And if I don’t want to be wispy about those things, I absolutely have to make a plan to execute them. I proved something to myself a few weeks ago when I finished my book; I proved that I have it in me to see something over the finish line. I’m not sure that I really believed in my ability to stay focused for that long until I actually did it.
But now that I’ve managed to do that, I can see so much more clearly the other things I want to do. And I don’t want to lose track of those goals.
If you tune in to the weekly podcast, Doug and I dive a bit deeper into this whole using a planner idea. Because you absolutely can teach that old dog a few new tricks.