Keeping It All Organized: My Passion Planner

On my road to mindfulness and self-fulfillment, I've found I need a little guidance. My planner is the one thing that keeps me together and helps me to focus on what needs to get done in order to be the best possible version of myself.

I have used a myriad of planners over the years. From school-provided ones that have all the handbook information in it as well to petite ones you buy at the bookstore. They all had their pros and cons. Throughout all this experimentation I learned that there are several things I prefer in a planner:

• I prefer lined pages, no graph or blank pages for me.
• A vertical set-up works, but a horizontal one is better.
• I need a weekly planner, with a month-view prior to the first week of each month.
• My preferred size is around 5.5"x8". The big ones just overwhelm me & don't fit in my purse.

All that being said, I discovered my favorite planner last year. The Passion Planner is an incredible tool for guiding you along your pursuit of your passions. I didn't work it as well as I could last year, but this year I have found the way to succeed with the set-up.

The vertical set-up through me off for the first few weeks because of how large my handwriting can be. Once I figured out that I didn't need to write everything out, just the basics to help me remember the important parts, things became a lot easier to sort.

Even better are the embellishments I use to keep it all organized. From washi tape to stickers, there is no shortage of wonderful tools at my disposal to get everything lined up how I need it to be so that I am on-time with my goals and responsibilities. 

If you haven't heard of a Passion Planner, feel free to check them out. They've recently become a buy one, give one company like Toms. If they're not your cup of tea you can always look into Filofax or Erin Condren Life Planners. Another blogger I follow, Riley at Fiveleveninety, has used these and gives her opinions as well as updates.

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Memories vs. Living in the Past

I have a pretty terrible memory. I've tried lots of tips & tricks over the years to help build it up, but nothing really seems to work. Some incidents stick better than others; some things I can never forget despite wanting to and others that I want to cherish forever fade faster than acceptable.

As a result I have held onto stuff and things much longer than acceptable. They are visual cues that can spark a memory or emotion of some past event. The overwhelming majority are happy memories that I want to preserve. What's interesting though is that they are not necessarily for sharing.

In recent months I have developed an intense need to purge my apartment. This transitory feeling that I've had ever since I first moved out of my parental home has followed me long enough. So I've been going through my belongings via the KonMari method. 

Simply put, the KonMari method stresses:

1. Collect all like items of a particular category (clothes, papers, kitchen items)
2. Purge everything that doesn't "spark joy" or that you use regularly
3. Only after you've completely purged, organize the remaining items

This has revolutionized my process of cleaning and helped prevent impulse buying when I am out and about.

After doing several sections of my home, I'm down to miscellaneous items and items with emotional attachment; thus my introspection. I want to make sure that I don't lose the memories by ridding myself of the physical reminder. I've debated over writing down all the memories, but know that will take a lot of time. My current plan is to photograph the item before sorting it for donation or trash and then storing the photo. I will be able to reference it and write about it at my leisure if necessary.

What's most important to me is not just ridding my home of clutter, but preventing myself from living in the past. It's nice to visit there and remember good things, but dwelling on unchangeable circumstances is unhealthy and unwise. Here's hoping I can untether myself and walk freely.

Do you have a need to clear house; physically or emotionally? What are your best strategies for success in this area?

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Goals & Ideas Before the Big 3-0!

I mentioned last time some books that I have been working through and loving. It seems like the best way to keep myself accountable is to create a working list of goals and ideas. While my 30th birthday is not a hard deadline, there are a lot of changes coming up in the next year and that one seems like a decent marker.

I love making lists, although I rarely complete all the tasks listed. It helps me sort through my thoughts and ideas to write it all out. While I am a hardcore pen & paper gal, this format will work best for my blog and I think that is what's important. I may hand write it all out as a reminder to help keep me accountable.

Goals
To use my mindfulness app once a day
To be more present in my day
To be kinder to my body by focusing on exercise as nourishment, not punishment
To journal in my art journal once a week, moving up to once every 3 days as I get more comfortable
Blog two to three times a week
Be kinder to others
Be kinder to myself
Smile more
Cook at home three days a week (maybe more when classes change)
Hand-write one letter a month (birthday cards don't count)
Travel to a new city

Ideas
Take a meditation/mindfulness class
Take an art class (college or store?)
Take a movement class (silks, aerial, pole, Zumba, something)
Create an arts/crafts mini-business for the next holiday season (make stuff all year, sell in the fall/winter)

How do you keep yourself accountable?

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