Three Ways to use Pocket Pages in your Planner

As a creative person, adding visual elements to my planner is super important to me.  I need the inspiration that creative planning offers to me.  Not only is the act of planning a creative outlet for me, the habit of looking at my planner keeps me inspired!  One of my favorite ways to get creative in my planner is with the page protectors.  Tons of planner companies make these page protectors or pocket pages for various planners (check this post here) but right now we'll be getting creative using the Happy Planner line of page protectors

this post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclosure here.

As you know, the Mini Happy Planner is 100% my go to planner for everything.  I've got one functional planner and one memory planner...both are from the Happy Planner line.  You may be thinking we'll be getting creative in my memory planner today but you're wrong! We're gonna make some amazing pocket page projects perfect for your functional planner which in my case is the Mini Happy Planner!  But of course you can translate these into any planner system you use.

Photo Dashboard with Sticky Notes

When you open you're planner, it is best to feel inspired!  Adding some photos of your family or other images that inspire you will make you super happy each time you open your planner.  To make this guy functional add in your favorite sticky notes.

I love that there are 2x2 squares in the page protectors because they fit the sticky notes perfectly.  Trim your photos down and then alternate with some patterned journal cards to create a functional dashboard.  Plus, this guy will be back and front - double the sticky note storage!

Mini Vision Board

In my current planner I have a mini vision board right in the front.  This helps me to keep on track with my goals during the year.  You can use this to create a fitness vision board, a vision board for your next vacation, or a vision board for a new home project.   

I created this vision board at the beginning of the year to go along with my vision planner.  I like keeping this smaller guy with me so that I see it everyday since my vision planner is much bigger.  You can check out some vision board tips in this post.

Visual Project Planning

This sort of goes with the vision board option above, but when you pair these page protectors with the project planning filler paper you can create a whole visually inspiring project section.  I'm using the pocket pages to store an overview of the aesthetic I'm going for with the wedding so that when I'm planning any part of the wedding I can make sure the whole visual comes together.

This can be great for blog planning or branding too in your social media planner.  You can make sure your whole brand comes together with the same aesthetic!  I shared these project pages in this post about the best productive add ons for the Happy Planner.

I just love all the creative ways we can use our planners right now.  It is so inspiring!  And the fact that the page protectors aren't just for one size of the Happy Planner is great.  These guys aren't just limited to memory planning...they are a very helpful visual tool.

If your'e looking for some more creative planning, productivity tips, & personal growth check out the Five Sixteenths | Live Creative group on Facebook.  And check out the YouTube channel for more planner awesomeness!  OH and if you want to save moolah on Happy Planner stuff, check out Blitsy to save some serious cash.

How do you use pocket pages in your planner?

xoxo, Moe

A Beginners Guide to a Stress Free Morning

I've been posting a lot lately about the power of routines and how they help to alleviate stress & prepare us for the day.  Both morning and evening routines are important to building a balanced life, but today I want to share with you more about a morning routine.

this post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclosure here.

Often times, we find posts on routines and think 'that is easier said than done!' and today I'm here to provide you 3 easy ways to make sure you're morning is stress free.  In this post I share a little bit about the importance of routine.  Part of the success of a morning routine involves creating a space where you feel calm, creative, and supported.  This doesn't have to be a dedicated room, in fact is should be all about your whole house inviting you to feel comfortable.  Here are the three pieces to creating a receptive environment for you to blossom.

Sight

When we wake up in the morning the first thing our eyes see is our room, right?  Make sure you're sleeping in a space you love.  Make the bed & sleep on bedding you find warm, comfortable, and relaxing.  Tidy your room, tidy the shelves, tidy the floor the night before so that when you wake up you aren't greeted with clutter.

The same applies to every other room in the house.  Here is where your night time routine can affect your morning routine.  Empty the sink of dishes, make sure the house is tidy, & take care of your AM pet peeves the night before so that when you wake up you're pumped for the day and not worried about unfinished tasks.

You can also lay out your clothes, work or school bag, & lunch so that you're visually prepped in the morning for they tasks in the day ahead.

Smell

We all love the scent of that first cup of coffee in the morning.  Is the scent better than that first sip? I think that may be up for debate.  Greet the morning by diffusing a scent that inspires you to get up and go. DoTERRA's Motivate is a great morning diffuser blend because it's got a little bit of citrus & a little bit of peppermint.

If you're getting ready to meditate in the morning, perhaps diffusing something a little more grounding like doTERRA's Balance will help to root you in and focus your intentions.  Sandalwood, Vetiver, and Lavender are also great oils to mellow you out and relieve stress.

We can use essential oils to tap into different mindsets through the day - peppermint can pep you up and get you going, Balance can ground you and keep you even tempered, Lemon can give a fresh zing to your morning with it's citrus scent.

My favorite resource for using essential oils to align my emotions is this Emotions & Essential Oils book.  There's an index to help identify the best oils plus an overview of each single oil & blend from doTERRA.

Sound

Now that it is warmer out (but not too hot) opening the windows and letting the fresh sounds of nature into your home can be a great way to relieve stress in the morning.  Throw open the windows, let in the light, and revel in the sounds of nature!

If that's not quite your thing, honor yourself by finding sounds that pumps you up.  Put on your favorite playlist, listen to an inspiring podcast, or pop on some calming meditation music.  Sound is a great way to connect in with the emotions we'd like to feel as well.

YouTube is a great resource for guided meditations or even energizing inspiration.  And you're not limited to just these traditional things.  Most mornings I watch planner videos because I like the creative inspiration!

Building a morning routine involves honoring ourselves, so you're morning routine is going to look much different than mine.  The important thing to remember is that you're creating a routine for self care.  If you're sick of rushing around and you're sick of falling apart, a morning (and evening) routine is probably going to help you out!

Don't get caught up in how insta-worthy your morning routine is either.  Do what works for you.  Do what makes you feel the most whole.  I used to want to journal in the morning....but couldn't write anything, then I'd stress that I'm wasting the 20 minutes I'd set aside for journaling, then that would make me stress about not doing what I should be doing.  Once I gave up forcing myself to do what I thought I should be doing and focusing on what really fills my cup, I was able to enjoy my mornings better and I felt more successful during the day!

If you'd like some more creative living inspiration, join the awesome Facebook group where we talk productivity, planning, personal development, and intuitive goal setting!

What makes your morning routine successful?

xoxo, Moe

5 Happy Planner Extras for Productivity

I've been knocking things off my to do lists left and right recently and I think its because I've been using my planner to the best of my ability!  This has to do with a a couple of things, I think - one of which being all of the productivity extras from the Happy Planner to make the whole thing work for you.  As you know, I use the Mini Happy Planner exclusively and I am so happy that there are a ton of extras for this size!

this post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclosure here.

Three Parts to Productive Planning

When it comes to the actual doing of the stuff there are a few important points that need to fall into place in order to mark these things off of our to do list.  It isn't just enough to make the list, we've got to organize, prioritize, and make plan to execute.

Organization - organizing your tasks, due dates, and appointments means you'll know exactly where each item lies so that you can find it quickly & easily when needed.

Prioritization - prioritizing you tasks and events means that what needs to get done first, happens first.  Then you can push other things to the back burner or reevaluate when something else might need to be done.

Project Planning - this sort of has to do with execution.  If you outline what needs to be done, you'll be able to execute things in a timely manner rather than stumble over tasks.

The Happy Planner line has quite a few things to help us get through all three of these to make sure we're reaching our goals!

Planner Extras for Productivity

My Mini Happy Planner is a conglomeration of quite a few add-ons & extension packs, which is great because the whole system is disc bound!  I can add and remove pages as needed to create a functional system that works in my best interest.  Not to mention there are a ton of functional sticker packs out there that make organization, prioritization, and execution colorful as well.

Project Pages

These are new to my arsenal and I haven't quite mastered them yet as I prefer the project stickers found in some of the sticker books.  However, these guys can be great for long term or multi-step projects that need a little bit more attention.  By creating an actionable time line, you'll be better able to execute tasks to complete your project or reach your goal.

These inserts feature a colorful page with sections for sketching & brainstorming, planning action steps, and assigning due dates.  Since these guys are the same design back & front, I like to add in another page of graph paper for extra notes.  I wish the back was dot or grid paper!  That would make my day!

Can Do Monthly Extension Pack

The Mini Monthly Extension pack I use for social media planning mimics the style of the limited edition Trend Setter planner.  This 6 month extension has an undated monthly view, a sort of monthly tasks view, daily to do pages, then two blank lined pages at the back.  

I've customized the task view with some letter stickers from the Happy Planner sticker books and other alphas.  This helps me break down all the checklists in to specific areas organizing my content into groups.  This insert also lets me prioritize a top three for the month so I'm on track!

Personally I haven't found a use for the daily to do pages as they don't seem to fit in with how I use my planner.  But I am thinking about using them to plan my Instagram posts.  The blank lined pages at the back I am thinking about pairing with the project pages!

Daily pages

These guys are great to break down your busy daily schedule but they can also be used as an extra dashboard if needed.  Featuring an hour by hour breakdown starting at 6am, you'll be able to organize your day efficiently.  

Areas for prioritization include a daily focus & two checklist sections.  One of the checklists says Do This Later which can help to get tasks out of your brain but not necessarily scheduled right away.  The back of these inserts features a brain dump section that is great for notes during the day or outlining bigger tasks.

Productivity Stickerbooks

Currently there are two productivity stickerbooks from the Happy Planner and I love both of them!  The original sticker book features project planning & goal setting stickers allowing you to outline projects & priorities.  The second sticker book focuses more on habits, time management, and organization.

Both work well in the mini or classic size planner and are perfect to add to the graph filler paper to create your own inserts.  The original Productivity book does come in a mini size, though I find those to be a little too wide and not as aesthetically pleasing as the stickers designed for the classic planner.

Focus Half Sheets

This is something brand new to my Mini Happy Planner and its not even designed for it!  These Focus Half sheets are designed to fit the Classic Size planner but a little trim keeps all the important bits and it fits right in the mini.  The front page is great for a targeted goal list for the week, outlining the top five must do tasks.

The best part about these is that the back is graph paper - perfect for all my notes.  It can also be used as an extra project planning section or to outline the steps of future tasks.  I was  using this as a wellness tracker/insert but that didn't seem to work out too great for me. I'm thinking of making it a brain dump sheet to put all that tasks that float through my brain but that don't need action just yet.

Housing everything all in one place is made so much easier by these different add ons, extension packs, and the disc bound system of the Happy Planner line. Some of the extras I mentioned can be found in a cool little bundle here on Amazon (yay for Prime shippng!) but you can save the most when you shop Happy Planner stuff over on Blitsy.

The only way to use a planner is to find a system that helps you rather than hinders you.  I like to write a lot out - I am a multi step person - so having specific areas that can help me organize, plan, and execute means that I'm working on my goals successfully!

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If you'd like to read more about productivity, check out these posts on the blog.  You can also join the Five Sixteenths | Live Creative Facebook group where we talk about creative planning, inspired productivity, personal development and intuitive goal setting!  Click here to join!

What are your favorite planner extras for productivity?  How do you use your planner effectively?

xoxo, Moe