As the new quarter begins, now is a good time to get organized before the craziness of the quarter takes over every moment of your daily life. One of the greatest ways to stay organized through the chaos is to get the perfect planner to consolidate the million aspects of college life. Not only are planners practical for due dates and assignments, but planners can also be used as journals to document the fun parts of college that tend to get overshadowed by the piles of homework and tests. Below are some of the easiest and cheapest ways to keep your planner organized and looking pretty!
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Write in different colors. To keep classes in order, assign a different pen color to each class. This will split up all of the assignments you need to do and separate classes from each other while utilizing all the space in your planner. Another way to do this is to assign school assignments, chores, appointments, and work schedules different colors. Color coding is your friend! It will keep all parts of your life organized and colorful.
a. Use highlighters to bring your attention to important days and assignments. Highlighting the days of midterms, finals, mandatory meetings, and due dates for bills/rent will help ensure that none of the deadlines pass without being met.
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Utilize the month layout as well as the week pages. Many people skip over the pages that lay out the entire month at the front of the planner but it is incredibly helpful to be able to visually see the weeks. On the first of each month, take five minutes to write down birthdays, tests, meetings, bills, and events on the month calendar. Visualizing the month and the weeks will keep you organized and less overwhelmed.
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Write down your to-do lists. Our minds cannot effectively multitask so keeping all “to-do” items written down instead of on the forefront of your mind will keep all of the tiny tasks from distracting you in class. If there isn’t a place in your planner for a to-do list, use post-it notes in your planner to write down things you need to do. For a few extra dollars, you can even buy a dry erase to-do list that snaps into your planner from erincondren.com.
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Washi tape. While washi tape isn’t entirely necessary for the organizing aspect of planners, it adds a cheerful bit of color to the otherwise boring and daunting tasks of the week. Washi tape, a Japanese paper tape, can be found in a million patterns for only a few dollars per roll at any store with school supplies. Using washi tape to line the pages of your planner will add color and break up the monotonous work and school schedule.
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Stamps. If you like to use your planner as a journal and an assignment keeper, stamps are a great way to decorate your planner with fun symbols that are much less expensive than stickers.
Planning can free up your brain from all the random things that pop into your head during the day. Before midterms really attack, take a few moments each Sunday to take a look at your week and come up with a game plan – it will save you some stress in the long run!