Would you believe me if I told you that I used to carry around three different planners? I am a very forgetful person. I am also obsessed with time blocking my days, so it should come as no surprise that I was very attached to my planners. They reminded me of my daily tasks and made sure I never handed in an assignment after its deadline. However, as you can probably imagine, it gets really burdensome carrying around three notebooks everywhere. When I first learned about digital planners, I had my doubts. I knew they could be a great addition to my little family of planners but I was unsure of how effective they would be.
When university shifted online, it was a hassle logging into the school’s portal to access Zoom every few hours, but I later discovered that all my class links were attached to my Google Calendar, and I made the website my homepage to easily access them. I found out that all of my work meeting links were automatically added to my Google Calendar, too. As someone who was strictly using traditional pen and paper to plan my day, it was difficult for me to adjust to this new change.
When the world turned digital, I figured I should, too, and I slowly began using my Google Calendar more. I would add in tasks that weren’t as important; the more important ones went straight into my physical calendar. However, I later discovered that the biggest advantage of Google Calendar was being able to connect all of my accounts to one single calendar.
This was a game changer for me.
I was able to dump all of my school, work and personal chores into Google Calendar. I also was mesmerized by the colour coding system that was implemented in the software; I was allowed to add in my own colours and create an aesthetically-pleasing schedule. The calendar also had the option to estimate the amount of time I could work on a single task and allowed me to add in notifications to remind me before the task started.
I became a big fan of the graphics that popped up when I typed in certain keywords. For example, if I had a haircut appointment, a visual of a hairdryer and a pair of scissors popped up. I could also indicate when I am not available, and it sends an email to anyone who connects with me during that certain time. This became useful at work when people scheduled meetings with me during days when I was not working.
For the past two years, my Google Calendar became my best friend. I could rely on it and it kept me going. I would proudly show it off to my peers and encourage them to transition from their physical planners to this digital wonder. As a student (and especially if you’re working at the same time), it is easy to forget about certain tasks, even the ones that are very important and time-sensitive. With a Google Calendar, you will never have to worry about missing an appointment or handing in an assignment late.