In today’s world where you need to be taking 20 credits, participating in 500 plus clubs and volunteering 40 hours a week, it’s hard to get your life together. On top of all this, you need self care, a social life and time to check in with your family every once in a while, so they don’t send a search team out for you.
It can be really easy to forget your to-do list. So, what does every #girlboss need to get it all done? A planner.
It doesn’t have to be a traditional, physical planner. It can be on a phone, computer, whiteboard or sticky note you carry around every day. I find joy in crossing off something from a list, so I use a pretty pastel planner with inspirational quotes on each page. A large whiteboard calendar shows my events for the month.
Everyone is different. I went around and compiled a list of the most popular planner methods for girl bosses around campus. Which girl boss are you?
1. The OG Planner for the ones with places to be and Hydro Flasks to fill
This #girlboss requires a pumpkin spice latte in her grip and her handy-dandy planner in her bag. Her planner is her lifeline and without it she feels like the definition of chaos. She color coordinates her to-do list by using a different pen for each class or activity. She feels literal chills when she has the privilege of crossing something off. She always makes time for the gym and plans her socializing time each day. If you peek in her planner, you will see an item for every hour of the day, and there better be a good reason for if she strays.
Marissa Scalise, a sophomore at the University of Florida, uses the OG planner. She said to make sure you buy an inexpensive planner. (Pro Tip: Check TJ Maxx or Marshalls.) Scalise also urges consistency with your color coding. She suggests using an alphabetical or number system to assign priorities to tasks if you are too lazy to keep up with a million pens. The pros to using an OG planner are the ability to write everything out, which is better for some people’s memories. And you don’t need a device to access it. The cons are that it can be forgotten. To-do lists can be lost, and it can be a heavy addition to your backpack.
2. The Digital Planner for the ones who only have time to look at their wrist
You better believe this #girlboss has her planning method streamlined to a T. She relies on her Apple Watch to keep her notified, an iPad to take notes for classes and a MacBook to combine everything into one place. She is never unreachable unless she happens to forget one of her many chargers for the day and is forced to behave like a “caveman.” She sets her calendar up with alerts across all of her devices, notifying her when she has classes or meetings. She is so efficient that she schedules times to hang out with her friends on a weekly basis, making sure to Grub Hub her Starbucks order well in advance. Olivia Palmer, a second-year student at UF, uses an Apple Watch. Her heavy engineering schedule, Starbucks job, club positions and sorority keep her constantly on the go, so her planner needs to be dynamic and easily accessible. Digital planning can be a convenient planning method, especially with its endless productivity apps and devices. Palmer suggests inputing events as soon as you hear about them versus waiting to do so. You can estimate how long an assignment or task will take so you can set a timer to prevent unproductivity. While digital planning has a lot of pros, some cons are the short battery life on devices and some apps rely on an Internet connection.
3. The Shared Planner for the organized leader
Coordinating club meetings, class projects or even roommate situations can be stressful, especially if events happen frequently or tasks have timelines. This planning type is not a set method per se, but it categorizes planning types that are accessible to multiple people at once. For example, Sydney Baker, a second-year student at UF, uses Google Sheets to coordinate with her roommates to care for their new dog, Nyla. They made a schedule for the week arranged by the hour for who will be walking, feeding or giving medication to Nyla. Colors are assigned to each roommate. They have access to view or edit the schedule, so changes can be made easily and without having to coordinate a roommate meeting. This planning style is ideal for group projects, especially so you can ensure that everyone is held accountable. Another option for group projects is Trello. Users create “boards” that team members access for to-do lists and deadlines. This concept comes in clutch for club executive boards that have ongoing to-do lists for their team members.
4. The Whiteboard Masterpiece for the ones who vibe with Bob Ross and like to chill
This #girlboss doesn’t want the constant reminders of her to-do list killing her vibe. She simply puts it all on a whiteboard right next to her door, checking it before she leaves. She enjoys buying the large pack of expo markers and doodling her way to productivity. This visual planning method lets her see how much of her week or month is busy so she can plan when to attend her power yoga class. Sometimes, if she knows she doesn’t have much for the week, she’ll skip the whole process of outlining her whiteboard. But, this planning method is mostly intended to supplement a very good memory. Makaley Rendina, a second-year at UF, uses her whiteboard on a monthly basis to keep her on track with her assignments and clubs. She said she doesn’t need to keep to such a strict “by-the-hour” schedule, so the whiteboard allows her to go with her own flow. She recommends buying a whiteboard big enough to view from across the room, placing it somewhere that you pass on your way out like by the front door or in the kitchen. A whiteboard can prevent you from feeling overwhelmed, but it also limits how detailed you can get. This method also tends to not be portable, so be open to straying from your plans.
While not every girl boss will follow these planning guidelines, they can help point you in the right direction. With so much on our plates, it is important keep track of everything so we don’t drop the ball. Even if you do end up dropping the ball, make sure to take some time from your hectic schedule to recharge. We may be girl bosses, but we are human too – so treat yourself like one.