*As an Amazon Affiliate, I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases. I appreciate your support!
You most likely stumbled upon this blog post because you went down the planner girl aesthetic rabbit hole and want to learn more about being that planner girl. You may also be seeking to get your life on track and be more productive. Weekly planning is a great way to stay accountable and have some fun while doing so. To help you get started, I’ve created a guide on how to start weekly planning and rounded up some of my favorite Amazon finds. From colorful pens to fun stickers, these items will help you get organized and have some fun while doing it.
Happy planning!
Choose a Planner
If you’re new to the world of planners, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer number of options out there. But don’t worry – you can narrow down your choices by thinking about what you like best. Do you prefer a binder, a coil, or a lay-flat planner? There are pros and cons to each type of planner, so it’s important to choose the one that’s right for you.
Ultimately, the best planner is the one that works for you and your needs. So take some time to think about what you want and need from a planner, and then make your choice accordingly. Here are a few options you can look into:
- The Happy Planner is a highly customizable planner option that is a ring planner system. Rather than a coil or a binder, it uses rings to hold the papers in place. It contains a monthly view and a weekly view in a vertical layout. The great thing about this planner is that the pages can be removed and rearranged to fit your needs. You can also purchase separate planner kits from The Happy Planner store that include an Expense Tracker, Goal Planner, and Household Duties Planner. This planner is also at a great price point at about $35 to $40 USD.
- If you are seeking a more portable option and prefer a binder system, an A5 Ring Binder is the way to go. This Jumping Fox planner doesn’t come with paper but these A5 inserts have a weekly layout as well as a budget planner. Binder planners are so great because you can add custom pages. If you have a tracker that you create on your own, you can just hole-punch it and add that page. They are also great to write notes!
- Another great portable A5 Option is the Softbound Erin Condren Planner. This one has a horizontal layout and it has some great note pages where you can track your goals and write notes. The paper on this planner is quite thick so you could use felt-tip pens and gel pens to write on this without having the ink go through the paper.
- If you know that you won’t be taking your planner anywhere and just want to have a catch-all spot where you can quickly jot down your weekly tasks, a Weekly Dashboard is the way to go. You can set your dashboard in a visible area that you can reference often and write down tasks as you go along.
- Last but not least, The Erin Condren Life Planner in 7×9 size is a fantastic option if you want to really dive deep into your weekly planning. You can customize your layout to a vertical, horizontal, or hourly layout. It has a lot of note pages, a month view and a lot of planner stickers you see out there made by sticker shops are made to fit this planner size.
Choose Your Pens
If you’re looking for a smooth writing experience, ditch the ballpoint pen and try a gel pen or felt-tip pen instead. I’ve put together a collection of my favorite pens to use in my planner on a daily basis.
Gel Pens
- Paper Mate Inkjoy Gel Pens: These pens have a beautiful variety of colors, are at a great price point and an excellent option if you are just beginning to use gel pens. You can choose a .07 or a .05 tip. The only downside I would say is that they do tend to skip after a while. I have had them skip after 3 weeks of use. But all in all, they are my go-to option for my planner.
- Zebra Pen Sarasa Dry Gel Pens are an absolute wonder of a gel pen! They claim to dry very quickly so they don’t smudge and these pens are very true to their word. They seriously don’t smudge and they also don’t skip. I have found that the way they dispense ink is very consistent throughout even when writing on 3 full journaling pages.
- The Sharpie Gel Pens provide an excellent writing experience. I would say they take a bit longer to dry than the Zebra Sarasa Pens but all in all they are a great gel pen worthy of praise. This is my go-to black gel pen.
Felt-Tip Pens
- The colors of the Paper Mate Flair Felt-Tip Pens are so wonderfully vibrant! These are a great option when you are writing a header or a larger block of text. I use these pens to write and color-code my wall calendar because they have a thicker tip.
- The Stabilo Point 88 pens also have a very vibrant colorway and provide a very pleasant writing experience. They are an excellent quality as they will last you years and years. I have Stabilo pens that I have used for 8 years and they are still alive and kicking.
- The Sakura Pigma Micron pens have a variety of tip sizes and the best tip size for your planner (if you prefer .07) is the number 03 size but they are a solid felt-tip option for you to write your to-do lists and even doodle around your planner. These pens are a favorite for bullet journalers as well.
Highlighters
- The Zebra Mildliners are the best highlighters int he entire world! (Ok I am overdoing it, but seriously, the quality and versatility of these highlighters is unbeatable). Using regular neon colored highlighters can be great when you are studying or just for general office use but using them in your highlighter can be distracting and when you are trying to keep an aesthetically pleasing spread, you may prefer some more muted tones. These do come in brighter tones too as well. These are a must for a planner girl.
- The Sharpie S Note Markers are technically not highlighters, they are markers but they might as well be highlighters because they work well that way. They have a remarkable colorway and are excellent quality.
- If you are looking for a great pastel tone highlighter, the Stabilo Boss Highlighters are the way to go. I would just say that these tend to bleed a little bit more than a mildliner so I wouldn’t recommend these on a thinner paper but in general they are a lovely addition to your planner girl highlighter collection.
- BONUS: The Zig Clean Color Dot Markers are a great option to create easy checklists! I love using these on the sidebar of my planners.
Choose Your Planner Accesories
Creativity and productivity go hand-in-hand, so having some fun while you’re getting organized is important. Spruce up your weekly spreads with some cute stickers, washi tape, and other fun finds.
- Using stickers in my planner is my ultimate productivity hack. Having a visual representation of my tasks and highlighting them with labels and banners will help me remember better and have fun. The Happy Planner Sticker Books have a wide range of stickers you can use to embellish your spreads make boring tasks interesting.
- This Erin Condren Monthly Sticker book is a great way to goal plan! You can stick these in your monthly planner spreads and they will spruce up any boring old dashboard.
- Planner Clips are a great option to use as bookmarks! They also make for lovely decorative elements in your planner. If you prefer a more practical option however, the magnetic bookmarks are a better option for you.
- You will need a practical way to carry your pens, bookmarks and stickers. The Erin Condren Planny Pack is the best pencil case when you are on the go. You can actually wrap it around your planner!
- You will need correction tape and the Tombow Correction Tape is the way to go! This is my go-to correction tape because it is very practical and the mini version is even better than the larger correction tape.
Start Your Weekly Planning Sessions
Now that you have rounded up your preferred planner and favorite planner accesories, it is time to get planning finally! To make the most of your weekly planning session, here are a few tips:
- Group similar tasks together. This will save you time when you are mapping out your week. This can include your household chores, admin tasks, workouts, etc.
- Set your weekly priorities. What are the most important things you need to accomplish this week? Make sure to schedule time for these items first.
- Take a look at your upcoming week. What do you have on your plate? Schedule your tasks around these items.
- Make a list of tasks. This will help you stay organized and on track throughout the week.
- Schedule time for your tasks. This will ensure that you are able to accomplish everything you need to in a timely manner. By being prepared and organized, you will be able to accomplish all of your goals for the week!
- Stay Accountable! In order to ensure maximum productivity and sticking to your tasks, it is important for you to check-in regularly. Even if you do just plan once a week, try to check-in mid week to make sure you are not missing anything.
There you go, you are now officially a Planner Girl! Find a system that works for you, experiment, and most importantly, have fun while doing so. Spread your wings and fly, plan away, and your live your best (organized) life!
