Here at Next Level Daily, we are extremely proud of our high-performance daily planner. Although it was designed for anyone to use, we have had certain groups of people reach out to us to let us know that it is the best planner for their specific needs. Some examples of these groups include people with ADHD, real estate professionals, working moms and teachers. We obviously recommend it for everyone. But we know that not everyone does things the way we do. That is why our planner is so adaptable and customizable.
So, what does your daily planner look like? Does it resemble what we offer in PDF form, or does it look completely different? Our position is pretty simple. You do you. And if that means using our daily planner PDF downloads, great. If it means you use some other medium, that's great too.
Write It Down on Paper
We have designed the Next Level Daily high-performance planner as PDF documents you can download and print. You can also buy our daily planner in pre-printed, physical form. We chose the print medium partially based on our audience.
The reality is that some people do much better by writing things down. Putting things on paper makes a connection between brain and planner. Writing things down also encourages a more thoughtful approach. At least that has been our experience.
Enter It into a Digital Journal
Writing things down on paper is not a superior process. Other people do better with a digital journal. They are far more productive planning their days using a smartphone or desktop computer. That's fine.
One of the benefits of the digital method is that it allows for electronic reminders. You can set a digital planner to send you emails or push notifications as needed. You cannot do that with paper.
Plan Using a Calendar
We know people whose daily planner is just a calendar. Some of them use a paper calendar that hangs on the kitchen wall. Tasks are entered by date and time. Each completed task gets crossed out. If there are any incomplete at the end of the day, they get moved to a new day.
The calendar method can also be employed digitally. Google Calendar is a great app for doing that. Tasks can be entered individually. They can be assigned color codes and categories. Repeated tasks can be automated so that they only need to be entered once. And of course, you can set up alerts to remind you of tasks still waiting to be done.
Plan with a Kanban Board
Some people do best by structuring their daily planner like a kanban board. If you've never seen a kanban board, it is divided into multiple columns similar to what you might find in a spreadsheet.
The first column is filled with sticky notes (or a virtual equivalent if done digitally) listing the current tasks in need of completion. Subsequent columns are used to track the progress of those tasks. You move your sticky notes from column to column until you're done.
It works extremely well for thoses whose brains think of tasks as processes rather than single events.
There Is No Right or Wrong
Hopefully, this post has helped you understand that there is no right or wrong way to implement a daily planner into your routine. In fact, one of the reasons we developed our planner was an understanding that more traditional planners do not work well for our customers. The people who buy our planner think differently.
By the way, that's okay. Identical thinking is neither necessary nor possible. We are all different. As such, our daily planners can look different, too. What does yours look like? If it does what you want it to do, you're all set.