The best productivity planners that blend organization with mindfulness, fostering both business success and precious family moments.
Transitioning back to work after having my baby was a rollercoaster. Juggling my entrepreneurial spirit with new mom duties meant navigating a sea of emotions—guilt for leaving my baby, yet excitement to dive back into my projects.
Babies have their own schedules, which often means unexpected changes to my work plans. Then there’s this constant internal battle between wanting to be fully present for my child and growing my business.
Finding uninterrupted time for deep work can be a struggle. But so has finding “me” time. Postpartum, I failed to refill the prescription for my blood pressure medication.
Once my daughter was born, it took me about four months to wash my hair. I continue to deal with upper back pain which began after giving birth.
With the focus so much on the baby and the business, it’s been easy to neglect my own health and well-being.
Being a new mom and small business owner has been like juggling multiple hats simultaneously, where each hat requires a different aspect of myself. To say it’s been challenging is an understatement.
Here’s a glimpse into my world and how I navigate through it:
Productivity Planning: The transition to a physical planner, such as the productivity planner from Intelligent Change, has been surprisingly beneficial. The act of writing down tasks and goals for the day helps me to mentally prepare for what’s ahead and makes me feel more intentional.
Daily and Weekly Organizing: I honestly feel like 60% of being a good mom is being organized. The planner encourages setting weekly goals and then breaking them down into daily tasks. This approach has helped me stay focused on what’s important, ensuring I make progress in my business while also carving out quality time with my family.
Mindfulness and Reflection: The physical act of writing in the planner also serves as a moment of mindfulness. Reflecting on the day’s achievements and jotting down what I’m grateful for has become a cherished ritual that enhances my well-being.
Best Productivity Planners
I like the meditative quality to planning that writing by hand encourages. It gives me space for a deeper consideration of my priorities and fosters a calm, organized approach to tackling them.
Managing multiple responsibilities is hard. If you’re looking for a more simplified approach to finding peace in setting your priorities and being productive, below are some of the best productivity planners that I think are worth considering.
Intelligent Change – This planner contains daily and monthly sheets to keep you organized. Each time journal is designed with different planning and task categories, which help cultivate focus and good habits.
365 Days Planner – Each page of this planner is split into seven sections for five top priorities, three reminders, eight to-do lists, a schedule from 6:00am to 11:00pm, water intake, health and fitness, and notes and ideas.
Weekly Planner Pro – This undated weekly planner includes weekly planning pages, monthly calendars, goal-setting tools, and monthly budgeting sections to plan.
Not only enables effective monthly and weekly planning for long-term objectives but also your finances. Well-organized approach helps you stay focused and productive throughout the year.
GoGirl Planner and Organizer for Women – This planner includes monthly and weekly priority sections to prioritize and focus your energy on the most important things. Manage your time effectively with a monthly calendar and weekly planning pages.
Bring more positive habits into your life by using the habit tracker section of the planner. Improve your work-life balance and become your best self by setting new goals monthly.
Achieve Planner – You’ll focus better and reach your goals by following the productivity system in this journal planner. One page per day with a priority list, to-do list, task checklist and reflection prompts.
The Entrepreneur’s Planner – Designed by an entrepreneur, for entrepreneurs, this unique planner harnesses a holistic approach to time, task and energy management. Strategize your next 90 days, streamline your workweek, and instill powerful habits and routines into your bustling life.
Clever Fox Planner Pro – This planner will help you create a vision for your life, define your short and long-term goals in each area of your life, and incorporate these goals into your monthly, weekly and daily agenda.
Legend Planner – This undated weekly planner combines effective planning tools and goal-setting frameworks to help you stay focused and productive throughout the year.
The Legend Planner is designed to help you build and support a balanced lifestyle, using a daily habit tracker and monthly check-ins.
LEUCHTTURM1917 – Every double page features one page with the full calendar week and a ruled notebook page on the right. It also provides an annual overview in table format, showing separate months and days, public holidays and moon phases.
Planner Pro Max – Created by a productivity expert, this hardcover productivity planner is undated, so you can start using it at any time without wasting a page.
Use weekly reflection templates, along with daily task lists, to connect the dots between your granular to-dos and your big-picture ambitions.
Physical planners hold a unique place in many people’s lives. Unlike phones or computers, where notifications and the temptation to multitask can lead to fragmented attention, a planner provides a focused environment, free from digital interruptions.
What a Great Day Feels Like
A great day now includes the satisfaction of physically checking off completed tasks in my planner.
It’s about striking a balance between meaningful progress in my business and precious moments with my daughter.
Feeling the paper under my fingers as I note down a new milestone for a successful business negotiation adds a layer of reality and accomplishment to my day.
Ending the day by reflecting in my planner, acknowledging what went well and where I can improve, gives me a sense of closure and readiness to take on tomorrow.
It’s a blend of productivity and presence, tangible achievements and emotional connections, all recorded in a book that tells the story of my dual journey as an entrepreneur and new mother.