00:00:00
Speaker 1: They just remember, your planet is there for mess it's there for the coffee stains, it's there for the chaos and the changing of the plans, and it's okay not to tick everything off.
00:00:09
Speaker 2: It's all about just having a framework that meets you where you are.
00:00:13
Speaker 1: Hello, guys, and welcome back to Stepping Up. I'm in a bit of a state at the moment, so I surprise the family with a new puppy and said, Poppy is on my lap right now and he's chewing my hair and he obviously won't let me put him down and be so bloody cute. So if you hear random dog noises in the back, that's Riley. So Riley's a Kavodal and he's so so cute. And it's been like a year since we lost Lily, who was our dog and she was seventeen years old, which is crazy, but yeah, we felt like, well, the girls were wanting a new puppy for ages, and we felt like, you know, they were going to replace Lily, but I think we needed a little dog family member.
00:00:50
Speaker 2: So he's so cute.
00:00:51
Speaker 1: But anyway, I'm literally eyeballs deep in the middle of plan our season when this comes out Our Planer launch is this Friday, seven pm if you want to get on the weight list. As you guys know, like we literally sell out of certain planners on the night. Guys, this is like the biggest collection we have ever done for planners to date, like the colors, the new extra accessories, there's two new planner types that you've never seen before, and I'm literally I'm so excited. So make sure you guys all put the wait list below so you guys can get on in the VIP list.
00:01:26
Speaker 2: You get early access because you're.
00:01:27
Speaker 1: Gonna want it, because these are planners for the messy minds of the world.
00:01:30
Speaker 2: They're not for your type A people, which is also what leads me into this episode.
00:01:35
Speaker 1: Now, it's that time of year where I think everyone's just feeling so overwhelmed. We're feeling pretty over it at the moment, Like our New Year's resolutions and goals areway like they feel like a lifetime ago, and all the things we set out to I guess maybe achieve or how we wanted to show up this year.
00:01:52
Speaker 2: Maybe some of us.
00:01:53
Speaker 1: Are feeling proud, but I can kind of bet many of us are feeling a little bit maybe deflated and that's not to say that we aren't or killing it and doing our best. That is me saying that we do tend to set ourselves up for failure. And this is what leads me into today's episode, which is how to actually stick to using a planner. Now, bit of background which might shock you, guys. If you haven't read my book already, definitely give it a read. It's called Mastering My Messy Life. But I have always been the most messiest child on the planet. Like my mum had to cover my bookshelf, so my toy shelf with a plastic two dollar reject shop shower curtain with dolphins across it. Because I just have never been able to keep my shit together. I've never been a naturally tidy person, but then my brain wants me to be.
00:02:40
Speaker 2: So it's like I'm a I was going to do an episode on this.
00:02:43
Speaker 1: It's like I'm a Type A brain stuck in a Type B body. Like my brain wants to be a certain way, but my body's like, no, this is what we do, and it's very frustrating. So, like I need a really clean house to sit down and do work. For example, yesterday I was spent all day editing the reveal real for our planners, which take me like twenty hours are real to edit, and I couldn't do it until I clean the house.
00:03:07
Speaker 2: As you guys know.
00:03:07
Speaker 1: The movie that created my love for planners especially was New York Minute and where Ashley Olsen, who's Jane Ryan, she had this planner and it was just so beautiful and I perfectly highlighted her writing was so perfect. And I'd start each new school year and I'd try and write neat and it would last for like half a day. I could never stick to a plan until I made my own, and that's because I built them differently. And even so, I will still get messages from people saying because granted, they are beautiful and people are too scared to write in them. So my first tip to actually stick to using your planner is to be messy. Do not be afraid to be messy, because it's kind of ironic when people like, we're too scared to write in the very thing that's here to help with the mess like plans are going to change. It's called white out tape, which we sell as well, and you know, you can use pencil and things like that, and the thing is you need to just like a journal, like if you've seen my journal, it is a bomb, Like you can't even read it. And that's the purpose of a journal. It is to get everything out of your head. And the same with the planner, it's to get the tasks and actually, like it's the what, but also the how. So you've got your tasks in your planner, but you also need to figure out how you're going to get them done. So that is going to make some mess sometimes, Like eventually you might get a really good routine that you just write every day in your planner, but you need to remember, like yet life changes, like you might have to pick up a kid from school, or like someone cancels, or you're not feeling good and you decide not to go out for drinks with the girls, which happens a lot. Let's be honest, but life is messy and your planner is there to hold that mess for you. My next tip is don't wait until Monday to start just because your planner obviously has Monday to Sunday. That even for me, guys, like from my planner shoot week, I didn't write in my planner that week, and that's okay because you know I was busy elsewhere, like, yes, I still had my top three things like that, but I've also been using these planners for a long time and it does genuinely become a habit, which I'll get into later. Is another like a life changing tip to actually help you remember to use it, because when.
00:05:11
Speaker 2: You think about it, guys like it's a habit.
00:05:13
Speaker 1: And if you aren't used to using it, like of course you're not going to reach for it.
00:05:19
Speaker 2: But this is where it comes into.
00:05:21
Speaker 1: Like say it's a Wednesday and you realize you haven't written in your planner yet. It doesn't mean that you can't now, like just grab it out and.
00:05:27
Speaker 2: Start from Wednesday.
00:05:29
Speaker 1: I even like to use if I have any blank days during the week, I'll just use that to like brain dump as well, which my signature planner, like all my planners have brain dumping spaces.
00:05:37
Speaker 2: But you can use it for whatever you like.
00:05:40
Speaker 1: And the thing is, too, you need to remember if you're always waiting to start on a Monday or a January, like, chances are that motivation that you're feeling now to actually just get started, which is the hardest part that's not going to last. So you need to utilize that whenever it hits. So for me, for example, if I finally have a feeling that I need to really declutter like the bathroom, I've learned and overtime that if I wait, I'm not going to do that, so I will just jump on that straight away. It's the same when I'm feeling creative with work, like I have to just go with it. So use that motivation and that momentum to get started. And then that's going to lead into my next tip, which is habit stacking. Now, there is so much science and research behind habit stacking and how it could really make you so much more successful with creating new habits. So basically, the idea is you have an existing habit, so it could be brushing your teeth, and then you're going to stack it with a new habit. So it could be your new habit is you want to listen to an educational podcast, So therefore, while you're brushing your teeth, you can do it before or after or during you stack it with the new habit, so you chuck on the podcast. To see where I'm going with this, Riles yawning. So for me, my biggest way that I got into My planning was I would make my breakfast, and this actually.
00:06:55
Speaker 2: Helped me be more intentional with my eating.
00:06:57
Speaker 1: But I'd make my breakfast and I sit down, and I have my planner aut and I will plan while I'm.
00:07:01
Speaker 2: Eating my breakfast. Now, granted, I might get.
00:07:04
Speaker 1: Milk on it sometimes, but that's fine. So you need to figure out what part of your morning. It could literally be you've just done school drop off and you do it in your car, like that's the perfect time. It's like, you know, when you always just want to sit in your car for a while. You could do it like that, but you'll be so much more likely to actually be able to stick to it if your habit stacking it with something else. And also, this is where it kind of comes into having your daily check ins with your planner.
00:07:31
Speaker 2: So I guess this is also part of it.
00:07:33
Speaker 1: So in the morning and evening you really do need to be checking in with your planner so things change throughout the day. In the start of the day, you're going to maybe be like, Okay, here's my top three. Here's my quick three, which I'll get into later. Sorry, he really wants to play mister Riley, and he's like mum, I don't want to sit on your lap while you're talking into this big black thing. So every morning and evening, literally take two minutes just to check your planner and then that will keep you up to date. Now, the way to also ensure that you're doing this the two daily check ins is making sure your planner is in sight, because honestly, if it's out of side, it's out of mind. If your planner is closed, even if it's just closed on your desk, I bet you you will rarely very much look at it. You need to have it open. So I'll even have mine open wherever I am in the house. So if I'm working for the day, it's in my office open. If I'm around the house just doing other stuff, it's open on the kitchen bench. And a lot of families do this with family planners, so you'll want to see our new planners. It's so good anyway, So have it open because if it's out of side, it's out of mind, and you bet you're not going to remember to actually check it.
00:08:44
Speaker 2: Now.
00:08:45
Speaker 1: My next tip, and this is probably one of the biggest, is actually halving your list half your to do list. We always we tend to underestimate the big task and overestimate the little tasks, which is very much me. It's very frustrating. But I also keep like a time log, so I like to track how long things actually take me, so when I need to do that thing, I can refer back and be like, oh, that actually takes me four hours, steph, it doesn't take me five minutes.
00:09:12
Speaker 2: So that's really helpful.
00:09:13
Speaker 1: But that's why in all my planners I have the top three and the quick three. So your top three tasks is the top three things like they have to be done that day, and if they don't, there'll be some kind of like I guess, consequence or it's not going to be great for you. So it could be literally, obviously groceries, it could be setting that email. It could be washing, it could be work, it could be whatever, but you know they have to be done today. And then your quick three. Now these three are only to be done once you've done your top three. So your top three could be like quicker tasks as well, but they just are very important. And then your quick three are the ones that take less than fifteen minutes and they're done after your top three.
00:09:53
Speaker 2: The last couple of years I actually put in in between each week.
00:09:56
Speaker 1: There's a task prioritization system because I I really struggle to figure out what my priorities are. So in the Signature planner, it actually I get you to list out all your tasks and then I get you to number it in order priority, and then you also can like slot it into your weekend stuff. So all my planners I literally just like hold your hand through it, and there's like reminders through it. Even in every single monthly spread, I actually have a date checklist for you, so it will say like birthdays, events, meetings, all that stuff. Because again, like my planners are for people who we need the extra prompting.
00:10:29
Speaker 2: We need the reminders because we forget. And that's okay.
00:10:33
Speaker 1: I also want you to think about why whenever you've tried to start a new planning system or a plan and why you actually stopped a lot of people say they forgot, but I do really believe that.
00:10:44
Speaker 2: Most of us actually avoid it.
00:10:46
Speaker 1: We avoid it out of shame because again we're putting our lists, they're too big, We're doing too many priorities per day. And again that is why my planner just tries to simplify that for you, because we don't want to be avoiding the very tool that's here to help us in the first place with our mess and with our life and with our time. The reason I am so big on planning and stuff, it's not to gain more time back to do more tasks and be more productive. It's to get that time back so you have time for fun, to.
00:11:15
Speaker 2: Play, to look after a puppy.
00:11:18
Speaker 1: That is what it's for. It's so you have more time to live. And the thing is, I think a lot of us will see those tasks that we haven't ticked off as evidence that we're not enough, that we're failing. But once we can kind of look at it differently and actually start setting ourselves up for success and also meeting ourselves with just empathy and like understanding that no, you can't get all the things done. This is like, I don't want you guys to also see it always as a to do list. It should be like a nice to this, This would be nice to do list, like it would be nice to get these things done.
00:11:50
Speaker 2: But I'm only human. So I hope these tips helped guys.
00:11:54
Speaker 1: And honestly, just remember your planner is there for mess, It's there for the coffee stains. It's there for the chaos and the changing of the plans, and it's okay not to tick everything off, Jimmy. Most of my tasks, like a lot of the Quick Three especially, they get moved on to the next day a lot, and that's okay. It's all about just having a framework that meets you where you are as well. So again, I'm so so excited for Friday. I cannot wait for you guys to see the colors and the designs and the new planners. I'll give you guys the link below, and if you have any more planning questions, please do like Instagram message us and please please tag us on Instagram listening to the pod. I know it's been a bit chaotic for the last few weeks, but I'm actually back in the Nova Studio I think from next week, thank goodness, but poorl Riley won't be there anyways. I love you guys, and I'll be back in your ears on Monday.
Speaker 1: They just remember, your planet is there for mess it's there for the coffee stains, it's there for the chaos and the changing of the plans, and it's okay not to tick everything off.
00:00:09
Speaker 2: It's all about just having a framework that meets you where you are.
00:00:13
Speaker 1: Hello, guys, and welcome back to Stepping Up. I'm in a bit of a state at the moment, so I surprise the family with a new puppy and said, Poppy is on my lap right now and he's chewing my hair and he obviously won't let me put him down and be so bloody cute. So if you hear random dog noises in the back, that's Riley. So Riley's a Kavodal and he's so so cute. And it's been like a year since we lost Lily, who was our dog and she was seventeen years old, which is crazy, but yeah, we felt like, well, the girls were wanting a new puppy for ages, and we felt like, you know, they were going to replace Lily, but I think we needed a little dog family member.
00:00:50
Speaker 2: So he's so cute.
00:00:51
Speaker 1: But anyway, I'm literally eyeballs deep in the middle of plan our season when this comes out Our Planer launch is this Friday, seven pm if you want to get on the weight list. As you guys know, like we literally sell out of certain planners on the night. Guys, this is like the biggest collection we have ever done for planners to date, like the colors, the new extra accessories, there's two new planner types that you've never seen before, and I'm literally I'm so excited. So make sure you guys all put the wait list below so you guys can get on in the VIP list.
00:01:26
Speaker 2: You get early access because you're.
00:01:27
Speaker 1: Gonna want it, because these are planners for the messy minds of the world.
00:01:30
Speaker 2: They're not for your type A people, which is also what leads me into this episode.
00:01:35
Speaker 1: Now, it's that time of year where I think everyone's just feeling so overwhelmed. We're feeling pretty over it at the moment, Like our New Year's resolutions and goals areway like they feel like a lifetime ago, and all the things we set out to I guess maybe achieve or how we wanted to show up this year.
00:01:52
Speaker 2: Maybe some of us.
00:01:53
Speaker 1: Are feeling proud, but I can kind of bet many of us are feeling a little bit maybe deflated and that's not to say that we aren't or killing it and doing our best. That is me saying that we do tend to set ourselves up for failure. And this is what leads me into today's episode, which is how to actually stick to using a planner. Now, bit of background which might shock you, guys. If you haven't read my book already, definitely give it a read. It's called Mastering My Messy Life. But I have always been the most messiest child on the planet. Like my mum had to cover my bookshelf, so my toy shelf with a plastic two dollar reject shop shower curtain with dolphins across it. Because I just have never been able to keep my shit together. I've never been a naturally tidy person, but then my brain wants me to be.
00:02:40
Speaker 2: So it's like I'm a I was going to do an episode on this.
00:02:43
Speaker 1: It's like I'm a Type A brain stuck in a Type B body. Like my brain wants to be a certain way, but my body's like, no, this is what we do, and it's very frustrating. So, like I need a really clean house to sit down and do work. For example, yesterday I was spent all day editing the reveal real for our planners, which take me like twenty hours are real to edit, and I couldn't do it until I clean the house.
00:03:07
Speaker 2: As you guys know.
00:03:07
Speaker 1: The movie that created my love for planners especially was New York Minute and where Ashley Olsen, who's Jane Ryan, she had this planner and it was just so beautiful and I perfectly highlighted her writing was so perfect. And I'd start each new school year and I'd try and write neat and it would last for like half a day. I could never stick to a plan until I made my own, and that's because I built them differently. And even so, I will still get messages from people saying because granted, they are beautiful and people are too scared to write in them. So my first tip to actually stick to using your planner is to be messy. Do not be afraid to be messy, because it's kind of ironic when people like, we're too scared to write in the very thing that's here to help with the mess like plans are going to change. It's called white out tape, which we sell as well, and you know, you can use pencil and things like that, and the thing is you need to just like a journal, like if you've seen my journal, it is a bomb, Like you can't even read it. And that's the purpose of a journal. It is to get everything out of your head. And the same with the planner, it's to get the tasks and actually, like it's the what, but also the how. So you've got your tasks in your planner, but you also need to figure out how you're going to get them done. So that is going to make some mess sometimes, Like eventually you might get a really good routine that you just write every day in your planner, but you need to remember, like yet life changes, like you might have to pick up a kid from school, or like someone cancels, or you're not feeling good and you decide not to go out for drinks with the girls, which happens a lot. Let's be honest, but life is messy and your planner is there to hold that mess for you. My next tip is don't wait until Monday to start just because your planner obviously has Monday to Sunday. That even for me, guys, like from my planner shoot week, I didn't write in my planner that week, and that's okay because you know I was busy elsewhere, like, yes, I still had my top three things like that, but I've also been using these planners for a long time and it does genuinely become a habit, which I'll get into later. Is another like a life changing tip to actually help you remember to use it, because when.
00:05:11
Speaker 2: You think about it, guys like it's a habit.
00:05:13
Speaker 1: And if you aren't used to using it, like of course you're not going to reach for it.
00:05:19
Speaker 2: But this is where it comes into.
00:05:21
Speaker 1: Like say it's a Wednesday and you realize you haven't written in your planner yet. It doesn't mean that you can't now, like just grab it out and.
00:05:27
Speaker 2: Start from Wednesday.
00:05:29
Speaker 1: I even like to use if I have any blank days during the week, I'll just use that to like brain dump as well, which my signature planner, like all my planners have brain dumping spaces.
00:05:37
Speaker 2: But you can use it for whatever you like.
00:05:40
Speaker 1: And the thing is, too, you need to remember if you're always waiting to start on a Monday or a January, like, chances are that motivation that you're feeling now to actually just get started, which is the hardest part that's not going to last. So you need to utilize that whenever it hits. So for me, for example, if I finally have a feeling that I need to really declutter like the bathroom, I've learned and overtime that if I wait, I'm not going to do that, so I will just jump on that straight away. It's the same when I'm feeling creative with work, like I have to just go with it. So use that motivation and that momentum to get started. And then that's going to lead into my next tip, which is habit stacking. Now, there is so much science and research behind habit stacking and how it could really make you so much more successful with creating new habits. So basically, the idea is you have an existing habit, so it could be brushing your teeth, and then you're going to stack it with a new habit. So it could be your new habit is you want to listen to an educational podcast, So therefore, while you're brushing your teeth, you can do it before or after or during you stack it with the new habit, so you chuck on the podcast. To see where I'm going with this, Riles yawning. So for me, my biggest way that I got into My planning was I would make my breakfast, and this actually.
00:06:55
Speaker 2: Helped me be more intentional with my eating.
00:06:57
Speaker 1: But I'd make my breakfast and I sit down, and I have my planner aut and I will plan while I'm.
00:07:01
Speaker 2: Eating my breakfast. Now, granted, I might get.
00:07:04
Speaker 1: Milk on it sometimes, but that's fine. So you need to figure out what part of your morning. It could literally be you've just done school drop off and you do it in your car, like that's the perfect time. It's like, you know, when you always just want to sit in your car for a while. You could do it like that, but you'll be so much more likely to actually be able to stick to it if your habit stacking it with something else. And also, this is where it kind of comes into having your daily check ins with your planner.
00:07:31
Speaker 2: So I guess this is also part of it.
00:07:33
Speaker 1: So in the morning and evening you really do need to be checking in with your planner so things change throughout the day. In the start of the day, you're going to maybe be like, Okay, here's my top three. Here's my quick three, which I'll get into later. Sorry, he really wants to play mister Riley, and he's like mum, I don't want to sit on your lap while you're talking into this big black thing. So every morning and evening, literally take two minutes just to check your planner and then that will keep you up to date. Now, the way to also ensure that you're doing this the two daily check ins is making sure your planner is in sight, because honestly, if it's out of side, it's out of mind. If your planner is closed, even if it's just closed on your desk, I bet you you will rarely very much look at it. You need to have it open. So I'll even have mine open wherever I am in the house. So if I'm working for the day, it's in my office open. If I'm around the house just doing other stuff, it's open on the kitchen bench. And a lot of families do this with family planners, so you'll want to see our new planners. It's so good anyway, So have it open because if it's out of side, it's out of mind, and you bet you're not going to remember to actually check it.
00:08:44
Speaker 2: Now.
00:08:45
Speaker 1: My next tip, and this is probably one of the biggest, is actually halving your list half your to do list. We always we tend to underestimate the big task and overestimate the little tasks, which is very much me. It's very frustrating. But I also keep like a time log, so I like to track how long things actually take me, so when I need to do that thing, I can refer back and be like, oh, that actually takes me four hours, steph, it doesn't take me five minutes.
00:09:12
Speaker 2: So that's really helpful.
00:09:13
Speaker 1: But that's why in all my planners I have the top three and the quick three. So your top three tasks is the top three things like they have to be done that day, and if they don't, there'll be some kind of like I guess, consequence or it's not going to be great for you. So it could be literally, obviously groceries, it could be setting that email. It could be washing, it could be work, it could be whatever, but you know they have to be done today. And then your quick three. Now these three are only to be done once you've done your top three. So your top three could be like quicker tasks as well, but they just are very important. And then your quick three are the ones that take less than fifteen minutes and they're done after your top three.
00:09:53
Speaker 2: The last couple of years I actually put in in between each week.
00:09:56
Speaker 1: There's a task prioritization system because I I really struggle to figure out what my priorities are. So in the Signature planner, it actually I get you to list out all your tasks and then I get you to number it in order priority, and then you also can like slot it into your weekend stuff. So all my planners I literally just like hold your hand through it, and there's like reminders through it. Even in every single monthly spread, I actually have a date checklist for you, so it will say like birthdays, events, meetings, all that stuff. Because again, like my planners are for people who we need the extra prompting.
00:10:29
Speaker 2: We need the reminders because we forget. And that's okay.
00:10:33
Speaker 1: I also want you to think about why whenever you've tried to start a new planning system or a plan and why you actually stopped a lot of people say they forgot, but I do really believe that.
00:10:44
Speaker 2: Most of us actually avoid it.
00:10:46
Speaker 1: We avoid it out of shame because again we're putting our lists, they're too big, We're doing too many priorities per day. And again that is why my planner just tries to simplify that for you, because we don't want to be avoiding the very tool that's here to help us in the first place with our mess and with our life and with our time. The reason I am so big on planning and stuff, it's not to gain more time back to do more tasks and be more productive. It's to get that time back so you have time for fun, to.
00:11:15
Speaker 2: Play, to look after a puppy.
00:11:18
Speaker 1: That is what it's for. It's so you have more time to live. And the thing is, I think a lot of us will see those tasks that we haven't ticked off as evidence that we're not enough, that we're failing. But once we can kind of look at it differently and actually start setting ourselves up for success and also meeting ourselves with just empathy and like understanding that no, you can't get all the things done. This is like, I don't want you guys to also see it always as a to do list. It should be like a nice to this, This would be nice to do list, like it would be nice to get these things done.
00:11:50
Speaker 2: But I'm only human. So I hope these tips helped guys.
00:11:54
Speaker 1: And honestly, just remember your planner is there for mess, It's there for the coffee stains. It's there for the chaos and the changing of the plans, and it's okay not to tick everything off, Jimmy. Most of my tasks, like a lot of the Quick Three especially, they get moved on to the next day a lot, and that's okay. It's all about just having a framework that meets you where you are as well. So again, I'm so so excited for Friday. I cannot wait for you guys to see the colors and the designs and the new planners. I'll give you guys the link below, and if you have any more planning questions, please do like Instagram message us and please please tag us on Instagram listening to the pod. I know it's been a bit chaotic for the last few weeks, but I'm actually back in the Nova Studio I think from next week, thank goodness, but poorl Riley won't be there anyways. I love you guys, and I'll be back in your ears on Monday.
