Oh boy.
Where do I start?
Where do I end?
2021 was weird, y’all. I tried talking to people about it, and I think other people felt the same way as me, that we were all in a weird time warp and the twelve months of 2021 somehow felt like the second half of 2020? Or something? I don’t know if other people felt the same as me because I’m not sure anyone really has the language to discuss this all yet.
But the beautiful thing about believing in science was I couldn’t argue with a calendar. Yes, the sun had risen and set 365 times and the earth had traveled around that distant star and… here we were. A year gone. A year up to bat.
So I did what I always do. I ordered a planner, I thought about what I wanted to do - with planning, with life… (cue laughter from the heavens).
Because a lot of people (honestly, I’m not just saying that), like to look at planner stuff, I’m putting up some of my choices this year, but mostly, I’m sticking with my systems from the past few years and if you’d like more info on all that, here you go:
My 2019 Planners as Planned
A Peek at my 2020 Planner Lineup
My 2021 Hobonichi
My 2021 Planner System
ALL THE PLANNER RELATED STUFF I’VE EVER PUT ON MY BLOG
There. You happy?
Since this year was a weird one, I didn’t do a lot of pre-planning but on New Year’s Day, I locked myself up in our little office, put my headphones on (the rest of the family was watching The Matrix, parts 1-5) and got to work. It took a while. There was a folding table. Lots of post-its, pens, and stickers. See:
Eventually, I got my mind right. I transferred all calendars, appointments, etc. into the new Hobonichi. Set up a few systems and edited some old ones. As I have the past few years, I used the extra December month page and turned it into a monthly kanban board for recurring monthly goals and tasks:
I also spent an inordinate amount of time selecting the stickers that will go on the outside of my hobonichi. This is a serious decision!
Stickers for 2021 vs. Stickers for 2022. Love them all so much.
The Deep Thought I kept having this year is.. how much longer is this going to be useful to me?
Related questions: Am I completely in denial about “planning” 2022?
Is there another word that would suit this process better? Because “planning” seems like a stupid word to use in these times.
To tell the truth, I switched to this system when my life was very different. I needed MORE room. I needed BIG. I needed COMPREHENSIVE. But life has changed. Life is changing. In a few years, I won’t be tracking all these practices, orthodontic appointments, school holidays, on top of my own dates.
I’m intellecting on what that’s going to look like. How will I know when it’s time to change?
I guess the same way I knew I had to go bigger. I’ll know when it’s time to go smaller. Or more streamlined. Or something.
But regardless of the SIZE of the planner, I think I’ll always appreciate the intention that I bring to this process. This is my creation. This is how I express what I want from the next twelve months, the next 365 days of the sun setting and the moon rising. I want it to work LIKE THIS. And if it doesn’t, well. That will be disappointing.
But, you know. I can deal.
With all that said, my word of the year should surprise no one.
Yes, it’s the same word I chose in 2021 (read more about that here.)
I wasn’t done with the word yet. It still felt vital to me. Alive. Hopeful. Active.
All things that I need.
So I hope that you found this interesting. Or helpful. I hope that you are planning something awesome this year.
Because here’s what I’ve learned for sure. We might be waiting for life to get better. But life isn’t waiting on us. Children are growing, flowers are growing and tides turn whether or not we’re ready to go outside or not.
I’m tired of waiting.
I want fun times. I want adventures. I want laughing with my girls.
If you’re not already in the Inner Circle, you may be interested in signing up here. I send out the Secret Posts on the last Friday of every month and maybe there will be more exclusive content this year… After all, my word is CREATE. So who knows what I’ll do?
