PaperCat

Over the past few weeks, I have been off work because I left my most recent retail job suddenly and have been awaiting the start of my new job. In that time, I have been focused on my home, my health, and working on my Codecademy courses and it has been amazing. This was a much-needed rest and reset time and during this time, I have also worked to find tools that will help me to maintain my helpful routines even when I start to work again. The main tool that I have now and I’m looking forward to using in the coming weeks of managing work and home life is the Simplified Planner.

I had first heard of the Simplified Planner about 5 years ago when I had first started paying attention to the planner community on YouTube and Instagram. At that time, I thought about trying the planner but I didn’t want a daily planner that had a shared weekend page because I worked a variable schedule. During Covid from 2020 to 2022, I worked from home and didn’t use hardly any planners except for my Plum Paper planner that I used as a pregnancy and baby journal.

Now I am starting a job with a consistent schedule and I’m having to manage life with my toddler as well and the idea that Simplified as a company puts forth sounded appealing to me as a relatively new mom who works and is the primary household manager. The idea of simplifying or living a simplified life sounds so good to me! So for that reason, I decided to take advantage of the sale that Simplified has on their 2023 annual daily planners to give it a shot. And I am so glad I did!

The Simplified Planner’s layout is a basic planner layout with the weekdays having a page-per-day and the weekend is on one page. Half of the daily page has an hourly timeline from 6am to 9pm and the other half is a to do list and the bottom quarter of the page is blank for notes. This layout is perfect because I can make regular to do’s and timed to do’s because I don’t have a lot of appointments. So I use the timeline for loose time-blocking. The planner also has monthly calendars which allow for planning in advance, at least that’s how I use it.

I have enjoyed this planner so much!

Not only does the company make these gorgeous planners, but they also provide tips that are so helpful. For me, the tips and life ideas help immensely after going through the major life change of having a baby and admittedly losing myself going back to work after only 8 weeks postpartum.

In the front of the planner are what are called the Simplified prep work pages which are meant to orient you into the new year. I did this at the beginning of April but it was the fresh start that I so desperately needed. These prep pages were developed by the founder of Simplified, Emily Ley, and from the stories she has shared, she GETS IT when it comes to working-mom life overwhelm. I won’t share photos of the prep work because I wrote and highlighted all over my prep work pages but they are all about Simplified’s Process of Simplifying, how to use the planner, preparing for the new year, ideas for new routines, the Simplicity Challenge, (which is also shared on Simplified’s social media) and your yearly bucket list.

When I say that I desperately needed this fresh start, I mean it. This prep work was so refreshing for me as a mom of a 16-month old who is struggling hard with postpartum depression. It makes you think about how to improve but it doesn’t push you hard into the whole “hustle” “make it work” “just do it” kind of culture that many goal-oriented planners tend to push you into.

I know that this company is also 15 years old so I’m way late to the party, but I had to share how much this planner and process have helped me out of the figurative drowning that I was struggling through. The company also publishes a podcast which I tend to watch on YouTube and that has also helped me because the whole thing is just positive and so filled with light. Emily has also published books, which once I have read them I can share more thoughts about them. I started reading A Simplified Life on Kindle but it has questions that I really want to dig into so I ordered the physical copy on the Simplified website that I’m waiting anxiously for. Even reading chapters 1-5 has continued to help me in my struggles so I look forward to being able to use it as a reference and a workbook.

I know I’m not alone as well because the company has a Facebook group for the Simplified community which is amazing. I honestly just want to thank the Simplified team and Emily for everything they do because it helped me SO much.

(This post is not sponsored. Links are not affiliated links. This post is all my own opinions and inspired by my experiences. Photos are my own. The products mentioned belong to their own company/trademark.)