Creating the Best Planning System for Back-to-School with My Passion Planner and Bullet Journal
August Always Feels Far Away
August always feels far away, and then all of the sudden it is here. It has to be one the fastest moving months throughout the year. Back-to-school advertisements and sales are everywhere. All of the teachers I know (including myself) are struggling with how the fall will look for students, teachers, and families as we return to teaching during a pandemic. How quickly will burnout set in? Will everything be okay? The new dynamic of being a mom will also be on my plate as I enter the upcoming school year. Managing family schedules, daycare, and finding time to fit in what really matters is going to be an added challenge. I have loved bullet journaling for the past 4 years, but I have also used a Passion Planner occasionally when I need to get myself back on track in terms of organization and goals. This post outlines how I plan to use BOTH a Passion Planner and a bullet journal to keep myself on track in terms of goals and tasks, but also dreams, family time, and trying to fit in a certain amount of self-care to avoid burnout.
The System
1.) 2021-2022 Academic Yearly Passion Planner in Elite Black
2.) A5 Leuchtturm1917 Journal in a Chic Sparrow Traveler’s Notebook Cover
One notebook for planning + one notebook for thinking = the best planning system for the fall
I love an already filled-in planner that has the months, weeks, and days already setup. In fact, most of the people that I talk to that are hesitant about bullet journaling in general are people that say “I don’t have time to create all of those elaborate layouts in a bullet journal.” These people aren’t wrong. Bullet journaling does take time. I would argue that there is a level of art therapy that takes place when you create a layout, but I also understand why people don’t want to setup their own journals from scratch. Cue the Passion Planner. I love the Passion Planner system. You can focus in on what you really want in terms of what you want out of life. This isn’t just goals, short-term or long-term, this is being able to help change what you do on a daily basis to start creating the life you want. This is having built-in check-ins each month, weekly layouts already filled out (or daily if you choose that planner), and then pages in the back to help you stay organized. One thing I always struggled with inside of my bullet journal was constantly moving over the pages that I needed to keep using from one journal to the next. It would take a lot of time to move over from a completed bullet journal into a new one because I would need to copy over layouts that I used all the time. Using a Passion Planner solves this problem because I am able to use the pages in the back to keep the same layouts for a year. I would change bullet journals 3-4 times a year, and it would be time-consuming to constantly move things over.
One thing my Passion Planner is missing is room to write. I need enough space to record morning pages, ideas, drafts of blog posts, and notes in any type of meeting. Teachers have tons of meetings. I love being able to plan out a year in a Passion Planner, but I also needed a familiar solution when I attend staff meetings and teacher professional development. There isn’t space necessarily to write out a ton of ideas or thoughts in a Passion Planner, so keeping my bullet journal is a necessity not just for planning, but for all of the other areas of life I use bullet journaling for throughout the month. This includes: Meeting notes, podcast notes, blog post drafts and outlines, digital product rough drafts, social media planning, lists for items around the house, shopping lists, and more. I need room to write. By using both of these systems for the fall, I will be able to stay organized and inspired.
Current Journaling & Planning Tools
A5 Leuchtturm1917 Journal in a Chic Sparrow Traveler’s Notebook Cover
Anything in the color peach or yellow
Large 9 X 11 Cherry Wood Journal for Blog Planning
Poetry and Narrative Book for Quotes/Inspiration
Iced coffee/cold brew with almond milk creamer
Post-It Noted Pencil Pouch (in yellow and peach of course)
PROS and CONS of Both Notebooks
I think it is important to pause and recognize why I have two notebooks instead of one. Everyone is looking for “planner peace” where they find the perfect notebook or journaling system out there. I’m not sure it exists while maintaining a relatively thin notebook that you can carry around. The Passion Planner is as close to planner peace as they come. The bullet journal system is almost perfect in a sense that it has limitless opportunities to design the layouts, spreads, and collections that work for you. But not everyone has time for this design. Here is a quick review of the pros and cons of each system:
PASSION PLANNER PROS
Clear roadmap on goals and dreams
Helps you organize goals into months, weeks, and days
Yearly overview already created
Monthly reflection pages
Choice of sizes and styles
Bookmark/Back pocket
Weekly layouts already created with choice of Monday start or Sunday start (Daily choices, undated, and academic styles available)
Design perks like daily focus, project boxes, personal to-do list, work to-do list, and “space of infinite possibility”
Can be creative with stickers, markers, color, etc
Back pages can be used for layouts and spreads that are repeated
You can try the system before you buy an actual journal to see if it works for you
PASSION PLANNER CONS
No pen loop (I have a clip-on one that I use)
No space for lots of writing or note-taking (Pages in the back are available, but this won’t last a full year)
Can’t easily change the layout or design as it is printed in the planner
Quotes printed on each weekly layout (This isn’t necessarily a con, I just wish I could change the inspirational quote on each page)
Back pages are blank and dotted (I like this, but some people love lined paper or squared paper)
BLANK BULLET JOURNAL SYSTEM (A5 NOTEBOOK) PROS
Choice of sizes and styles
Bookmarks/Back pocket
Pen loops available to match
Can be creative with stickers, markers, color, etc
Complete control over monthly theme, layouts, and design
All blank pages let you plan and journal in the same space
BLANK BULLET JOURNAL SYSTEM (A5 NOTEBOOK) CONS
Can take some time to create your monthly theme, layouts, and designs
Each month or week a new collection needs to be made
A journal only lasts for a small amount of time (This can vary-I use a bullet journal every 3-4 months)
Tour My Passion Planner
COVER PAGES
Left-side: 100 Things I Love. These are tons of things that I love. I like to keep this nearby because it is the first activity I do with students for back-to-school to get to know them better and also complete their first pre-writing, and I like to stay inspired by things that make me happy.
Right-side: Inspiration Quote. I love all things Morgan Harper Nichols right now, and I love all things cardinals. I have written in previous posts that they are good-luck charms, and I have a corresponding journal charm on my Leuchtturm1917 journal cover to keep the theme going. I love this quote because learning how to be a mama while working is going to take humility and surrendering as I head into the fall.
CLOSER LOOK AT 100 THINGS I LOVE
WEEKLY LAYOUT #1
Current inspiration in the bottom corner to stay motivated
Morning and afternoon blocks chunk tasks into manageable time slots
Gratitude around baby’s bedtime
Personal goals and blog goals are used instead of personal and work goals
Focus on hydration
WEEKLY LAYOUT #2
Each day of the week has a focus word for positivity
Mama affirmations at the top of each page in pink in baby wake up zone (6-7am)
Tasks broken down into morning and afternoon for flexibility with naps
Blog tasks after bedtime
Gratitude on left-side this week
Wellness focus for each day. Only one a day to start with small goals.
Passion Planner Back Pages
The blank and dotted pages in the back of the Passion Planner are great for the recurring layouts and spreads I often have to copy and recopy in my bullet journal from month-to-month. I am focusing on using the back pages for two separate sections: Blog organization and life organization. For the layouts that will be reused, I found spaces to put sticky notes so I can use and replace the sticky notes. Yellow is my favorite color, so grabbing the yellow ones was an easy choice. Things like the grocery store or my target list will need to be replaced on a weekly basis. I also like to use the sticky notes when planning out social media each week.
USING MY PASSION PLANNER BACK PAGES PART 1: BLOG ORGANIZATION
USING MY PASSION PLANNER BACK PAGES PART 2: LIFE ORGANIZATION
Workout Menu
Target Shopping List
Baby Food Tracker
Questions to Ask at Next Baby Appointment
Baby Milestones and Moments #1
Baby Milestones and Moments #2
House Projects and Renovations
Self-Care Brainstorms
Books/To-Read List
Bills/Money and Holiday Shopping Planning
What’s for Dinner Menu/Grocery Shopping List
Level 10 Life Goals
Pen Test Page
