It is easy to think that planners are always arranged in a simple and familiar way, without much variation. This misconception arises because most people are familiar with calendars, not planners.
In fact, although the familiar days, weeks, and months laid out in rectangle squares might be the most familiar planner layout, it’s far from being the only one. In fact, there’s a considerable degree of variety in planner layouts.Moreover, if you don’t know about this, it could well be the case that your planning woes are arising from using the wrong type of planner!
Next Level Daily are a company very familiar with the different planner layouts, as they specialize in ADHD daily planners, high-performance planners, and habit trackers. Which one of these you go for is pretty much indicated by the name, but Next Level Daily say that there are still various layouts which can be incorporated into each type of planner.
Across the industry, it’s generally accepted that there five main types of planners, each known as a layout.
The Five Main Planner Layouts
The five main planner layouts are the daily layout, the monthly layout, and three different types of weekly planners – the vertical, horizontal, and hourly planner. The timescales indicated here all refer to what is covered on each page of the planner, with each page in the daily planner encompassing one day, each page in the monthly plannera month, etc.
The three weekly layouts – the vertical, horizontal, and hourly – all differ quite considerably and are best suited to different types of people. Finding out which type you are is essential.
Each layout also comes with a way to use it most effectively. Another source of your planning woes could simply be using the planner incorrectly. You cannot know if a particular layout is for you if you can’t even use it properly.
Focusing on these three distinct layouts then, here follows the features and advantages of each one. This is where to start if you want to find the optimal planner for you.
Vertical Layout
In this weekly layout, each day of the week is arranged vertically, fromtop to bottom. The days of the week go from left to right, starting on Sunday or Monday. Sometimes Saturday and Sunday are combined to afford more space to the working week. If you’re busy on the weekend, or like toplan your social life too, you might want to avoid this feature.
This layout offers a little structure and a good deal of flexibility and freedom. You arrange your tasks into each day, and either assign each one anhour or not. Its best if your tasks are often scheduled appointments and commitments.
Horizontal Layout
The horizontal layout is the opposite of the vertical. It features days arranged horizontally and stacked vertically across usually two pages. This planner usually has lines for each day of the week and offers more structure here (and a little less space). Consider the number of tasks you have each day before going for this planner.
Hourly Layout
As you might expect, the hourly layout is for those who plan to the hour. Can you see yourself assigning a specific hour to a task and then actually doing it in that hour? If not, you might want to avoid this much more structured planner. For the assiduous amongus, however, and especially those with a lot of time-sensitive tasks, this could be the perfect planner.
In the end, choosing the right planner is all about knowing intimately what you hope to plan – and what type of planner you actually are.
