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For the last four years I’ve used Agendio planners at work. You can pick & choose from different pages, components, and layouts to customize the whole thing. Sifting through the options can feel overwhelming, but their system was the only way to get a pre-printed planner that gave me what I wanted while skipping what I didn’t. Each year I refined the details of my planner to better meet my needs. Overall, I was always satisfied with Agendio’s products and service.
I got the newest planner in late spring and after a few months I felt I’d misjudged some parts of the layout. It wasn’t going to work as well as I’d hoped. I decided to use it at home for tracking tasks, appointments and the like outside of work. But what to do for a work planner? I’d thought about making my own layout in a blank notebook before getting Agendio, but felt it’d take too much time or end up a haphazard mess. What notebook could help me avoid those problems? One I’d used before but never envisioned in this kind of role.
Itoya makes myriad stationery products. Their notebooks are excellent and I’m a big fan of their Profolio Oasis series. They have excellent paper quality and are easy to write in with a lay flat binding. Another feature is a grid of solid and dashed lines on the page, as well as other hash marks or dividing points. The first time I saw it I thought it was too busy and distracting. But after using it for a bit I realized the extra stuff faded out of notice and I just wrote on it like normal lined paper.
I had an Oasis already going for pages where I log impressions of pen & inks as I use them and wondered if those extra lines I ignored could help plan a planner. The answer is yes.
Couple of fineliners and a ruler are all it needs.
With a ruler and two Pigma Microns in 08 size, I went for a simple week-per-two-pages layout. I put in five days instead of seven since there’s no need to dedicate space for the two days a week I’m off. This left a good chunk of free space in the bottom right corner for general notes or items relevant to the week overall instead of a specific day. The outside column of each day’s box has the day of the week and date, as well as the scheduled shift times. Below that I typically write when I punch in & out so I can have quick reference to the actual time at work each day.
The off white paper and light grey markings don't hinder different pens & colors showing off their qualities.
The top line or two of the day box will have the routine necessary tasks to complete, with a line drawn through them as they get done. Below that will usually be more specific items or info points that come up through the course of the day. Space-wise, this has worked out well. In fact, I feel I need to document more of what happens here even if a lot of it ends up as inconsequential.
You can see in the first picture that the notebook has a clear plastic cover installed. I tried out a few covers in heavier materials like canvas and nylon with pockets, page markers, elastic closures, etc. Aside from bulk that made them harder to fit in my Nock Co. Lanier pouch, the covers from the National Parks Collection are too good to obscure. So, I got an MD clear cover that shows off the artwork and prevents a good amount of daily wear and tear. It also has a pen loop just big enough for the uni-ball Signo DX. I had been using a Pilot Hi-Tec Coleto two color multipen in my previous planner (and may still go back to it) but the Mandarin Orange DX needed some love and this is a great spot for it.
Right where it needs to be.
Never been to Hawaii but Haleakala sounds like a great place to go.
Collect them all.
In the few weeks of using the Oasis and this planner layout, I feel good with the choice. I mark out each week at the end of the week prior. I want the flexibility to add project or list pages when & where they may be relevant, then go right back to the weekly spread. Considering the remaining 3 ½ months are the busiest time of year at my job, flexibility is key. So are tools that work for me rather than me for them. The Oasis is such a tool. It was all along and I just hadn’t realized it.
