Giveaway and My 5 Rules for Paper Planners

December 31, 2021.   On this New Year's Eve, I'm getting so excited for 2022.  I know that surely it will be better than 2021.  I'm getting my goals together and am ready to put them in my planner. 

It's an exciting time for me!  I am so thankful for another year!  After being diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in August, 2019, I am finally in "remission".  For many people, when you have a brush with death, every day after that is a gift.  That's how it is for me. 

So, now I feel like I can plan for the future, and for me, it starts with setting personal and business goals.  I like to keep those goals in a planner or journal.  

Do you like paper planners?  If you’re like me, you like the calendar in our phones and then a paper planner.  For me, the phone calendar is just for appointments and birthday reminders.  I have a lot of medical appointments and my phone calendar keeps me straight.  It’s also nice to be able to click on the calendar entry and connect to GPS when I’m wandering around looking for a building. 

The paper planner, however, is much more than keeping appointments.  My first rule is that it needs to be pretty.  I know you’re laughing at me right now, but it’s the truth.  In my mind, any paper product has got to be pretty or I’m just not going to want to use it.   I get a little bored with business black covers and a bright color or pretty floral design is easier for me to find.  

It's also nice to just hold the pretty planner in my hands, go back and forth to different dates, color in it, and write things down.  So, my second rule is that it has to have plenty of blank space for me to write notes, thoughts, goals, or anything that you would put in a journal.  

My third rule, which goes along with rule #2, is that it can’t have too many pre-set pages that I feel obligated to complete simply because it’s suggested for that page.  Those pre-set pages might be about budgeting, investments, mood markers, weight loss, exercise notes, and even the weather.  IF I want to keep track of these things, I’ll just write those in my Notes page and everything will be in one place.  If there is a pre-set title that I don't want to use, then I put a sticker over it, but if the whole page is filled with hints on what to write here and there, it won’t work for my purposes.  I need some blank pages. 

My fourth rule is that the planner has to be easy to use.  If I have to take a class or read an instruction sheet on how to use my planner, then that means there are far too many things for me to do with it and not really a planner.   I mean, I don’t have THAT much time to work on my planner.

My fifth rule is it has to be economical.  Some of the planners can end up being a bit costly at the end of the year.  I don’t mind paying $40 or $50 for my planner for the entire year.  However, if I have to pay $20 a month or $40 a quarter, then I would only pay that much if I was totally in love with the planner.   I recently found a quarterly planner and it cost about $37 for each quarter, so you have to spend about $150 for the year.  I also found one that was around $65.  It was pretty and very close to what I needed, but the price really put me off.

I do enjoy cute sayings or motivational quotes or scripture scattered on different pages which sort of goes along with being pretty.   I don’t have to do anything with quotes except read them. 

I have also seen some with a recipe every month.  This is not a page to write on, just a little bonus to your planner.

I also enjoy a coloring page now and then.  I’m not very “artsy”, but it can be relaxing to do a little coloring now and then while I’m deep in my thoughts. 

I’d like a pocket on the front and back covers to keep things like business cards, receipts, and anything I will need to put in my files once I get home.  This works better than dropping these things in the middle section of the front car console only to get tossed in the trash when it’s car washing day.  Yes, we do have a car washing day.  (My husband’s job is to clean the cars, which he thoroughly loves!)

A snap on the outside of the planner would be nice and then it won’t spill open when I drop it in my backpack or tote. 

I know I’m very specific about what I want in a planner and so last December I purchased one of every planner I found online.  Most of them were pitched to me on Instagram.  I had no idea there were so many makers of planners.  And most of them did not fit my needs once I had a chance to look them over. 

You may feel the same way.  You order a planner and look forward to receiving it over the next week, and then when you get it, it’s not quite what you expected.   So that’s why I ordered all of them.  I wanted to see which ones, if any, would be good for me. 

Some of the planners came to me monthly and so I kept them for a few months and finally cancelled the subscriptions when I decided they weren’t for me; just too many set pages that I didn’t use.  I also didn’t like spending $20 a month for the planner. 

I haven’t found one that is completely right for me and decided last year that I would create my own.  I researched this in my downtime with medical appointments the last two years.  It’s still in process, but for now, I am happy with the Christian Planner. 

Some of the Christian Planner features which I enjoy are:

• They’re pretty! There’s no design on the cover, but they come in hard cover, spiral, and leather hard cover.   They come in a handful of colors and this year I picked poppy red for myself.
• The page paper quality is nice. If you use markers, they shouldn’t bleed through depending on what kind of marker you use.
• There are pages at the beginning of the planner for Vision Board, Healthy Habit Goals, and 2022 Goals.
• There are not a lot of extra pre-set pages. There is a monthly and weekly calendar.  There is also a page for Devotional or Sermon Notes.  Tip:  If you don’t like the title on a page, cover it with pretty Washi Tape.   
• The monthly and weekly calendar squares are large enough to write in notes or appointments for the day.
• At the end of each week there is a page for Reflection, Preparation, Sketch, Notes.
• There are plenty of empty pages where you can write down notes, your favorite scripture, draw pictures and color them, and doodle. I tend to doodle a lot.
• You only need one planner for the whole year, which works for my pocketbook.

I have enjoyed the Christian Planner so much that I decided to buy a few and give them away.    I have 4 Christian Planners that I will give away.  I have 1 red poppy, 1 purple, 1 pink, and 1 tiffany blue. 

I’m posting this on Instagram, Facebook, and on my blog, which is attached to my Online Tea Shop.  

I’ll run this give away from Jan. 1 through Jan. 2 at midnight.  I’ll notify you by email if you win and I’ll ship your Christian Planner to you at my cost.

In the meantime, think about your goals and what you might want to add for the Vision Board (2 pages). You can collect photographs or pictures from magazines for your Vision Board and it will be a fun way to start the new year.

To enter to win a 2022 Christian Planner, do these things:

• Like and Follow my pages on Instagram: @denvertealady and @denvertearoom
• Like and Follow my page on Facebook: @denvertearoom
• Sign up for our TeaMail on our website. Log into denvertearoom.com and you’ll get the sign-up form in a few seconds.
• Tag 3 friends who might enjoy a Christian Planner.

If you are already Following us on IG or FB, just let us know in the comments when you’re tagging your friends.

Must be 18 years or older to participate.  This giveaway is not endorsed by Instagram.  The winner must live in the USA. 

Good luck!