My Filofax

Aug 22

Copied from my old blog:

Good evening lovely critters!

With school already started for a lot of you and others who have yet to start school AND to the rest of you who are no longer in school... I just decided that it would be a good time to do a tutorial/overlook of how I use my filofax planner.

The planner I have is from http://www.filofax.com. It is an A5 size classic binder in black. I love it so much because it is real leather (aka it looks freaking snazzy and professional), it is super customizable, and it's sturdy! When deciding which organizer to purchase I went with this brand because I heard nothing but positive reviews; actually, that's kind of a lie--there are some negative reviews out there but most of them just have to do with the expensive price. I chose the size A5 because it gives me enough comfortable space to write all of the things that I need to without feeling sloppy or jammed. Some people think that the A5 size is too large, but to just throw into my backpack and go, the A5 is perfect for me.

When you open the nice snap closure, the first part of the filo is the interior front pockets. They are shaped so that you can use this planner as a wallet if need be; however, I use the card slots for sticky note and tab organization. The zipper pocket and larger side pockets are rather small and tight, so I only put things inside there that I am not going to be reaching for very often.

The back of the binder has a nice slot that allows you to insert a small notepad. When ordering this planner you will receive a filofax brand notepad, but I just recently ran out of paper and decided to save some money by just purchasing a small pad from Staples.

Now, back to the front: The first page in my planner is a plastic card organizer. I use this to house some of my school cards, hair salon stuff, or anything that I don't want to lose but don't need to keep in my wallet. The next page is the list of my new year's resolution. I like to keep this paper in the front that way I remember all of the things that I am wanting to do this year!

On the side of the front a back cover of the filofax are two pen loops. One is slightly larger than the other so I keep a fatter 4 color pen in it and a pencil in the other. A lot of people complain about the pen loops because they are only one size rather than being elasticized and capable of fitting multiple sizes. I have never had an issue with the pen holders so this isn't a complaint of mine.

Filofax nicely provides you with six good quality tab dividers. They come blank, so I used my dad's label maker to apply the different titles to the front and the back of each one. My tabs are Monthly, Daily, Projects, Info, and a blank one.

My monthly tab actually starts of with an expandable yearly calendar. I use the yearly calendar to simplistically lay out all of my big assignments and tests in each class. I like this method because at any given time I can see all of the major events that are happening in one entire semester.

When I get to the month on two pages section, you will see that color coordination begin. I have my own way of staying organized through colors, but the important part is finding a way that works for you. The monthly view pages are only used to display things happening in a day but are not specific and don't show times. Once I know what is going on in one day I can then flip to the daily pages and see that entire day in more detail.

My daily pages are from filofax and they are called day per page. Each day has a specific page with a column of timed sections on the left and a notes section on the right. I use the left column to block out exactly when everything is happening in a day. The right section is used for making different sorts of lists (see the video below for more about how I organize my lists).

My projects tab is pretty self explanatory... I have paper clipped sections for different projects going on in my life like Welcome Week, School, and Blogging. These paper clipped sections are labeled with sticky notes or smaller tabs. They are used for different notes, holding papers, and collecting my thoughts for each project.

And lastly, is my section titled Info. In here I have basic stuff like my filofax registration paper, so if I ever lose it then someone can find me and return it. I also have a homemade about me section in there with more specific details about myself. Other things in this section include, measurement papers, important date lists, passwords, website lists, etc.

I like writing things down because it always sinks things into my brain better. However, I also use my iCal application on my iPhone, as well as, my MacbookPro. Remember to check back soon and check out my next post on how I use my filofax organization and my iCal organization methods to stay on top of all work and school events.
If you have any comments or questions about my filofax and planning system, don't hesitate to shoot me an email or leave it in the comment section below. I love to hear from all of my critters, and I really do take your suggestions for future posts into consideration, too.