New planner... new chapter in your life?

I'm a great believer in improving yourself. Learning new things, improving your skills, changing your habits for the better.

It's best to start these things ASAP, so that the improvement kicks in soon. But I used to find myself thinking, "Oh, I'll do it that way next time." Next time WHAT? In my next life? When I'm reincarnated?? (Something I personally don't believe in).

I do think of my life as divided into chapters. I guess it comes from moving around the country so much- you can easily leave your old life behind, and kind of reinvent yourself in the new place, as no-one knows you there- so it's a new life, effectively. I think my life can be divided into chapters- Childhood, Studenthood, Adulthood, Parenthood, Retireehood... So I guess my "next time" is in the next chapters of my life, established adulthood and parenthood. Although, now I realise I need to seize the moment and improve myself now.

Anyway, today I was thinking about needing to improve the way I do certain things, and I found myself thinking, "I'll do it soon", which felt exactly like I was saying "I'll do it next time", as though a new chapter in my life is starting (which it isn't)... but it kind of feels like it is.

Why? Because I'm about to switch to a new planner. These things I want to do, which should improve aspects of my life considerably, involve quite a degree of planning, and I can't plan these things in my current planner (it's just not a flexible enough system to plan them). Therefore, I feel as though when this new planner arrives in a few weeks, it will suddenly open up a whole new world of planning ability.

It's as though an entirely new planner system enables you to make such a distinct change in planning your life, which enables you organise and improve your life considerably, that it feels like getting a new planner starts a new chapter in your life. Because you know that this will be the start of your new, productive, well-organised daily life. All hail the new planner feeling.

Waffle about my A5 Fauxdori for hobbies and my Midori TN planner!

This blog post is dedicated to my friends over at the facebook Midori Traveler's Notebook Resources group!

I'm very happily using my Midori Traveler's Notebook as my planner! It contains a diary (calendar) of 12 months of WO2P and MO2P spliced, an Organisation insert for my 'Current' lists and other lists (to-dos etc), and my journal. Here's my January MTN video if you want more info on my set-up!

I'm still using my Filofaxes for some key things: my Egyptology research (A5 Ochre Malden) and my Art Journal (I'll switch between my A5 Aqua Malden and A5 Espresso Siena). I think I'll also use my Mulberry Agenda to store my important information in the A-Z dividers, and my compact Raspberry Chameleon as my craft/art inventory so when I go shopping I don't buy duplicates of what I already have!

However, I have Filofaxes that have purposes for my other hobbies, but since I've been working full-time, I don't have the free time to do all of these hobbies, and I've found that I haven't been using these Filofaxes. I feel a bit of regret that those Filofaxes are sitting on the shelf not being touched for weeks or months, or in some cases, completely empty, because although I know what I want to use them for, I haven't set them up yet after a year! The problem is that I don't have the time or energy to do all of these hobbies, such as researching Tudor history, or if I do find the time to do them, I don't have enough to put in these Filos (maybe a few pages of writing per week) to justify using a whole Filofax for each of them.

Also, another problem is that these Filofaxes are 'stored' on my shelf, and I don't carry them around the house with me. Over the past few weeks when I've been using my notebook (an A5 Oxford Signature notebook, just for random notes, lists, etc- see this video), I've noticed that I've been using it all the time because I've been carrying it around the house everywhere!! So I really need to use something for my hobbies that has everything in one cover, and that I can carry around the house everywhere! True, I could use a Filofax with different sections for each hobby, but you guys know how paranoid I am about damaging my Filos, and I really love the Midori TN format- so I'm going to use an A5 Fauxdori instead!

A Fauxdori is like a Midori TN, but not made by Midori- it's a 'fake' (in the good sense of the word), made by a crafter for sale (e.g. Ray Blake's 'Raydori', Monique, Tracy) or by yourself- there are some great tutorials on Youtube, for example this one by Ray.

I intend to set up an A5 Fauxdori for all of these hobby things etc. I want to buy a leather one eventually, but I can't decide which colour to choose, so I'm going to use some stiffened felt to make one in the meantime while I decide. I want it to be A5 because that's my ideal size; while I have a couple of Raydoris I could use instead, these are based on Midori standard size, and I really want the width of the A5 page. I haven't figured out the set-up yet, but I think I'm going to put in my A5 Oxford notebook, and make my own A5 thin notebooks out of A4 paper! I've already made some pocket inserts for it during my tutorial in this Youtube video:

I'll make a video, and possibly write a blog post, when I've finished setting it up!

Therefore this fauxdori is going to be my fun-dori! It will be for my hobbies, fun projects, sketching, etc etc. I will play with it and use it in the evenings and during the weekends after I've done my chores, to-dos, and finished getting prepared for work the next day (e.g. making my packed lunch).
   
But you may be asking, why can't I have this hobby stuff inside the Midori I also use as my planner?
Firstly, I will be writing so much in this fauxdori, I'd run through a 64 page insert in a couple of weeks (I write a lot), and also I wouldn't be able to hold any information in there for long-term! But mainly, I know I need to keep them separate.
My planner is great for keeping myself organised, and I love playing with it, using it, and just looking at its gorgeousness during the morning, while travelling to and from work on the bus and during my lunch break (when I subconsciously feel the need to be organised), but during the evening, when I'm trying to feel relaxed and do fun things, I don't actually like opening it that much! I realised that's because when I'm trying to relax, I subconsciously don't want to look at something that has a big list of Things I Must Do- for a while, I was annoyed and disappointed that I never looked at my Midori planner when I'm at home, but now I know why, I know it's ok as long as I've memorised my to-dos and get them done, and write down any more to-dos I think, I'm allowed to leave my Midori on my bed or desk to use the next morning, and just pick up my fauxdori and have fun and relax!

December update! Philofaxy Meet-up and Planners- Midori TN and Filofax!

Hi guys!! Long time no see!!

I've not posted for 3 months, I'm sorry about that!
In September I was busy looking for a job, and then in October I started a full-time job!! So for the past 2 months (although it feels longer), I've been working 40 hours a week and travelling 2 hours a day, then I've been very tired after work, so I haven't had the time or energy to blog!

Philofaxy meet-up!!

At the end of September I went to the Philofaxy meet-up in London! I won't write a full blog post about it, and I didn't take enough photos, but it was amazing!!!
It was lovely to meet the people I hadn't met before, especially Mella and Chrissie, who I shared a hotel room with, and also seeing others again, like Debbie (who we also shared a hotel room with) and of course Steve! The Friday was amazing, as we had lunch together, shared Gillios around the table (I didn't let myself touch any of them until I'd washed my hands after lunch!), then popped to the JP Books shop to look at Midori Traveler's Notebooks and other Japanese things before making our way to the station for our evening adventure! There we met all of the others, and we chatted until everyone got there and Steve bought tickets for our visit to Filofax HQ at Burgess Hill!!
    It was amazing there- the staff were brilliant and passionate about their products!! There was a table of vintage Filofaxes which were absolutely incredible to see in person (and I was trying to think of ways to smuggle them out...), and a presentation about the past, present and the future of the brand, and a Q and A session. Then we mingled, inspecting a wall of current-range Filofaxes, spoke to the staff, answering their questions and showing off our expertise!! Unfortunately we didn't get to see any of the new Filofaxes for next year, but we did see the options being considered for the patterns for the non-leather Filofaxes for the future!
    On Saturday, we went to a lovely French cafe for some amazing pastries and gorgeous hot chocolate drink (think melted chocolate!!) for breakfast, then made our way to the huge Paperchase on Tottenham Court Road! I was very good, and didn't buy much- but I could have moved in quite happily!! Then we made our way to Vapianos for lunch, where we got to see most people from the night before, and some others too, and had a nice session of sharing Filofaxes and eating Italian food!! Then we went shopping, including making our way back to Paperchase!! Unfortunately people had to start making their way back to train stations and airports, but it was an amazing weekend and I would love to do it again soon!!!

Planner update!

As you probably know, over the past year I've been chopping and changing between planners, and that's still been happening over the past few months!
    However, over the past couple of months I've been happily using my Midori Traveler's Notebook for my calendar diary/agenda/planner. (Video from October here) I love this thing for lots of reasons, but using it as my calendar diary (by which I mean my WO2P diary calendar, not a journal diary), I really love it because I prefer bound diaries rather than the loose-leaf diary pages in my Filofaxes because I wouldn't archive them properly and I'd lose them. Also because I'm not worried about taking my Midori out and about with me like I am with my Filofaxes, if it gets some scratches on it, it just adds to the character, and there's no rings to damage!

My Midori on my messy desk a couple of months ago

However, I'm going to be tweaking my system a bit over the next couple of weeks. I'm trying to perfect my planner system before 2014, so this is my challenge for December. And yes, I'll be going back to a Filofax again! BUT I'll also be using my Midori...
    Although I love my Midori TN, it doesn't work perfectly for everything for me. As my only planner, I have my WO2P calendar diary, organisation lists, and notes. However, I can't fit everything I need in it, and so I need to spread out into other planners. Also, I don't really like having so many serious things in my Midori- my diary with serious appointments, my organisation lists with serious to-dos, and my notes which aren't very fun either- all of these serious things, shouting at me to "Do this! Do that!" aren't fun, and are making me not want to open my Midori! And in the past, I've planned better and managed my life better when I use both an A5 Filofax for planning in conjunction with my Midori.
    So my plan is this: I'm going to continue using my Midori TN as my calendar diary, which I love, and I'm going to put my current organisation lists (which have been in a separate notebook, but I'll move them to save space) onto a monthly dashboard spread in here. My diary in here will be my everything- I will put all of my appointments, to-dos, plans and everything in here, I won't have one in my Filofax or anywhere else, because I don't want to get confused or forget an appointment. After this insert, I'll have the space for 2 more notebook inserts, which will be fun and creative sections- things that make me want to open and use my Midori! I think I'll have one notebook for creative writing- poetry and short stories, and I may have another creative notebook (I'd like to sketch or paint, but I'm not good at it), or more probably a notebook insert for random notes, ideas, lists and other things. My Midori will go everywhere with me, around the house, to work, shopping, etc etc!
    Then, I'll have my A5 Filofax, probably my Aqua Malden or Espresso Siena, switching between them! This will be my main planning place, having the things that won't fit in my Midori- it will have all of my planning lists (except my 'current' lists, e.g. shopping list, waiting for list, keep in mind list, etc etc, which will stay in my Midori), projects, goals, reference information, long-term notes, random lists etc. This is my brain, it will hold and organise my life- and the flexibility of a Filofax is perfect for this, which I can't achieve with a bound notebook or even my Midori, and the A5 size is ideal- and it will be a perfect companion to my Midori. They won't overlap, so I won't get confused. My Midori will hold things I need with me all of the time, and things I want with me too, whereas my Filofax will stay at home and hold things I don't need with me when I'm out. Every Sunday evening, I'll flick through my Filofax, and find things that I need to do that upcoming week, or things that I want to, or should, try to fit in that week; then I'll write it into the diary in my Midori!


So there's my update! I'll be setting up my Filofax and my Midori over the next couple of weeks, and I'll try to do a video on them soon! :)

Task Prioritisation System 1.0

Hi guys!

A quick post this evening to share something I came up with in my Filofax over the weekend. I've not 100% finished setting it up, but I wanted to show you it in its infancy!

Task Prioritisation System 1.0 
(It's only a coincidence that it matches my internet handle's initials 'TPS'!!)

Basically it's a system to prioritise tasks and keep them in perspective, for time management and organisation.
It's comprised of 8 sections (although you may need fewer), characterised by a) degree of importance and b) when it needs to be done, in which you 'file' your tasks:

• Now, Important/Urgent
• Now, Unimportant
• Ongoing, Important
• Ongoing, Unimportant
• Not now/Later, Important
• Not now/Later, Unimportant
• Other, Important
• Other, Unimportant

*The above order arranges the sections more by Time; you can also arrange the sections by Importance= 1) Important, Now; Important, Ongoing; Important, Later; Important, Other; Unimportant, Now; Unimportant, Ongoing; Unimportant, Later; Unimportant, Other.

Step 1-

Basically, you file all of your tasks under one of these sections, by deciding how important it is and when it needs to be started/be done!

    So for me, I take my several, scattered to-do lists, and re-organise my tasks in this way. I have a paper divider (no tab) for each section, then at the start of that section I have a to-do sheet with my lists of tasks under that section, and I cross off those taks when completed; some tasks have accompanying pages with notes/lists to break down/give more info, behind the to-do list inside that section.

    Here are some examples:

Find a job- Now, Important!!

Organise my bedroom- Ongoing (because it won't be done in one day), Important (because it needs doing!)

Decorate my Filofax- Later and Unimportant (although I WANT to do it, I don't NEED to, and I should do it when I have the time, not now. However, I can schedule it in my diary for when I have time soon, e.g. this evening/this weekend)

Things on my Someday/Maybe list- go into the Not now/Later, Unimportant section

Step 2-

Schedule these tasks into your diary/calendar/planner.

    For me, this means I can flick through the to-do lists in the sections described above, and schedule them into my weekly diary, according to how they are prioritised -->

    Because the point of these sections is prioritisation, this system helps you schedule your tasks more sensibly (I would schedule all of the 'fun' tasks first if I could!). By breaking tasks down by both importance and when they need to be done, you can see easily which tasks to schedule above others. Prioritise the Important ones and the Now ones, and try to do something towards the Ongoing tasks every week.

    So first I look at the Now, Important list, and try to schedule as many of those into my weekly pages as possible. However, some I know I don't have to do immediately, so I can look at those again when I know how much free time I have later in the week. Then I look at the Now, Unimportant list- even though the things on here aren't important, many them have deadlines, and I should try to do them this week anyway. Then I look at the Ongoing, Important tasks, and try to make progress with these ongoing projects, which may have many steps, and possibly a deadline which is further away. Then I look at the Not now/Later, Important list- although it isn't the time to do these tasks yet, it is important to keep them in perspective and in my mind. Then, if I have some spare time, I can try to schedule the Unimportant tasks.

    You can also break these lists down into your filo in other ways, e.g. this month's to-dos, this week's to-dos; even tasks to finish by the end of this year (e.g. for scheduling the not now/later tasks).

Pheww!! I hope you guys followed that!

I think this is a good system, and I'm proud of it, but personally I think it's a bit dry and boring. It's not fun like how I want my Filofax to be! So I'm going to try to make it a bit more fun! I think I might develop a colour-coding system with highlighters, and instead of having tasks on separate to-do lists, in separate sections, I will have them on one to-do list, prioritised using the highlighters, so all of my tasks are viewable in one glance, and are prettier because of the colours! 

Anyway, let me know what you think of the system :)

How I'm using my Midori Traveler's Notebook!!

Hi guys!

Today's post is all about my Midori Traveler's Notebook!

I love this thing! ... well, actually, it's 3 things- Maru, my first Midori, which I got when I swapped my personal orange Osterley with Sara, and is now being used as my journal; Mido, my second, which is currently on vacation (waiting until I move back into him), and my as yet unnamed 'Raydori', which isn't actually a Midori TN, but a Midori-esque leather notebook holder made for me by the amazing Ray Blake of My Life All in One Place!!

L-R: Maru, Mido, and my Raydori

In this video, I show you the set-up of my Midori for August 2013...

... before I change it all up again!!

As you can see in the video above, for the whole of August I've been using my Midori as my diary (agenda, not journal), ideas notebook, and other stuff like that. It's a pretty simple set-up, especially compared to the complex set-ups you can get in Filofaxes, where people can have dozens of sections! In a Midori, you can have 1, 2, 3, 4 or even 5 sections, made of notebook inserts, plus some plastic pocket inserts, so it's easy to keep the set-up simple. And I do love how free that makes you feel- no over-complication like a Filofax can achieve, with millions (ok, that's over-exaggeration!) of dividers, lists, sections, etc etc. I just love how rugged and handsome Midoris can be too!

So why am I changing my set-up?

Well, actually, I'm changing quite a bit in my planning system tools.
When I've tried to use my Midori as my planner, in August and earlier this year too, it works well to an extent, but I still can only achieve a medium degree of planning. My Midori set-up is simple; but really it's too simple, and so most of the time I actually need the ability to add pages, move pages, make new sections, take old sections out, which I have only been able to achieve with my Filofax. I have had my A5 Aqua Malden Filofax set-up (almost finished) as my in-depth planner alongside my Midori- my Midori has my WO2P diary and ideas notebook, and my Filofax has all proper planning, lists, projects etc- but unfortunately I haven't been using my Filofax properly. It seems that when I split my planning between my Midori and my Filofax, I ignore my Filofax because I love my Midori so much, and carry that around more! And because I'm ignoring my Filofax, I'm forgetting about all of the important things I've planned out in there :S
So I'm going to not be using my Midori as my planner any more (don't worry, it will have another purpose!). Instead, I'm going to be using my Filofax (A5 Aqua Malden), and a diary/agenda made from a notebook (as I need a bound diary, not a loose-leaf diary in my Filofax, because I'm rubbish at archiving Filofax diary pages!), alongside each other. These two will work together as perfect partners! I'll do a blog post when I've finished setting these up :)

What will I be using my Midori for?

I'm still going to be using my Midori every day! It's going to be more of a 'nice things journal' (It's hard to describe!)
I'm planning on using 3 notebooks in here because I find that's the perfect amount to fit in a Midori. I've decided to have:
     1) Hobbies/projects/goals journal- where I record what I've done in my hobbies etc
     2) Random nice lists notebook- maybe with some sketching and a bit of scrapbooking too
     3) Commonplace notebook- I already have this in my current Midori set-up
plus my credit card pocket insert and ziplock pocket insert.
Basically, this is going to be for nice things I want to keep and look at often. I'm not a daily journal person, but I like writing down nice things in list form (my preferred way of writing things, I have a very linear brain!) and looking back at them when I'm bored. I'm excited to use my Midori for this because it's a lovely notebook holder, and like I said, I'm rubbish at archiving, and if I did these on Filofax paper I'm sure I'd lose them! So I love that I can keep safe them in my Midori, and I can carry it around the house or pop in my handbag! I'll be using it everyday, writing in it, decorating it and reading it when I'm bored, and I love that it will be fun and pretty and self-reflective :)

I'll be making this up this weekend, and I'll do a blog post on it soon :D

Speak to you soonly!!

What's in my Filofax June 2013 :)

Today I made a video to show you 'What's in my Filofax' in June 2013 :)

It's a little bit different to my other 'What's in my filo' videos- in the past, these videos have been on my planner (day-to-day lists, diary, to-dos etc), but now I'm not using a Filofax as a planner; instead, I'm using my Midori Traveler's Notebook as my planner- see my new Midori video here! I am still using my filofaxes, but for different things, for example, my A5 Ochre Malden is my Egyptology research filo and my yellow Original A5 is my hieroglyphs and Egyptian language filo, but the Filofax I show in my video today is the only one I use on a daily basis- it's like my brain :)

This is my 'notebook' Filofax- but it's hard to explain, this filo is more than a 'notebook'. It does have a basic notebook section, but also specific sections for notes for projects; notes and lists for hobbies which I actively do throughout the week; and a 'storage' section for the lists and notes for lots of random things and hobbies which I don't need all the time. I'm also playing with keeping a DodoPad diary in here for planning out what I need to do in my projects and hobbies throughout the week!
I asked people on facebook what I could call it and some great suggestions included 'Genius Book', 'HQ' and 'Companion Book', but my favourite I think is 'Command Central', suggested by Lori, which is great because I can shorten it to CeeCee!!

Enjoy!! xx

Making my Midori Traveler's Notebook into a Quasi-Filofax!!

Hi!


Today I'm going to be showing you something special about my Midori Traveler's Notebook... How I'm turning it into a quasi-Filofax!!


I got my Midori 3 and a half weeks ago, and since then I've been happily turning it into my planner!

As you will probably know if you've seen my youtube videos, I used to use a personal sized Filofax as my planner. It consisted of 3 main sections: Diary, Organisation section (lists, lists, lists), and Reference (important information), and sometimes I had a notes section too.

Therefore, I knew that I had to have the same sections in my planner! It was fairly simple to set up, initially! I have 3 notebooks in my Midori- 1) Diary (WO2P), 2) Organisation notebook, and 3) My Notebook notebook! My Reference section will soon be transferred over to the back of my Organisation notebook!
If you haven't already, please see this post where I wrote about the set-up of my Midori :) - You don't have to watch the video, because the sound quality is poor!).

But I did struggle with some things... because my Midori isn't a Filofax!

I used a Filofax for almost 2 years, so it was difficult to transition to another system completely. For a while, I didn't transfer everything over, instead keeping my Osterley personal in Wine out with my old Filofax set-up, because it was my safety blanket! But soon I became more in love with the Midori, and less in love with the Filofax (faulty ring mechanisms made me bitter!), and I've put my Osterley back on the shelf, and started using my Midori for almost everything!!

But even though I fell in love with my Midori, I still found that I couldn't do some of the things in it that you can with ease inside Filofaxes, such as rearranging pages. That is an obvious thing to say, because the Midori doesn't have rings, but you don't realise it until you really miss the flexibility of it!!
Also, I watch a lot of filofax videos, and see a lot of pretty pictures on flickr, and I got really envious of how beautiful people's personal Filofaxes were! I'd all but abandoned my personal filos, trying to trade them for A5s (which I will use for my hobbies etc), but I still wanted to use a personal Filofax for something, purely because I wanted to have one that looked as pretty as other people's!!

But a couple of days ago, when I tried to set up a personal Filofax as a kind of project to-do list filo, to use in conjunction with my Midori, I felt absolutely no love for personal sized Filofaxes! There was no magic there!!
So I put that idea- and the Filofax- back on the shelf. However, I decided to try to integrate the functionality of a Filofax into my Midori! No, not add rings to my Midori- but a couple of much simpler hacks!


1) Making a Filofax paper notebook

In my hand-made Organisation Notebook, which I made myself!

This is an idea that I have had for a while- to be able to have pages that are easily removeable and repositionable, stick them into a notebook etc with washi tape!
It's really a simple idea! I already have tonnes of personal sized Filofax paper (literally, a whole boxful!!), and because I'm not using personal sized filos that much any more, I really need to use it for something! The paper size is perfect to fit on Midori-sized paper, too- no trimming necessary! And it's quite a brilliant idea, because I can put the pages into a personal sized filo to archive, and I can transfer already written-on pages from my personal sized filos and just stick them in! All you have to do is take some washi tape, and stick the pages down. You don't have to do the top and bottoms like I've done, you could just do the corners if you want. The pages are easily removeable because of the washi tape, and you can re-order the pages inside the notebook (although this does take longer and is more fiddly than rearranging pages in a Filofax!), or remove a used-up page, and replace it with a fresh one!
I love this idea. It means that theoretically I never have to buy another notebook for my organisation section, as I can just replenish the finished pages for my lists. If I had used a regular notebook, I would have gradually used up pages, had lots of finished lists (e.g. shopping lists) in with unfinished lists, things would have got out of order, and ongoing lists (such as my long-term to-do list) would be broken up with other lists in between the pages. It also means that my pages are prettier and more interesting- something that I found boring when I stopped using my Filofax, in which I used lots of different types of paper- different colours and different formats, lined, squared, etc- was that 'regular' notebooks are made of one coloured and one format paper! So now I can use whatever type of paper I like in my organisation notebook! And the washi tape is so pretty!!
The only trouble with this idea is that the washi tape sometimes lifts up, so you have to keep sticking it back down- but none of my pages have ever fallen out!

2) Making a Filofax-paper insert!

I love this one- I'm really proud of it!
It's quite simple to do! You need 2 personal flyleafs or dividers, a treasury tag (7cm or longer), and the Midori zip-lock insert.

Step 1- Take the 2 flyleafs with the hole sides in the middle, and Scotch tape them together at the top and bottom. (Scotch tape is better for this than normal sticky tape- but you could also use washi tape!). You need to leave a 2mm gap between the 2 flyleafs, so that they don't rub against each other.

Difficult to see in the photo!

Step 2- Put the treasury tag through the back flyleaf's 3rd and 4th holes, so that the string is at the back and the metal tags come to the front.

Step 3- Put your Filofax papers in between the flyleafs, and thread the treasury tag through the 3rd and 4th holes of the pages.

Step 4- Pull the metal tags through the holes of the front flyleaf- if you don't pull it through, the pages will slip around.

Step 5- Insert the back flyleaf into the flap of the zip-lock insert. This holds it in place inside your Midori!

I love my little invention- it means that I can keep my lists for my current projects and most important things at the front of my Midori, and therefore at the front of my mind! I can add, rearrange or remove pages as I need!!


So there you have it! That's how I'm turning my Midori Traveler's Notebook into a quasi-Filofax!!

If you have any questions, just ask!! :D

My Midori Traveler's Notebook: How I use it as my Planner!!

Hi!

Here's my video about my Midori Traveler's Notebook!

Unfortunately, the sound quality isn't good. I have to use my laptop's webcam now, because if I record a video on my phone or my camera, youtube says it will take over 140 minutes to load the video!! But the microphone is rubbish, so the sound quality is, too!!


Therefore, I've done a blog post write up, showing you my Midori in detail! Warning: Picture heavy post!

Here she is! Her name is Maru- she's named after my favourite youtube cat, who is so funny- just search on youtube for her! She loves jumping in boxes!!! :D The Midori comes from Japan, and so does Maru- and that's the simple reason why I've named my Traveler's Notebook Maru!!

She's my planner- diary, lists, and notebook! Not my journal or sketchbook, which a lot of other people use their Midoris for- I'm not good at either of those things!

 The leather on my Midori is different to normal Midoris. She is 2nd hand, and was quite scratched when I got her, so I treated the leather with brown shoe polish, so she is a bit darker and a lot shinier than normal Midoris, and feels a lot smoother, I imagine (I've never seen another Midori in person!).

It may not look like it in the photos, but she is becoming quite a fatty! She has 3 notebooks and 2 plastic pocket inserts, plus some other bits- she is quite full, although sometimes I feel like I could stuff more inside her!

What you can't see in this photo are the plastic pockets and all the bits that are stuffed inside!

The set-up of my Midori is almost a direct transfer of what was in my personal Filofax, which you may have seen in some of my earlier videos. So you may recognise some of what I have inside my Midori from my Filofaxes!

On the inside of the front cover I have a credit card pocket stuck to the top, and a corner pocket at the bottom. I haven't found a use for them yet, but they will be very useful!
Then I have the credit card pocket insert. I don't really like it- I find it very difficult to get things out of it. I have today's cat calendar page in the top, and the kitten M&S gift card my mum gave me (there's no money on it!)

On the other side of the front half of the credit card pocket, Steve's Philofaxy business card, and 2 sets of Rilakkuma A7 memo sheets with washi tape, which I use to make little memos on my diary pages!
Then something secret next- which you will find out about on Sunday!

Then the ziplock insert, although this is the non-zip side. It's got some scrap paper in it, a stick-on credit card pocket from Kristin (I haven't decided where it should go yet), some list sheets from K and Company, and my Oli clip :)

Then the other side of the zip-lock pocket insert, with a Leuchtturm pen loop attached with washi tape, the Midori TN flyer, and a couple of receipts.
I have a to-do sheet and a spare one from a lovely pad from Paperchase, fixed to the cover of my diary insert with a paperclip.

The first insert is my diary! I made my own diary out of a squared paper Midori notebook, because Midori don't make a WO2P diary for the standard size TN.

Then I have my Organisation notebook. It has the same lists that I had in the Organisation section in my Filofax- long-term to-dos, in progress, waiting for, on my mind, keep in mind, long-term projects/hobbies, short-term projects, wishlist, shopping list, etc.

I made this myself out of normal printer paper, but it was very uneven at the edges, and so I had to modify it- I lined the long edge of each page with washi tape! It hides the ugly rough edges, and looks so pretty!

I will show you what it looks like inside in my special post on Sunday!

Then I have my notebook, in which I write notes (duh!) and the odd poem I like!

Ozymandius by Percy Bysshe Shelley!

The back of my Midori- zip-lock insert on the left, with stickers in, and credit card insert on the right, with post-its and OHTO clips. I find the credit card pockets are difficult to use, so I carefully sliced the top of one of the pockets with my craft knife, which means it is attached on 2 sides and free on 2 sides, making it easy for me to put my post-its in! (But I don't know if they will fall out!)

On the back I have my pen loop, which currently doesn't have a pen in it.

I hope you like my Midori Traveler's Notebook!

On Sunday I'm going to be writing a special post about how I'm turning my Midori into a quasi-Filofax! So you will be able to see the things I've left out of my video and post today!

Personal Filofax musings, and a sneak peak of my Midori Traveler's Notebook!

Hi everyone!

This is just going to be a bit of a rambling post!

Over the past couple of weeks I have happily been using my Midori! I have nearly finished setting it up, so I will be showing it to you soon in a video! But here's the first photos of it, for you to have a quick peak!

I love it! It's amazing! The best thing about it is not to be scared of damaging it- both of scratching the leather, and of the rings breaking! I will do a proper review of it soon :)

But recently I've been feeling a bit of Filofax envy. I read Philofaxy's Web Finds and watch Filofax videos on youtube, and I love seeing other people's Filofaxes! Everyone is so creative, and have beautiful Filofaxes!
And although my Midori is brilliant and working so well for me, I do feel like I want to use a Filofax like all of theirs. I am using my A5 Filofaxes for my projects and hobbies, but I'm getting envious of people who use a Filofax as their actual planner, with their pretty diaries and list pages etc! Not because of any practical reason- not because Filofaxes are the perfect planner (which, with their faulty ring mechanisms problems, they aren't!), or because a Filofax would work better for me (the Midori is working great), but just because other people's Filofaxes are so beautiful!!
Most people use a personal sized Filofax, which was the size of Filofax I used for my daily planner- so therefore, when I see other people happily using their personal filofaxes, I miss mine! And other people have customised their filos so wonderfully, and you just can't customise a Midori Traveler's Notebook to that level! E.g. putting a to-do list in the middle of a WO2P layout, which I find difficult in my Midori, and using different coloured and different formatted (lined, squared etc) paper in your sections. And another thing, which is for a practical reason- Filofaxes (most leather ones, at least), lay flat, and their pages behave so well- while the pages in my Midori notebooks want to close on their own (although the leather cover itself lays flat!).

BUT, I know that this is just jealousy rearing its ugly head! I am finding ways to make my Midori easier to customise (mainly using washi tape!!); I have found a way to use different coloured paper in it (more on that soon!), and I'm hoping that the notebooks will learn to lay flat soon!

Overall, the Midori wins because... it has no rings!! Yes, I know, it's the one thing that prevents the Midori from being as customisable as the Filofax, BUT I'm so happy not to have to worry about the ring mechanism breaking, which was a constant concern when I was using my personal filofax on a daily basis! Every time I tried to use my filofax out of the house I couldn't put it in my bag for fear of it getting squashed and damaged, and at home I was worried because my dad has a tendency to not look where he's going to sit down, and sits on all sorts of things! If my Midori got sat on, I really don't think it would have any problems! And the worse thing that could happen to my Midori in my bag would be the leather getting scratched, which just gives it more character!
So if I were to draw up a pros and cons list, the Midori TN would win outright!!

But I still kind of want to use a personal filofax, maybe in tandem with my Midori! I don't really know how this would work... I use my purple A5 Malden for my projects and hobbies, and am transferring my to-dos and other lists over to my Midori... so I don't really know what sort of role my personal would have. I know that it definitely wouldn't leave the house! I think that I might use it as my Current Tasks filo- the place where I keep my 'next actions' for all my tasks and projects that are currently on my mind, as well as a brain dump... although I don't want my Purple A5 Malden (my projects filofax, among other sections) to become redundant!

Video: My New Planner!

Hi guys!

I've been trying for 2 days to film this video and upload it for you!

At first I used my phone camera, and when I tried to upload it to youtube, it said it would take 240 minutes to upload! So I cancelled the upload, and filmed it again, thinking this would fix the problem- nope! It said it would take around 220 minutes to upload, so I tried to put it through converters, save it in movie maker software to make the size smaller, etc etc... nothing worked. By the time I did all that, it was 4 hours later, and I could have uploaded the first video by then! So I just decided to upload the original to youtube, and 220 minutes later, youtube said it was finished! And when I went to check it... it had squished the video from 15 minutes in length to 4 minutes!!! So I had to delete the video :(
This morning I tried to fix the problem, but I couldn't, so I decided to film it AGAIN using my webcam. That went fine, and only took 23 minutes to upload, but the sound quality is rubbish because my microphone doesn't work very well, so I apologise for that!

I had wanted to publish this post with the video on Thursday, but now it's technically Saturday, so here, FINALLY, is the video of my new planner!!

Mini-update, and plannerness...

Hi guys!

I've been quiet the past couple of weeks- my life has been crazy busy. I'm volunteering at my local museum now, which is amazing; and also my brother is ill at the moment, after having a (scheduled) operation last Friday, but since then he had to go to A+E twice this week in mini-emergencies. It's been stressful and jam packed full of medical things (clinics, pharmacies, nurses) every day, but hopefully he's on the mend.

Anyway, I just wanted to write a quick note to say that at the moment my planner-use is in flux. I have a new planner which I haven't shown you yet. It's A5, it's leather... but it's not a Filofax! I have named her 'Dora'- you will understand when I tell you about her! I will show you her soon!
I'm still in the process of setting up my new planner and customising it, and I can't wait to do a video for you, hopefully ready for next Thursday's post (depending on how busy I am this week).

I'm also thinking about an improved way I can use my Plannerisms planner. At the start of this year I told you about how I was using it. It was working great, and taught me how to forward-plan, in particular for my projects, hobbies and goals. But recently I have been neglecting it, in particular forgetting to check it regularly. As a result (or maybe because I have been so busy with important life things this week), I have been neglecting my projects and goals! I realised I need to adjust how I use it, by using it to plan out my projects more precisely. I'll do a post on that as soon as I'm happy with it!


Good night!! 

Home is where the Filo is...

I have been taking my gorgeous A5 Amazona to university every day since I received it, and I am worried it is starting to show some signs of wear. It's just not designed to go inside my big, full back pack! Thankfully I have my red A5 Domino that will serve as my on-campus university planner while Amazona stays at home :) Now I just have to decide which inserts I should duplicate, and which ones I will transfer over each day...

My MA Dissertation planner and Microsoft OneNote :)

Hullo!!

Today I am going to detail my MA Dissertation planner :). I have waited for a few weeks since I set up my planner to write this, because I didn't know if it was 100% set up, but since I haven't changed it in the last few weeks I think it will work for me :). I'm also going t o talk about how I'm using Microsoft OneNote in conjunction with it to plan my MA Dissertation!

I'm not the best person at planning research projects. I can have all the best intentions, but when it comes down to it, I either have hundreds of pieces of paper floating about my room, or little snippets of information in my rather disorganised brain. I HAVE TO make an effort to be organised for the most important research project of my life so far, my Master's Dissertation! This is why I have set up my MA Dissertation planner!

It is in a beautiful raspberry A5 Finsbury filofax :) I spent a few weeks researching which would be the best Filofax for me. I knew it had to be A5, there was no way I could feasibly write so much in anything smaller. The Finsbury was on my short list, mainly because it had 30mm rings. It's pretty packed already, so I don't think 25mm rings would have done at all! My other possibilities were the A5 Chameleon, or the Malden, but I'm happy with the Finsbury (although it does have some damage to it, I'll talk about this in my review in a couple of weeks).

I haven't really used it that much in the last few weeks since setting it up. Therefore, it is a bit plain- it's not 'lived-in' yet. I'm sure as I use it almost daily from September onwards, it will acquire slips of paper and trinkets etc! So far, in the inner side of the cover, I only have some pink and blue Avery tabs. I'll try to fill the rest of the pockets in with lovely cute things :)
In the envelope on the inside I have a cute card from my mum, an index card with my Dissertation title on it, and my thesis-cat picture :)

The first tabbed section is 'Progress'. In here I write what I have done so far to keep track of my progress, any deadlines I have to meet, and agenda pages etc. I also have to-dos. I use some pink and purple plain card (A4 cut in half with Avery top-tabs) to divide this up. It adds a bit more colour to it :)
Then I have my 'Plan' section. I really like this section. I basically have 1 sheet of A5 paper per section of my Dissertation, giving a plan of what that section includes. I add another piece of paper as the plan for that section expands. I can move it around and add to it as necessary; this is why I like this section and prefer using a ringed planner to a bound one :) It's kind of like a computer on paper, as I can add and move things as I need!
Then I have a section called 'Lists'. This is basically a catch-all section where anything in list-form gets filed. It doesn't need to be too structured, as during the day I would think "where is the X list" I would know instantly it is in the list section! It doesn't need to be too structured because then it would get too complicated.  The main lists I have in here are lists of abbreviations of journals I need to remember, a reference list of primary evidence I am using, that sort of thing. I use the 'address' pages that came with the Filofax for this, because I definitely do not have enough addresses to ever need to use them! They are quite good for lists as they are divided into columns, and have that nice box at the top where you can label the whole list.
Then I have my 'Ideas' section. This is just a section where I write down any quick things I need to research etc. This isn't a proper section, I just need somewhere wherever I am to capture these ideas or else I'll forget them. I have a pocket notebook for this too when I am out and about. Ultimately this section will get typed up into my MA notes word document. I have to remember this is NOT the place to write notes for my dissertation- if I did that the Filofax would either be 2 feet thick (quite literally) or I would need about 20 filos! My computer is the place for proper notes. This filofax is a PLANNER. I PLAN things in it! I have got to keep reminding myself of that!!
My next section is 'Meetings', for the notes of my meetings with my dissertation supervisor. This is a good section, and one I need to keep available when I'm sitting down working, because my dissertation supervisor gives me really good ideas of things to look up and I need to keep referring back to it. I will take my Filofax to dissertation meetings, so it is good that I have access to these notes for reference purposes.
Then I have a 'Techniques' section, which is a list of techniques, methods I need to remember when I am researching and writing, e.g. "Lead with the evidence..."
Then I have the A-Z section. I use this as a glossary: summaries of articles and books I have read and am going to use; summaries of primary evidence and its importance. This is a really good section as if I have something in my mind that I am trying to remember, all I need to do is quickly refer to the right letter in the back of my Filo and it's there for me to read!

My filofax and Microsoft OneNote!
Last night I remembered I had OneNote on my computer and realised how useful it could be for using with my Filofaxes! This is because I can make the same tabs, sections and sub-sections on my computer as I can in my Filofax! I can even colour-code!
I have created a OneNote notebook to match my MA Dissertation planner! This is great because I am not going to be able to take my Filofax with me to uni every day. On an average day, I have up to 5 heavy books in my bag, and I really can't fit an A5 filofax in it, let alone 2 because I'm also going to have an A5 filo for other MA things! In February I bought a netbook in order to have all my documents with me and the ability to sit down and write some of my MA or other essays if I have a (rare) 5 minute break between lectures and meetings. This way, I have everything in a very small netbook instead of countless notebooks! And this includes my MA Dissertation planner, as a OneNote document instead of in my heavy Filofax! I will bring my filofax to uni on some days, specifically those days when I have dissertation meetings but not much else, or days when I'm spending the whole day in the library only doing MA research.

I would love to take my MA Dissertation planner to uni everyday, but I will have to settle for being able to see it sitting pretty on my shelf every day!

Mysterious planner!

I was digging through my notebooks at home (I have lots!!) and I discovered this planner I forgot about for a year and a half! It is a non-filofax ringed planner and I vaguely remember buying it from a car boot sale a couple of years ago and then going to WH Smith to find a diary insert for it. Looking through it is fascinating! It shows just how far my brain has come in organisation since then!
I couldn't remember what type of diary insert I had bought for it back in 2009, and now I look inside the planner I see it was a WH Smith brand week on two pages unlined academic insert. This is particularly interesting to see as it is the type of diary I definitely can't use now, it just doesn't work for me! I think maybe I just didn't have the kind of commitments then that I have had in the last year.
Looking through the diary I can see I used it to record important tasks and deadlines during my work experience in a museum during August, but I really didn't have much to do then so on average I only had 4 entries every week! Then it got a lot busier as I got ready to go back to university. During term-time I noted my lecture times and appointments; it's interesting to see how I laid this out in comparison to this year. I didn't write them in order, I didn't colour-code; there was no structure to it. I think the reason I could cope with this at that point was because my life was relatively un-complicated, and when I had an appointment I could remember it in my brain more easily and my planner was only a reference diary. Now, I have so much to do on certain days with shifts at work, appointments and meetings, lectures, and of course general to-dos and university homework, I just can't keep organised. I NEED a more structured and larger space in which to write in- hence I use a page-a-day insert now.
I stopped using my planner at the end of term 1, and the only entries I have from January onwards are forward planning events I probably wrote months before. I can't remember the precise reason I stopped using it; it was probably that I didn't NEED it so it just dropped out of my mind. And I can't remember what I used instead of this planner. I think I may have used the calendar on my old phone. Now, or at least during year 3 of uni, I had a MUCH busier life and needed a better planner. I am very glad I have had the day-to-a-page insert for the end of my university degree; however I will be changing this system as I have far fewer appointments during the summer, and then changing it again during my MA. I'll do a post on this soon.
For now, I'm just glad a found a new filofax-style binder I can use! I'll be writing reviews of all my planners soon so I'll do a nice review of this one soon :)