Best Laid Plans

In today's episode, Sarah shares two listener submissions for Word of the Year (one from Australia and one from Scotland!) and then dive into some listener questions! Topics include: 1) Capture Overload 2) End-of-residency Planning - Lack of Motivation to Set Work Goals 3) Organization of weekly / monthly / quintile goals lists 4) Post-baby planning - how to divide the year? 5) Hobonichi setup tip...

In today's episode, Sarah shares how she used her 2023 planners and then unveils her 2023 planner stack!! Products Mentioned: Hobonichi Cousin Avec Hobonichi A6 Original Cloth & Paper Disc-Bound Half-Letter Hobonichi 5 Year Journal Ashley Shelly Monthly (Amanda's Favorites Collab) BLP NEWS: - Planning By Season (seasonal planning sessions) and Digital Detox 2.0 are open for registration! Visit the...

In today's episode, Sarah shares lessons learned from the Digital Detox program, thoughts on a word for the year (2024!), and discusses her upcoming Seasonal Planning sessions. For detailed information + registration for Digital Detox (Jan/Feb) and Planning by Season in 2024, make sure you are subscribed to her monthly newsletter: theshubox.com/newsletter -- all details will be released 12/1. Prio...

Today's planning adjacent topic is something we all have to contend with: meal planning! Meghan Splawn is an expert on this topic and she chats with Sarah about her peaceful meal planning ritual, ways to handle busy weeknights, favorite kitchen gadgets + more! Didn't I Just Feed You Amazon Shop Find more from Meghan and listen to Didn't I Just Feed You at http://didntijustfeedyou.com  Episode Spon...

Sarah opens by chatting about her experiences at BLP Live - it was an amazing weekend! Then, she goes through November Q&A - manny questions are centered around goal setting, as it's that time of year (yes, already!). Topics: 1- Abandoning certain goals around weight fitness - what to do? 2- Planning ahead of the current quintile 3- Goal-setting planner recommendations (brands mentioned: MakseLife...

There are certain things listeners (or just random people in Sarah's life) inquire about over and over again, and today she attempts to give all the answer! Find out her answers to things like: - What is the weird habit bar at the top of your planner page? - How can you use paper when things change so much? - Isn't it confusing using multiple planners? - How can use paper + still communicate with...

SHU here - hi everyone! Even though I almost never run 're-airs', I've had a really tough week (suffered some injuries, but on the mend) and decided to bring back one of my favorite and most popular episodes for this week. I hope you enjoy it! Episode Sponsors: Jenni Kayne: Find your forever pieces at jennikayne.com. Listeners get 15% off the first order by using code PLANS at checkout! PrepDish:...

Sarah brings a fresh new batch of 2024 planner review with this episode, all of which were suggested by listeners! All planners were purchased by Sarah; links are not affiliate. Please keep in touch and let her know what else you'd like to see reviewed as we approach the peak of planner-buying season! 1) Passionate Penny Pincher: Is it a planner, or a lifestyle? Sarah is pretty sure it's both and...

It's a planner-adjacent episode today! Sarah muses and discusses the inputs which shape our lives and give us things to react to -- some which comes from external sources, and many which come from within! She discusses the balance between proactivity and reactivity (including the acknowledgement that some reactivity is unavoidable!), the ways we get interrupted and interrupt ourselves, and how we...

In this episode, Sarah does some planner matchmaking and answers listeners' questions! Products mentioned: - Master-sized Leuchtturm - XL Moleskine - Nuuna weekly diary L - Simplified Dapper Desk + Simplified Daily - Stalogy notebooks - Ashley Shelly Daily Question topics: 1. When do you take your planner with you? How do you avoid disaster (ie, water bottle spills)? 2. When to conduct a monthly p...

Sarah was inspired by a question she received at a presentation she was giving to discuss the feeling of overwhelm, and how (at least sometimes!) planning can be helpful during those times, even when it can feel extraneous or like something we don't have time for. She also discusses what to do if the more elaborate planning systems (such as her Nested Goals Method) feel overwhelming at the start....

In this episode, Sarah reviews two new or updated planners: 1) Archer + Olive's Dated Wellness Planner 2) Cal Newport's Time-Block Planner V2.0 She also shares her current planner -- which is a bit full circle! She also shares information on Best Laid Plans Live - Planning 2024, since registration for this live event in South Florida closes October 3rd! Visit theshubox.com/courses for more details...

In today's episode, Sarah tackles 5 listener questions and provides two pieces of listener feedback! Question topics: 1) Planners to Track/Memory-Keep in Pregnancy 2) Daily planners without a timeline 3) Teaching kids to plan 4) Planner conferences (ie, Go Wild and others) 5) Concept of "syllabus" for your planning Feedback: 1) Help for the Passion Planner user a bit embarrassed by her planner (bu...

The teacher planning episode is here! This episode opens with clips and tips from veteran teachers who share their planning tips and favorite products. Then, Sarah speaks with Hannah Taylor, an online history teacher with a passion for helping students plan well, no matter what their educational environment (virtual, home, or in-person). Hannah discusses techniques and ideas for getting middle and...

In this planning adjacent episode timed especially for Labor Day, Sarah shares her favorite work tips, from strategizing to use vacation time well to creating an effective email strategy. Also: avoid bad pens at all cost :) Episode Sponsors: Jenni Kayne: Find your forever pieces at jennikayne.com. Listeners get 15% off the first order by using code PLANS at checkout! Green Chef: Clean eating with...

In today's episode, Sarah talks all about the Hobonichi 2024 release, including what she loves about these planners, changes for this year, and more. She then discusses several Hobonichi-inspired brands, including: Aura Estelle: https://www.auraestelle.com Wonderland 222: https://wonderland222.com Sterling Ink: https://sterling-ink.com She then discusses the next round of Best Laid Plans Academy,...

Sherri McConnell shares her patterns, techniques, and so much more at A Quilting Life -- and one of her passions is to help those who love quilting to find time to truly enjoy their hobby and craft! She chats with Sarah about her journey in crafting, the quilting planner she designed herself (!!)), and her suggestions for those looking to find more time to enjoy the things they love. Sherri is als...

In this episode, Sarah provides a guide to planning + thinking through Quintile 4! She touches on all aspects of planning this back-to-school season which can be jarring and a lot of moving parts for many! Consider listening to this with your notebook or laptop and pausing to start your own planning process. Note: If you are interested in more in-depth seasonal planning sessions with Sarah in the...

In this Q&A episode, Sarah provides her take on listener questions: Q1: Planning during challenging life phases Q2: Back to school planner recs for a pair of teen brothers Q3: Planner matchmaking for a WFH mother seeking a BIG planner to manage both work, home tasks + homeschooling Q4: Dangling tasks Q5: Planner recs for a listener who loves BUT is embarrassed by her planner! She also features sev...

Today's episode is a little bit of a departure from the regular format - Sarah shares an interview Lisa Woodruff did with her for the Organize 365 Back to School Blitz! She discusses some of her favorite basic tips for planning (quintiles, retreats, routines + more) and they delve into some planning basics for the back to school season - coming sooner than we think :) You can find Lisa (and sign u...

In part 1 of today's episode, Sarah presents 3 mini-reviews -- clearing out her to-be-reviewed stash! 1) Rad & Happy undated weekly planner 2) Passion Planner academic weekly + erasable pens 3) Performance Lab's Focus Planner (Australia) Visit the show notes on theshubox.com if you are interested in winning one of these planners - just leave a comment in the show notes! In part 2, Sarah discusses...

In today's episode, Sarah discusses the planning-adjacent topic of organizing and curating our spaces and stuff. She shares her history with organizing (being organized + clearing clutter has not always been a personal strength!) and prior influences, from Marie Kondo to Lisa Woodruff. Finally, she discusses her current challenges and plans to gradually work on further organizing and decluttering...

In this Q&A, Sarah answers questions about: 1) Becoming more comfortable with setting longer term (monthly, seasonal, yearly) goals Interested in setting your 2024 yearly goals with Sarah in FL? Visit: https://theshubox.com/courses 2) Paper sizes, weights, and pen types! (Paper Planner 101!) Reference: https://goldspot.com/blogs/magazine/notebook-sizes-compared-and-explained 3) Planner matchmaking...

In today's episode, Sarah interviews Stacy Mellem, a devoted Franklin-Covey user for over 30 years! Stacy shares how she's made the system work for her over the years, and why she believes planning is still important in retirement (or what she refers to as her "jubilacion" (the Spanish word for retirement, which really does sound better!). Franklin-Covey Planners: https://store.franklinplanner.com...

Sarah discusses her prior hesitancy around planners with rings and discs, and then delves into her current unexpected love for the Inkwell Press Disc Bound Planner with 2023-24 inserts, as well as the advantages that come with a planner where everything is movable! Products mentioned: Cover - hard cardboard or vegan leather Weekly inserts (vertical or horizontal layouts) - 140 lb paper, bright whi...