Post-It Calendar System

Let me introduce you to my newest system for keeping up with assignments (and other day-to-day life tasks, in general)! This is my Post-It Calendar System slash Command Center slash The “Hub” of our daily lives! I have always, always had a difficult time finding and sticking to a calendar system in my home because: 

     a. things always come up that need to be added/cancelled/changed/rearranged

     b. a regular monthly view isn’t helpful when you have to flip the page

I know that sounds crazy! Believe me, it’s not that I’m too lazy to flip a page on a calendar. It’s just that, psychologically, it’s just easy to put things off by saying, “oh, that’s not till next month," even when next week IS next month! For {literally} years, I have been trying to figure out a way that I can always see what is actually coming up in the next 4 weeks. And this is finally my solution! 

Every week, on Sunday afternoon, I write out a Post-It for the bottom week (which is 4 weeks away). Then I move all of the Post-It’s up and add the new ones. This way, I am always able to see what is coming up this week, next week, in two weeks, and in three weeks. Kind of like a “living calendar”! 

I have been using this consistently since May and it has worked absolutely flawlessly! 

If something comes up, like an unexpected get-together, school event, or due date, I just take down the old Post-It for that day and write a new one! If it’s something important that I need to remember or that will cause a huge disruption in my daily routine, I use a different color to make it stand out. I write tasks for each day with checkboxes beside them so that I can just check things off as I finish them! 

I also created a little space for those mundane tasks that need to be done from week to week like scheduling appointments, paying bills, or running errands. At the beginning of the week, I also write on the little Post-It tabs all of the things that I need to accomplish and stick them in the “This Week” box. 

Whenever I have some downtime, I choose one of these and try to get it done in 10 minutes or less (to keep me from getting distracted). I have these color-coded by the color-coding system that I’ve been using this semester (orange: health / pink: social / green: work / blue: school / purple: blog), but they don’t necessarily have to be color coded! That’s just a little OCD showing! 

Each day, I take the day’s Post-It and put it in the “Today” box! This is kind of my “flight plan” for the day! When I leave, I just stick it to the back of my phone and head out the door. If I have a lot of errands to run, sometimes I get confused/overwhelmed about where to go next, so I just flip my phone over and go by my checklist (please tell me I’m not the only one who gets confused as soon as I get in the car)! 

On the left side, I created a little “study assignment system” where I can keep up with all of my upcoming schoolwork! These little chevron squares and letter stickers are from Creative spaces and worked perfectly for making schoolwork seem like a happy thing! Everyday, I try to break my schoolwork down into three 30 minute tasks and I write each one on a Post-It tab. As I finish them, I just throw the Post-It away! Best. Feeling. Ever.

Next to the daily assignment blocks, I have my semester assignment cards. Before we sold our house, I used to hang these cards on the wall in my home office. This year, I just punched a hole in the top right corner and used a binder clip to hold them together. Each week, I take the week’s assignment(s) off the clip and stick them directly onto the bulletin board. This way I can take them off as I need to while working on my project!

This system has been so effective that even my HUSBAND writes things on the calendar.

Well, he wrote one thing on the calendar.

Once.

But still, that’s progress! :)



There are a ton of products out there that can be used to make something similar to this, but if you’re looking for these specifically, here is where I got them: 

• Bulletin/Chalk Board: Pottery Barn
• 2x2 Post-It’s: Target
• Black & White Pennant Banner: Creative Spaces
• Washi Tape: Target
• Post-It Page Flags: Target
• Chevron Squares: Creative Spaces
• Index Cards: Target
• Binder Clip: Target

Aren’t Post-It’s just the most amazing thing ever invented? Do you use a system similar to this? What routine do you have for keeping your assignments organized?