Why I Don't Use Planners

This is probably one of the biggest questions I get asked. So, why don't I use a planner? I know that I have talked about some of these reasons before, but let's dive a little more deeply into it. Before doing so, please understand that I am in no way minimizing or looking to say that planners are not useful for a whole lot of people, including my lovely wife. However, I just feel that they keep me from working the way I want and need to, keeping me from being the most successful version of myself.

You may be asking why something designed to be efficient could be inefficient for someone. That’s a great question, and not easily answered. As with most things related to productivity, there is nuance. I know everyone wants straightforward solutions, but generally those are as elusive as things that promise to be too good to be true. For example, even though I don't use a planner, I do plan extensively.

I use my Google Tasks heavily. I also use the Supernote ToDo function quite a bit. Throw Basecamp and JIRA into the mix and the complexity expands. However, I rarely map out all my tasks in one sitting or using one method. Sometimes, planning is just plain old messy.

When did messy become a naughty word by the way? We encourage children to play, get dirty, and learn through experience. It seems the older we get, or even just the more set in our fields, the more we try to structure everything. Alright, back to the topic at hand. What does messy, or perhaps iterative, planning look like and why does that not fit neatly with a traditional planner-based approach? Here are a few reasons:

• Too much at once – This is probably the biggest obstacle for me. I feel I'm pretty good about setting high-level tasks in the morning but planning the minutia of my day has never been my strong suit. I am constantly iterating and adding to the list. Also, although still a small thing, I am not totally comfortable with all of my notes and tasks in one large PDF file. It's just the redundancy nerd in me.
• Digital Connection – Next, the complete lack of a physical planner to be digital without a ridiculous amount of duplication is a deal breaker to me. Once you go digital, you can mitigate a lot of this. My Daily Organizer (MDO) and the Get it Done Now! planners both allow you to sync across devices and see your goals in a digital format. However, it is still a very paper like experience, and reinforces linear thinking. This also applies to any hyperlinked PDF planners, although these are my personal favorites.
• Lack of flexibility – While this may seem the same as the first point, it isn't for me. Digital planners allow addition and re-ordering of items, but not as easily as something like Google Tasks or ToDo items in Supernote. Also, specific to the Supernote, is the ability to create a ToDo directly from a specific Note or page within a note (complete with back link). This just creates a different type of workflow.

Granted, these are just three reasons I struggle with planners in general. The most important point is surrounding how you organize your flow. My work, personal, contracting, and hobby lives are chaotic. I do the best I can to control, or at least manage it all. For me, tools such as Google and the Supernote calendar, ToDo's, links, and notes provide the best solution. I very much understand that this is not a solution for everyone. However, imagine the power when you allow adding tasks in real time, or better yet keep the entire context around a specific note, page, or notebook. In my view, that is organizational gold. To help illustrate (unfortunately rather poorly due to my lack of artistic talent), I used Atelier to create a limited visual representation of my workflow:

I know this is not a very appealing graphic, but hopefully it reinforces the point. I was able to create it in Atelier and the connections, although not all present by any means, illustrate the way my mind works. For me, all my connections need to be in flux. This doesn't mean that I can’t focus. I can and do focus a lot or else I would never get anything accomplished. However, if I need to pivot or add in something new, I want to be able to place it properly and not have to go into a revision loop.

Let's come full circle here.

What I am not saying:

• People who use planners are inflexible.
• Using planners leads to just list-making.
• Planners stunt creativity.

In fact, planners promote:

• Focus
•  Linear and thoughtful project and task management
• Granular process control

What I am saying:

• Planners are not for everyone
• Linear thinking does not fit everyone (or really every use case)
• Flexible and agile systems can help provide context

For me, the combination of my Supernote with Google Calendar and Tasks allows me both structure and creativity. Let me know what you think in the comments. When are you at your most productive?

Until next time, keep moving forward.

If you are interested in my process, please check out my Patreon page for behind the scenes images.