Product Review: myAgenda Day Planner

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Janet Barclay

Janet Barclay

A former professional organizer, I now eliminate stress for my clients by hosting, monitoring, and maintaining their WordPress sites so they don't have to worry about security, downtime or performance issues. When I'm away from my desk, I enjoy reading, photography, watching movies, and cooking.

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As I announced in Paper Planners: The Showdown, after much deliberation, I chose the myAgenda from momAgenda as my planner for 2010. If you’re still looking for a 2010 planner for yourself, a client, or someone else, be sure to read my review before making your decision.

Since my previous system was no longer working for me, I was eager to begin using my new planner, and because it covers the period from August 2009 to December 2010, I was able to start right away.

As shown in the above photo, the page is laid out in eight columns: one for each day and an additional one for notes that cover the entire week. The top half of each column is one section, and the lower half is divided into four. Recognizing that each user will want to use these in her own unique way, the designer has not labeled any of the sections.

For my purposes, the top section is for daytime tasks and activities. These are not usually assigned to a specific time, but when I do have scheduled appointments, I simply write the time next to it. There is ample space for me to leave room between my task areas, such as client projects, phone calls and emails, errands, and so on.

I use the next section for evening tasks and activities. Although they’re not usually done at set times either, there is no overlap between what I plan for the daytime and what I plan for the evening, so I like to put it in its own box.

In the remaining three blocks, I keep track of my blog topics, meals I’m preparing, and my exercise. I may decide to change this, but since I use pencil rather than pen, it won’t create any complications if I do. The paper is good quality and can tolerate erasing without tearing.

At the top of each weekly page are the dates for that week, a small calendar of both the current month and next month, and a motivational quote. This week’s quote is:

A baby is born with a need to be loved – and never outgrows it.

~Frank A. Clark

At the front of the planner, before the weekly pages, are monthly calendars which have ample space to write, small calendars on the side for the previous month and following five months, and another motivational quote.

After the weekly section, you’ll find an interesting assortment of supplementary pages, including:

  • An advance planning calendar for 2011, with one line per day (holidays already indicated)
  • A Books page: You could use it to make note of titles you’d like to read, but I’m using to keep track of those I’ve read – good as a memory jogger, but also to motivate me to read more. Since it’s in two columns, I’ve designated one as Fiction and the other Non-Fiction.
  • A Movies page: Again, although you could use it to list movies you’d like to see, I’m using it to keep track of those I’ve seen.

There are also a number of pages which I haven’t used yet:

  • Music
  • Fashion
  • Restaurants
  • Wines
  • Health / Nutrition Plan
  • Fitness / Exercise Plan
  • Expense Records
  • Entertaining Resources: Caterers, Wines/Beverages, Entertainment, Lodging, Florists, Invitations, Equipment Rentals, Taxi/Limo
  • Parties: Date, Time, Menu, Beverages, Guest Names with space to track RSVPs
  • Vacation Ideas
  • Vacation Planning: Dates, Place, Budget, Getting There, Lodging, Car Rental, Itinerary, Recommended Sights/Restaurants, What to Pack

Those are followed by a good supply of blank pages which could be used when other pages are filled, or for other topics not included in the planner. There’s also a pull-out booklet labeled “myEssentials” where you can write addresses, family members’ information, medical information, important phone numbers, birthdays and anniversaries. There’s also a page for listing your usernames and passwords for various websites, but I do not recommend you write this information on anything you will be carrying around with you. That’s just asking for trouble! I use Roboform for that purpose, so I don’t have to worry about that.

The myEssentials booklet also includes some useful information, such as the birthstones and flowers for each month, traditional anniversary gifts, zodiac symbols, and popular websites for health and fitness, nutrition, travel, food, and shopping.

If anything, myAgenda may be more planner than I require, but I don’t mind because I don’t carry it with me everywhere I go, and the design and layout of the weekly planner fit my needs perfectly. I had been hoping for a coilbound book, but was pleased to find that although myAgenda is hard-covered, it does lie flat so I can leave it open on my desk for reference throughout the workday.

The myAgenda planner is available with five different colored covers and in two sizes (5×7″ and 7×9″). All momAgenda products are on sale right now, with free shipping available in the continental USA, so there’s still time to get yours before 2010 rolls around.

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2 Comments

  1. Julie Bestry Julie Bestry on December 7, 2020 at 6:51 pm

    This post popped up in my Twitter feed today, and you know I can’t resister planner discussions! I couldn’t quite see the layout in the photo (old eyes) and the interior’s not shown on the momAgenda site. In a way, though, it sounds like a reverse version of the Planner Pad, with more fixed plans at the top and more brainstorm-y things below. Have you been using this planner since you originally wrote the post more than a decade ago? Or did you refresh it because you’ve come back to the MyAgenda again after a pause?

    • Janet Barclay on December 8, 2020 at 2:19 pm

      I really liked MyAgenda, but with the exchange rate plus shipping, it was a bit more than I was happy spending every year, what with time going so quickly and all.

      I updated the post a year or so ago as part of an overall refresh project. I’m guessing at the time I thought it would be a good one to tweet this time of year, because I don’t remember doing it recently!

      I have an on-again off-again relationship with paper planners. Right now I’m not using one at all.

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