This page may contain affiliate links. This means that if you click on a link and make a purchase then I will receive a small commission. You can see my full disclosure here.
The Erin Condren Monthly Planner is one of the most under utilized planners, in my opinion. It is perfect for all those hard to plan areas of your life with the flexibility of a notebook but the structure of a planner. So if you are looking for some ways to use the Erin Condren Monthly Planner, this post is for you.
More Ideas for Your Erin Condren Monthly Planner
Y’all, I just love the Erin Condren Monthly Planner! And I love finding new ways to use them. A few years ago I wrote this post about ways to use the Monthly Planners (then called the Deluxe Monthly Planners), and with the launch of the new 2022 version coming soon (I don’t even know the date yet, but it’ll be before July. I know that much.), I thought it was a good time to share a few more ideas on how to use the Erin Condren Monthly Planner that I’ve come up with (or done) since that last post.
Check out the original post: 10 Ways to Use an Erin Condren Monthly Planner
What is the Erin Condren Monthly Planner?
Just one of my favorite planners ever. Because it can be anything!
Basically, it’s a book with monthly dividers. Within each divider is a monthly calendar…
A dashboard style planning page…
And 8 notes pages. Oh, plus one more notes page before each divider- which could go for either the month before or the month after. Your choice.
So 10 lined notes pages in all. Plus the calendar. And the dashboard page thingie.
There’s a lot of flexibility within that space! I just love the idea of all the possibility that could be created within an Erin Condren Monthly Planner!
Another feature that I love about the Monthly Planners is the option to add extra notes pages in the back. I’ll talk more about how this can be useful in some of these ideas.
Ready to see more unique ideas for the Erin Condren Monthly Planner? Let’s go!
Using the Erin Condren Monthly Planner as a Pre-Planner
This one just speaks to my ADHD + perfectionist brain.
So many thoughts just. keep. coming. into my mind. Things I want to do. Things I have to do even though I don’t want to. Places I want to go, and what I want to buy when I get there. People who I should reach out to. That recipe that looked really good and I’ve been trying to remember to try it for 3 weeks now. And maybe if I tried yoga using a block then I wouldn’t lose my balance so I should totally go look that up on Amazon sometime when I remember but not right now because I’m doing this other thing.
Anyone else? Or just me?
My point being, try using a Monthly Planner as a catch all space where you can write down all the random stuff that pops into your head during the month. Stuff that needs to be done sometime, but maybe doesn’t have a specific time when it needs to be done yet.
And put in all the not so random stuff too. Appointments, projects you are working on, etc.
Don’t worry about it being pretty. This is like one big brain dump of a space. It’s just a great space for just getting it down on paper so all those notes and plans have a home.
Then you also might know where to find them again later too.
Bullet Journal
This might be a bit of a stretch when you Think about what bullet journals have become on Instagram and YouTube. It’s technically not the same as a bullet journal. For one, the pages are lined and not dot grid (but maybe someday there will be that option).
But it could be used in a similar way. And I’m not talking about a bullet journal in the sense of how many people use them now by drawing out their own monthly layout each week. I’m talking about the simplified version that Ryder Carroll originally came up with.
Your monthly calendar is already laid out for you. So no need to create that from scratch. But the pages within the month’s divider gives you ample room to make lists and plan out your day.
And this is where the extra notes pages in the back get interesting. Because you can use them for your “collections” & reference pages. And that just lets all your monthly pages be specifically for things going on that particular month.
P.S. Although the monthly pages are all lined, you can choose to have dot grid as the extra pages in the back.
Garden Planner
I know this one works because I’ve done it. And I am kind of loving it. (If you want to see more about it, you can watch this video here. I flip through it and explain how I’m using it.)
Basically I ignore that it is a one year planner with dates. The monthly calendar means nothing to me in this one. What I love is that there is a section for each month.
And within those months I can write all the notes about what I’m doing in my garden, what worked last year, what should be planted and when, and what I should expect in the future.
It’s a perfect reference to learn from what I’ve already done, so I can get even better results next year.
I’ve been averaging about one page a month. So at this rate this one planner should last me about 8 years.
And I’m using those pages in the back for this one too! On the first page I have a diagram that I drew of where all of our new fruit trees are planted. After that I’ve dedicated one (or sometimes two) pages to each type of produce that I want to grow. As I come across info and tips about that type of plant, I add it to the page. I love this reference for knowing how to care for all my favorites (including all those new trees we just bought and I have no ideas how we are going to keep them alive!).
Cleaning Schedule
This one has just been on my mind lately. I’ve been on a bit of a binge watching kick of people on YouTube who like to clean and have cleaning routines. (Like Secret Slob, Dana White, Cas at Clutterbug, FlyLady, CleanMama, and That Awkward Mom).
And because I’m a planner, the thought of having an organized cleaning routine, neatly arranged in it’s own planner with checklists and pretty stickers just makes me feel like I’ve already got my life together.
Is this overkill? Maybe for some. And maybe for others its just the kick we need to actually get up and do the dishes. Because of course we get a checkmark (or a smilie face sticker) at the end.
I mean, if people can have an entire planner dedicated to their budget just to make it more fun, then why not a cleaning planner too?
Celebrations Planner
If you are a person/family who likes to really get into all the things there are to celebrate, then the Erin Condren Monthly Planner would totally work as a celebrations planner.
The calendar can track all those special occasions, and then use the notes pages for all the details and plans for each holiday, party, and celebration.
And when you need more room (*ahem* Christmas), then having extra notes pages in the back would be so helpful to have all the space you need for the additional planning and details that go into those bigger celebrations.
What do you wish you had more planning room for?
Is there an area that even though you have and use a planner regularly, it still feels out of control and you don’t know where to write down #allthethings for it?
That is what an Erin Condren Monthly Planner can help you with.
And if you think that the full coiled version is too much, you could also try the Petite Monthly Planner. It’s much smaller, but with all the same flexibility. This is what I use for work and it’s just perfect for my needs. I have my calendar, and my notes space, so I have a place to write down all the work things that I need to track.
So let me know in the comments, what would you use an Erin Condren Monthly Planner for? Or just let me know your favorite person to watch clean on YouTube. I’m always down to watch other people clean.
