My planning stack for 2025!

The new year is right around the corner, and I’m getting excited for a fresh start in January! It’s been a weird second half of this year with our transition away from homeschooling, and I just haven’t felt like myself. (With the exception of Thanksgiving break, when everyone was home and things felt normal again! And then everyone went back to school. 😅)

In any case, I’m ready for a serious refresh as the new year begins.

I just love this time of year – using the quiet of the early morning hours + the lights on the Christmas tree to think about the functionality and feel of the past year, and how the next year might look different.

One thing I’m doing, as I look ahead to 2025, is lining up the planning tools I’m going to use! I’ve finally finalized the list, so today I’m here to share my planning stack with you!

1 // The S.O.S. Planner

I’m sure this comes as no surprise to you, but I’ve got my S.O.S. Planner on deck for 2025! I’ve printed out all the months for the next year (I wait to print the weeklies till the month arrives – in case I want to switch out a layout for something else), and made some changes that I think will really help me out as I’m juggling so much more on the schedule now.

You know the S.O.S. Planner comes with a LOT of options, but here’s what I am including this year:

• YEARLY PLANNING // Can’t wait to work through this with you guys during our Plan Your Year LIVE Event!! This is where I really hone in on my focus for the year, and set good goals.
• GOAL SETTING // I’ve included some pages from our Goal-Setting Planning Pack here, for a little more in-depth mapping out of my goals.
• QUARTERLY + MONTHLY PREP WORK // I work through these alongside our members in our Planning Sessions, since they give me a much clearer plan for each quarter and month! I can’t go without these.
• WEEKLY LAYOUTS // Right now I’m using the Weekly Time Block Layout, with the three sections divided by topic instead of time: Schedule, Home Tasks, + Work Tasks! This is working great for me!

I’ve created a dual planner this year – the front for my regular daily life, and the back for my business planning + task lists. For this reason I’m also using…

2 // The Business Planning Pack

I’ve got quite a few pages from the Business Planning Pack + all of our One-Year Calendars in the back of my planner! Instead of planning by the month, like I do in the front of the planner, in this section I’m planning by topic. I have dividers that say things like:

• CALENDARS // This is where the overarching calendar of the entire year goes, so I can plan out our sales, our launches, and any big events.
• STATS // Here I can keep track of all the numbers I need to know about on a regular basis!
• CONTENT // The one-page calendars go here, and this is where I’m mapping out all of the blog posts and emails that go out to you guys!
• LISTS // This last section is where I’ve collected some master task list for different topics – Admin, Anchored Life Club, and Content Planning. That way, when I’m in a time block that has to do with one of those topics, I can just head to the task list and know exactly what to do next!

3 // The Bullet Journal

While I love and use my planner on a daily basis, sometimes I just need a blank page to get all my thoughts out and organized in a different way. That’s why I always pair my planner with one of these Paperage Journals!

I carry this journal in my purse, so I can always have a place to write if the need arises. Sometimes I map out my day in detail, other times I use it to write out our grocery list, or someone’s address that I need to remember. Could I do this on my phone? Absolutely, but I’m a paper and pen kinda girl – when my brain is full, I need to physically write it out!!

These, in my opinion, are the superior notebook. Why?

• They are the perfect size. I like that they are a little wider than a Moleskine.
• They truly lay flat. Enough said.
• They have a strap, which allows it to easily stay closed in my purse AND serves as a pen holder.
• The paper is smooth and beautiful to write on, with ANY pen.
• Plus, very little, if any bleed – unless you’re using a sharpie or a dark marker. I get no bleed at all with light Mildliners or my favorite pens!

4 // The Plan Your Year Live Event

Like I mentioned above, this event is crucial for me in setting aside time to do the reflection and planning work that helps me prep for 2025. I lead this planning session, yes, but since it’s a working call, I also do the work right alongside you!

This planning session really kickstarts the new year planning for me, and helps me hone in on a focus for the year ahead. This year, I already can tell that my focus is going to be different than it’s been in the past, and I’m looking forward to uncovering it a bit more during this call!

(You can still grab your ticket to this year’s event if you haven’t already! It’s happening on Saturday, December 14th! Get all the details here >>>)

5 // My trusty pens + highlighters!

I really do count these as planning resources, because they carry a heavy load all year long! I use different pens for different types of planning, color code EVERYTHING with my highlighters, and have a special bag for all my writing supplies that stays with my planner – so my teenager doesn’t steal them. 🤣 Here’s what I’m using this year:

• Pilot G2 Pens – I like the white ones with black ink. They feel different to me than their other G2 pens, and I like the way they write best! These are gel pens.
• Pilot Acroball Pens – These are perfect for thinner pages where bleed is likely. They are ball-point pens that don’t bleed, and I love them. I’ve also converted everyone in my family to these pens, which is why I have to hide my own personal stash.
• Zebra Mildliners – These highlighters are the best, and you cannot convince me otherwise. They come in SO many colors, and are mild enough that they really don’t bleed (unless you choose a very dark color). These are safe enough to use in my BIBLE, which says a lot!!
• Dot Markers – I mainly use these in my Bullet Journal, to make checklists or bullet points. They are a bit of a splurge, but really fun to use!
• This pen bag – I got it for my daughter for the school year, and loved it so much I immediately ordered one of my own! It’s really functional without being cumbersome. And it comes in pretty colors!

And there you have it! My stack looks like just a planner, a journal, and a pen bag, but the contents AND the prep work (done at the Plan Your Year Live Event!) make it so valuable to me.

Are you thinking about planning the new year yet? What tools are you using? Share with us in the comments below! ⬇️