How to Organize in the New Year

Hey all! It’s a new year, and time for resolutions to begin as the holiday celebration comes to a close. But I’m not ending my celebration. On the contrary, I’m just beginning. On February 2, 2023, Future Goals, the fifth book in my standalone sports romance series, Locker Room Love, releases. To celebrate, I’ll be posting daily with inside peeks, giveaways, and informative articles on topics that somehow relate to subjects, plots, or characters in the book as well as my regular content.

Since January is typically when most people discuss goals and resolutions, I thought that would be an appropriate topic for today. However, several years ago, I stopped making New Year’s resolutions because like so many people, I would begin strong and fizzle out after a couple of months. I would take on too much too fast and become overwhelmed. So, I came up with a Plan B—monthly goals and planning.

I know; I know. It’s odd that I would say that seeing how I’m a devout pantser and procrastination is my bestie. But these are the reason why I brought deco planning into my life. Just because a person does not plan in a traditional manner does not mean his/her life is chaos.

Before I get into it, I need to make a disclaimer. This post is not sponsored, and no links listed are affiliated. If I name a product by brand, it’s because I truly enjoy the product, and I believe in sharing what I love.

First, I use a disc-bound system. Coils are cute, but I prefer discs because they allow me to rearrange, add, and remove pages as I see fit. Plus, I can easily, temporarily place needed pages in other planners if I need to change. For example, I work from two planners—a catchall/ everyday planner and my writing work planner. Sometimes, I need a change of scenery and I need to have information in my planners handy. Instead of lugging around both planners, I pop the pages from one into the other.

But in an age of digital technology, why-old school kill-a-tree plan? There are a couple of reasons why pen and paper are handy.

Power outages. During storms, I may need to conserve battery power to electronics for emergencies or only necessary communication.Lack of outlets. In conferences, sessions can draw out, and batteries die. However, there may not be a power source available to recharge.Cords and foot traffic conflict. I attended a conference where there were plenty of outlet lets. The only problem was that the outlets were on the wall opposite the seats. Since this was a lecture hall, the room was built on an incline. This meant stretching the power cord across the stairs where people were walking. I don’t know who designed that room, but that wasn’t the brightest idea. When the lights dimmed, that was a lawsuit waiting to happen.Outside. When the weather is nice, I enjoy working outdoors. One of my favorite outdoor spots is in the park. While the amphitheater there does have outlets, sometimes people are using them or the stages can’t be accessed. And unless I want to sit on the floor, I have to bring a folding chair and hold my laptop in my lap the entire time—which I suppose is why it’s called a laptop.Crashes. I’ve had multiple devices crash and the backup not be backed up. It truly sucks to have that happen. However, what sucks worse is to have no idea what was lost.Disturbing light. Sometimes the light from an electronic device in a dim room can be distracting. Jotting down notes with a penlight may not be as noticeable when watching a movie as a full-blown illuminated screen.Prohibited. Yes, some places are really antiques and do not allow electronics.Fun factor. Decorating planner pages can be entertaining and/or therapeutic and a creative outlet. For example, one could decorate with motivational quotes or inspiring images. I find looking at pretty pages makes having to read undesired tasks more tolerable than when they are sitting on a drab screen or boring, plain paper.Multitasking. I don’t know about you, but sometimes having multiple screens opened simultaneously or bobbing between them gets confusing. I’ve found myself getting mixed up and typing in the wrong documents. With a paper planner, I can have it open for reference while I work on an electronic document.Storage space. Can I say how annoying it is to be ready to save something only to receive an error message that in order to save I must delete something? I can honestly say I have found this usually to be a costly problem. Even when I delete half of the stored drive, the insufficient space errors crop up repeatedly until I give in and purchase a new device. And speaking of…Incompatibility. I’ve lost data/files to new devices because older software can’t be read or becomes corrupted when attempting to convert.Lost passwords. This happened to a friend who, to this day, has been unsuccessful in retrieving saved documents due to not being able to remember his password and all of his security answers. (Don’t ask me why he would write answers to his security questions that he can’t remember.)Locked out. This is similar to the previous one, but this is related to servers that do strange things. A coworker had her website hacked, and the server closed his account after being reported for service term violations. Despite the violations being caused by the hacker and the server acknowledging this, my coworker was never given access to her website again. She lost everything.Space. This really isn’t the case with my tablet, but sometimes toting my laptop is inconvenient, and a smaller planner is less of a hassle.Hot and cold—but mostly hot. I enjoy being mobile, and all is well when I’m traveling from point A to point B. It’s when I have to make a stop that things get dicey. The temps can really get up there, and it’s not ideal to leave a laptop in a hot trunk for hours.Surface. There are some surfaces that I don’t want to set my laptop on but do not mind plopping down my planner.Honorable Mention. I’m only adding this because one of my besties insisted. Now, I’m going to be completely honest and admit that I’ve never heard of this happening to anyone other than my bestie who is a catalyst for “stranger things.” In any case, he claims his computer got close to something magnetic, and what it was erased the memory. Hey, don’t shoot the reporter on this one.

As mentioned, I use a disc planner from Happy Planner. I prefer the vertical layout, but have an interest in the horizontal. I customize it by using stickers (many from indie shops), changing discs, hand lettering, using Zig Clean Color Dot markers, blackout pages, washi tape (mostly from Simply Gilded or The Washi Tape Shop), distressed ink, colored pens, specialty paper, extension packs, and more. All I can say is that it works for me.

How will you organize for 2023? Has this post changed your opinion about old-school planning? What did you think? What is your take on the subject? Do you agree or disagree? Did you find this information helpful or informative? Did you learn anything new, or did it change your opinion? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. Also, let me know if you would like me to cover more of these types of topics or dive deeper into this one. If you like this post, please click the like button and share it. Your feedback allows me to know the content that you want to read. If you’re not following me on Creole Bayou blog, what are you waiting for? There’s always room at the bayou.

Get ready. It’s almost time to hit the ice again. Future Goals Coming soon.

When a college hockey player needs the help of an attractive older attorney, he gets more than he bargained for when trying to sort out the troubles in his career. Falling in love was never part of either man’s plan, especially as Corrigan’s and Sacha’s lives should never have collided. Now they’re left questioning if they’re standing in the way of the other’s future goals, or if there’s room for redirection.

Preorder your copy at:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3RjPYb9

Other booksellers: https://bit.ly/3CI8d5W

Missed the first four books in my hockey romance series? No frets.

Out of the Penalty Box (book #1), where it is one minute in the box or a lifetime out, is available at http://amzn.to/2Bhnngw. It also can be ordered on iTunes, Nook, or Kobo. For more links on where to purchase or to read the blurb, please visit http://bit.ly/2i9SqpH.

Defending the Net (book #2) can be ordered at https://amzn.to/2N7fj8q or www.books2read.com/defending. Crossing the line could cost the game.

Ice Gladiators (book #3) is the third book in my Locker Room Love series. When the gloves come off, the games begin. Available at https://amzn.to/2TGFsyD or www.books2read.com/icegladiators.

Penalty Kill (Book #4) retakes the ice. Get a copy at https://amzn.to/3ex0N9p or https://amzn.to/3ex0N9p and let the pucker begin.

For more of my stories, shenanigans, giveaways, and more, check out my blog, Creole Bayou, www.genevivechambleeconnect.wordpress.com. New posts are made on Wednesdays, and everything is raw and unscathed. Climb on in a pirogue and join me on the bayou.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this post or any others, feel free to comment below or tweet me at @dolynesaidso. You also can follow me on Instagram at genevivechambleeauthor or search for me on Goodreads or Amazon Authors or BookBub or TikTok.

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Until next time, happy reading and much romance. Laissez le bon temps rouler.

Author Bio

Genevive Chamblee resides in the bayou country where sweet tea and SEC football reign supreme. She is known for being witty (or so she thinks), getting mushy watching pet adoption commercials, and preparing home-cooked Creole meals that are as spicy as her writing. Genevive specializes in spinning steamy, romantic tales with humorous flair, diverse characters, and quirky views of love and human behavior. She also is not afraid to delve into darker romances as well. Genevive believes in variety, equality, and representation of all and is willing to tackle difficult subjects that may be shunned in many romance novels.