Using Planners

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I've tried using planners in the past, and it has never worked out well for me. Yet, the idea does seem to offer one way to overcome some of my problems with executive dysfunction. So I've been thinking about what seems to work for me, and what doesn't, and why. As a result, I have some observations, and some questions for the rest of you.

My greatest problem seems to be with the standard, pre-printed day planners. The design is never well adapted to how I want to use it. This seems to be a general issue with me; I encounter what I call 'friction' when trying to use almost any type of pre-printed form, or computer programs which require entering information in pre-determined ways. Is this mental resistance to 'friction' a common problem with AS?

I have, over the years, designed my own forms to help me in planning and tracking certain things in my life. These have always worked much better for me, as I could come up with something which was exactly suited to the purpose I wanted it for. I included built-in reminders of the specific points I wanted to keep track of, and laid everything out to accommodate the uses I intended to put the form to. Has anyone else tried this, and had similar results?

There were still drawbacks to the second approach, though. It gets expensive, printing out your own planner pages sheet by sheet on a personal printer. And it gets time consuming with the need to punch each few sheets by hand, trim the paper (since planner pages are seldom a standard paper size), and so on. Even worse, I'd either run out of paper, or my ink cartridge would run out, or I'd simply be off the computer when I needed a new planner page. Something would come along to interrupt my use of even the best designed system, and derail my efforts to make it a habit.

I'm wondering if anyone else has had these problems, and has found a service that doesn't cost a great deal - I'm legally blind as well as on the autistic spectrum, so I've never had much hope of being one of the successful ones, and money is a real issue for me - and that will print custom runs of planner pages. I'd welcome any comments on how well it worked out, and any tips you have to offer.

If no such service exists, I would think someone could make at least a modest profit setting one up. After all, there are many reasons why various individuals might find planner pages customised to their specific needs useful. Of course, that doesn't mean it will ever happen... But I am interested in anyone else's thoughts on all this.

Edited to add: Many times, when I've needed to design a new form, I've found examples of other forms helpful, even if I wound up needing to modify nearly every element. If many of us do have similar issues, I'm wondering if it would be useful to share examples of what we've come up with; even forms for completely different purposes can sometimes be adapted to a seemingly unrelated use. If so, does anyone have any idea how we could go about sharing our examples?

Planners are too linear for me. I don't seem to parse time in a way that fits with the organizational structure imposed by a planner. I've thought of trying to write software that is more in keeping with the way I think, but I've never had the time or resources. It would be based on graph theory with weighted connections between nodes, the weight being the relevance two nodes share with each other. It would have a crawler that automatically traversed the nodes and updated the weights of connections based on changes in edited nodes. To reduce computational complexity, the weight between nodes would have to quickly diminish to zero or the crawler would never be able to keep the thing updated.

Meh.

I definitely have issues with executive dysfunction, but (much to my usual denial) I also appear to have a problem with my short-term memory. If I don't write things down in a book, then I will not remember (like going to work, or due dates for projects....) I am still completely disorganized anyway though.

That is one of the reasons I can't use standard planner pages; I can't work with anything that linear, either. I don't use a system as complex as the one you're thinking of but I've designed pages that are more flexible overviews of what I want to accomplish in the next little while rather than linear schedules. I know that isn't the way NTs work, but if I don't learn to work with my mind, I'll just run into trouble. I've spent fifty years proving that.

I have yet to find a solution to this problem myself. I have similar issues with traditional planners. I'll try to use them for a while, but they just aren't intuitive to me. Part of it is that I need a big picture view, so I tried using those big desk calendars. But those are pretty restrictive as well. I've even tried using online planners like rememberthemilk.com. Still not intuitive. I don't really know what would be intuitive though. I wish I could figure that out.

I also have a very hard time with planners. I can't write my schedual down in a prewritten planner. I find that just a regular notebook helps me with that.

I gave up on planners long ago. I usually buy a regular spiral bound notebook, and use that. Each day I write the date in the top, and then write down what I need to accomplish beneath the date. Then I prioritize things very simply; A must be done today. B can wait until tomorrow. C can be put off indefinitely. This is very efficient for me. I also use the reminder alarm on my cell phone to remind me to take pills, run errands, schedule and keep appointments, etc.

I always found planners to oriented to life styles that I was not following. And there was always too little room on the pages to write. As a writer, sometimes I want to jot down an idea as soon as I think of it, and you can't do that in a planner. I also type up a list of medications and supplements that I take on a daily basis, and print one out for the week with a grid to check off as I go. I hang this on the refrigerator where I can't miss it.

My short-term memory and executive functioning are pretty fried, so I find myself using my iPod's calendar (and other apps) a lot. Not great, but better than nothing. I think a paper planner would drive me nuts pretty quickly.

I've heard of software specifically designed to assist people with executive dysfunction (though I wonder if it would also be helpful to people with atypical-but-not-dysfunctional brains). Apparently it allows for dynamic re-scheduling and such, though I'm not sure if that's what people mean by needing something less linear. It's called "PEAT," BTW:

http://www.brainaid.com/products/products.html

Unfortunately, the price was $3000 the last time I checked.

I tend to set alarms for myself for things I need to remember. When I expand the view on my phone, I can see everything by day, week, or month. And then, since tha isn't enough for me, I make my own calendars from notebook paper and set my own parameters for those. It's certainly cheaper than buying planner sheets and it works for me.

By since my biggest problem with planners is remembering that I have one, my alarms are the most effective part.

I just use Astrid on my phone.

My planner:

do dishes
lunch
hang out washing
bring in washing
read
draw
feed cats
make dinner

etc.

I can pretty much write whatever I want in. You can choose to set alarms but I can now remember to just constantly check my phone and cross off items as I complete them.

I love the alarm feature on my phone. I would be totally lost without it!

I have the same problems of fitting into the evenly-spaced linearity mentioned in posts above, but have used a planner for many years and find it very useful, although I ignore the layout to an extent.

I find that a one month to one spread (i.e. the current month across two open sides) is enough space for my current needs. I used to have a busier schedule and needed one week to one spread. I use symbols to place the time, like an "S" in a circle is an appointment for me, and "M" is for one of my family, etc. So I might write "S 10:15" in the correct location, but then any additional comment will continue for as much space as I need, over other days if necessary. I leave a space within any day I write over in case I need to place another appointment, and link the new comment with a straight line.

I also use a 6x4 inch card-file box with all my phone numbers. If I have an untimed task (like call the plumber), then I turn the contact details card on end so that it sticks up, and I can't shut the box until I have done the task. I keep things like music class times on the music tutor contact card, which is useful when the class times change, and rewrite the card when there is no more space.

I place some appointments (like doctor or dentist check-ups) in the same box under the month they fall in, so I can see all this month's recurring appointments at a glance.

I am using my mobile phone camera a lot more - I photograph things I need to deal with, which also leaves a dated record in the phone album. Sometimes I photograph things like the TV guide, to remember to watch or record a programme. A quick snap is so much simpler than writing or typing the details.

I'm being forced to use some sort of paper planner system for everyday life now (I can barely remember if I turn off an oven for more than a hour now or if I have to meet with someone unless they're someone who has made a special trip to see me like my college-age friend), and so I can echo the frustration of trying to find a planner that suits my needs.

For work and stuff that has a concrete deadline, I tend to make my own planners using Sticky Notes in Windows 7. I'd be failing without it, I'm pretty sure.