Moleskine Hack for Moms

After searching high and low for a planner that would fit my needs, I finally took the matter into my own hands.  I had heard about Moleskine notebooks in the past but did not come to appreciate the subculture of moleskine fans until last week.  In fact, when it dawned on me that the Moleskine weekly planners were sold out EVERYWHERE, I couldn’t help but wonder what the “magic” behind the Moleskine notebook was all about.

So I began to research to see what other moleskine hacks were out there on the interwebs and drew inspiration from AK’s Research Blog and the Freelance Switch blog about Moleskine tips and tricks.  However, there were a few things that I needed to manage in my life that weren’t addressed, especially in the motherhood and inspiration department.

So here, I share with you…my Moleskine hack for Moms.  While expect that my needs won’t necessarily match up with every other mom’s it is my hope that this might inspire others to come up with a Moleskine hack of their own.

First, I started with a large Moleskine Squared Notebook
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Then, I mapped out on a large piece of paper the components of the hack I wanted to include.

Next, I gathered the materials I would need to complete the Moleskine: post-it tabs, scotch tape, and a pen.
Starting from the front of the Moleskine, I printed a copy of a 2009 calendar from TimeandDate.com and then reduced it in size so that I could use the scotch tape to affix the calendar to the inside cover.

On the very squared (just like graph paper) page, I wrote the words MISSION STATEMENTS at the top then did a brain dump of personal and professional mission statements. The idea behind this is that they can change, grow, and expand so I made sure to leave a couple of pages blank behind this first page to facilitate this.

Following those pages, I created a page titled IMPORTANT CONTACTS. This will include cell numbers for my family members, doctors, preschool, etc.

Next, I allocated a two-page spread for each month, following the guidelines in AK’s Research blog. Each day measured by 6×6 square with a wide margin in the side.

However, I divided the margin on the left into spaces for each of my current projects/clients and called that area “WINS” so that I have a record of accomplishments/goals achieved/success with easy access. I recommend you do this too as its a great way to get perspective when you’re having an “off” day.

On the calendar I put all of my appointments, travel dates, online/offline events, etc.
One of my major challenges on the personal side of my life is consistently cleaning the house. So in the very first row of squares I assigned a different chore to each day to keep me on track. It’s front and center. The seven household tasks I assigned are Bathrooms, Floors, Surfaces, Toys, Bedrooms, Dusting, and Kitchen. Obviously there are certain tasks that need to be done daily but I’m hoping that by following this method to do a super-clean of those areas on the given days, the day to day tasks won’t seem so daunting.

After the 12 months of calendars. I dedicated half of the pages that were remaining to my task list. I add the tasks as I think of them and then check them off as they are completed. I use one orange post-it note tab to mark the first page with an unfinished task still outstanding and a second orange post-it note tab to mark the most recent tasks added. As I move through the tasks, these post-it note tabs will move as well.

Finally, I designated the remaining pages to brainstorming, ideas, mind-mapping, notes from meetings, etc. The blue post-it note tab marks the most recent page used.

There’s a back pocket folder in the Moleskine notebook as well. I will use this to keep business cards handy, you can see my personal business card as well as the Ford Flex cards I have to hand out there. I will also use this as a repository for business cards I collect at conferences and events as well.

So as you can see, I’ve already been using my Moleskine a lot in the last four days since I created it. I think it’s pretty safe to say that I have written in this book more than any planner I’ve ever owned and captured more information and thoughts than any PDA.

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