5 Reasons to Love Cultivate What Matters' Monthly Planner

As the resident monthly planner hype girl on Team Cultivate, I'm thrilled for today's blog post! Our first-ever standalone monthly planner was a popular release late last year, and we're thrilled to debut an academic version (August 2023—July 2024) TODAY!

If you've never used a monthly planner, are considering switching to a monthly planner, or are simply curious about what this slim and splendid planning tool has to offer, read on for five reasons you might love using a monthly planner—and, more specifically, why you might love Cultivate's monthly planner! ;)

1. The planning options are endless with a monthly planner.

For years, I've used the monthly calendar spreads in my One-Year PowerSheets® to keep track of appointments and events. (Lately, I've paired it with sketching out my days and to-dos in more detail one week at a time with the Intentional Weekly Planner Notepad, which has been a fantastic development.) Rather than having to flip back and forth in a daily planner or weekly planner to orient myself in the month, I LOVE seeing the big-picture of my month in one central place with my monthly calendar spreads. Because I can see the whole month at a glance, I credit using a monthly planner with helping me and my family avoid overwhelm and keep margin in our schedule, something that really matters to us.

But of course, tracking appointments and events with a monthly planner is truly just the tip of the iceberg—the options of how to use one are practically endless! We've heard from Cultivators who use their monthly planners in so many ways:

• Meal planning
• Workout planning and tracking
• Staying on top of a Bible reading plan
• As a family memory journal
• As a gratitude journal
• As a first planner for an elementary, middle, or high school student

No matter how you use your monthly planner, you'll find the generous, open white squares of each month beg for you to make them your own. 

2. It's a tool that does one job and does it well.

With a growing number of tools in the Cultivate catalog, it's possible to find a do-it-all option: for example, One-Year PowerSheets combine our proven goal-setting process with monthly calendar spreads, and 90-Day PowerSheets combine goal planning with weekly planning spreads. 

But if you're looking for a simple and streamlined tool that allows you to focus on just the job you're asking it to do—whether that's meal planning or remembering appointments—the Monthly Planner is for you. Though we love an all-in-one option, sometimes it's helpful to have designated tools for different purposes.

And bonus: because the Monthly Planner does just one job, it is a slim, lightweight, perfectly-portable beauty, easily tucked into any bag without causing your shoulder to droop. Though we adore the Season by Season™ planner, we can't say the same about her ;)

3. Cultivate's Monthly Planner is beautiful.

With a gorgeous floral pattern and gold foil details winking out from the cover, you'll be thrilled to carry your Monthly Planner anywhere your year takes you. Each spread is thoughtfully designed with all the features you need and none you don't. The encouraging phrases, full-color pages, and floral touches sprinkled throughout add a dose of delight.

You'll also love that your Monthly Planner lies perfectly flat when open: the saddle-stitch binding means you can write on every page with ease. Left-handed gals, rejoice!

4. It will encourage you to make room for joy.

Speaking of delightful: one of my favorite features of Cultivate's Monthly Planner is the five "just because" holidays highlighted every month. Think: Compliment Day (January 24), Send a Card to a Friend Day (February 7), and Waffle Day (March 15). It also includes dates for all the more "traditional" holidays you might want to celebrate at the front of the planner. Make your planner your own by mixing and matching from our suggestions and writing in the holidays that matter most to you!

Or, if you're using your Monthly Planner for a purpose that's indifferent to when Easter or Labor Day falls, simply leave it as-is and maximize the room you have to write in each square.

5. Cultivate's Monthly Planner includes pauses for reflection.

For such a slim planner, this one packs quite a punch in terms of reflection. You'll find pauses that invite reflection at the end of each season (what's working and not working, favorite memories, a space to record what you're grateful for, etc.) as well as at the end of the year (a highlight from each month as well as summarizing superlatives from the year you just lived). 

You'll also find lined pages for notes throughout, and several clustered at the end. The possible uses for these are as endless as your purposes for your monthly planner, so get creative!

Shop Cultivate What Matters' Monthly Planners right here.

We'd love to hear: Do you use a monthly planner? What do you love about it?