Experienced User - Paige

Thank you Paige for sharing how she uses her organiser. 

My name is Paige Zinn and I am 46 years old. I live in Chapel Hill, NC, and I run a healthcare marketing firm.  I have a husband and two children. My daughter, Parker, is 13 years old. My son, Orlando, is 11 years old.

I love calligraphy; I collect fountain pens; and I enjoy spending my time organizing and planning my house and my life.

Thank you for allowing me to answer your questions. I am a recent fan of Philofaxy and always look forward to my email alerting me of a new post.

1. When did you start using an organiser?

I purchased my first Filofax in 1989 at a local retailer here in Chapel Hill. They were the only place that offered Filofax, and they had a beautiful display of planners and inserts. I purchased the Filofax in anticipation of a semester long trip to Europe my junior year in College. I loved that I could keep all my important documents in one beautiful leather planner.

2. How has your use of an organiser changed over the years?

I have definitely gone through cycles. I used a personal sized planner for work/school obligations during college and the first few years of working. However, once I had children, I increased the size of my planners. I started with the Daytimer desk version and wire bound calendar and diaries. That worked for a while, but I thought the calendars were a bit dull looking, and there was no ability to customize my inserts. And the desk size was too large to carry around.

I then went to an A4 size a few years later and have collected 9 or so Filofax planners in that size, as well as a few other brands. It worked for many years, but now I am at a point in my life where I want something smaller. I recently purchased a Filofax personal size in The Original. I have included a few photos of how I use it.  I am actually using some of the inserts from my first Filofax in this new one (the calendar bookmark & the business card holders). I think the quality of the inserts from 1989 are much better than the current offerings. I’ve also placed an order for the raspberry Finsbury in the personal size. I love the color and the feel of the leather.

3. Which diary format works best for you and why?

As I mentioned above, the personal size is my preferred choice right now. I love that I can throw it in my purse and not have to worry about it.

4. What other information do you keep and maintain in your organiser.

As one of my photo shows, I love that I can plan projects in my planner. Currently, I have two projects: Thanksgiving dinner (we are hosting) and my Christmas shopping list. And I live by the calendar. I use the one day per page layout. I used to use the day on two pages format, but that is unnecessary and a waste of space.

5. Do you use a 'system' of organisation, and how does it work in your Filofax?

Yes, all of my appointments go in the hour by hour calendar. The other side of the page is used for my work and personal todos. I put my work todos on the top of the page, and my personal todos go on the bottom of the page.

For longer term projects, I use the “projects” section of my Filofax. Currently, my two projects are my Thanksgiving todos (we are hosting 20+ people) and my Christmas shopping list.

For personal notes, I use the “notes” section of my Filofax. Currently, this includes things I don’t want to forget/books I want to read/etc.

I also keep all pertinent business cards (things I access regularly) in my Filofax.

6. What routines and structures do you use?

I’m not entirely sure what you mean by this question, but my Filofax stays open throughout my day. I
look at it regularly to stay on track and make sure I attend to the priorities of the day. Once a task is complete, I mark through it. I love it when a day has all the tasks marked through. I also use a highlighter to note when a call has been made, but not returned.

7. Do you use one binder or several, and if several, how do you use them?

I only use one planner at a time. I use it for all aspects of my life - my husband’s appts, my appts (personal and work-related), my children’s appts, as well as family obligations. If I used more than one planner, I’m afraid I would lose track of things. I like to see everything in one place.

Thank you Paige.

If you would like to take part in this series please email steve@philofaxy.com and mark your email 'Experienced Filofax User'