A reader from Michigan wrote in with a good suggestion for improving the next generation of planners:
Very simply, add more “Notes” pages … each planner, regardless of size, should have at least 10 pages … There is a lot of information that I want in my planner but it is not tied to a specific day, week or month and is best kept in one consolidated place in the Notes pages.
What do you think? Do you want more space for notes at the front or back of your planner? Or a separate supplement with blank pages you could tuck in the cover each year?
12 Comments
Chet
And here I am, thinking that the 20 pages left over after I’d drawn up the monthly and weekly pages in my 2010 planner are too little. I’m used to double that number.
I guess I have a different definition of notes. Mine is more like scribblings, so the more pages the better. Maybe that definition needs tweaking.
Laurie
I like to have several pages for notes in my planner. I prefer to have at least 12 pages so I can have a notes page for each month plus some extras. In addition to monthly goals and notes, I use notes pages for gift lists for the year, to record my weight, reminders of things to work on throughout the year, etc.
I really like the idea of a notes supplement to tuck into the cover. That way when the notes booklet fills up I can replace it. I’d never have to worry about running out of notes pages for that year!
Jolene
I also like the idea of a notes supplement or supplements. I would think that supplements could be available in a variety of sizes (in terms of pages), so people could pick what works for them. If they were part of the planner proper, there wouldn’t be that flexibility. (I also like that the supplement could be moved from one planner to the next if needed.
AllenH
Yeah, seeing it as an added supplement- much like the address book supplement may be the way to go. You can always sell the planner with 3 slip-in softback-”journals”- you could even sell 12 titled journals as a pack for each month. [Although non-labeled likely would sell better.]
B Irwin
Definitely supplemental pages with a way to tuck them in so they wouldn’t get lost. There are so many times I have to quickly jot notes and don’t want them lost in the pages.
Muse
A replacable (and thus portable) thin supplement for notes, with a choice of lined, as well as unlined paper (for those who want to doodle/draw, or just like writing on unlined paper) would be fabulous. It would also give me another place to put my Post-It page tags (“Sign here”, and colored ones, as well as regular Post-It repositionable notes) where it wouldn’t get so much traffic from me flipping through the front/back cover where I also file receipts, business cards, or pocket note cards.
Joy
I prefer more pages of notes in the planner itself. That way the notes I write can never get lost, because they are always associated with the planner. A dozen or so pages would be a good number for me.
Marty
I am all for more Notes pages, either bound in or separate. Many of the reference pages are no longer needed with all the internet access we all have now, but just about everyone makes their own personal notes, and there is just never enough room for them. That’s one of the few things I miss about having a ring-bound planner in the big leather binder, the blank pages for notes. The Quo Vadis and Exacompta planners are still much superior, but if we had more notes pages, we’d love them even more I’m sure!
Lanzman
I tend to use Gallery Leather Co planners as sold at Barnes & Noble or Borders . . . they’re softcover but very sturdy, have one week on each two-page spread, and a bunch of supplementary information, and twenty four lined pages for notes. However, the notes pages have the word “Notes” rather uselessly emblazoned at the top, wasting about an inch of space. Take that away and it’d be perfect. For that matter, make an entire book of just the lines notes pages (without the dang “Notes” label up top) and I’d buy that, too.
Chet
Yes to the note supplement. Sorry, forgot to say that in my original post.
Karen
We are in the processing of preparing notes supplements for the Business and Minister planners. I will provide more details in a future post.
Laurie
That’s wonderful Karen, thank you!!
I know it’s not easy for QV to make supplements for every size of planner because there are so many sizes.
Please correct me if I’m wrong, just from looking at the website it looks like the Business is the same size as the (academic year) University so those inserts will work in both of those planners.
And again, just from looking at the website the Minister has the same dimensions as the Academic Minister, Space 24 and Scholar, so the Minister inserts should fit into all 4 of those planners.
So those two sizes of inserts should collectively fit into 6 of the planners! Great!
Please let us know if there will be plans to make inserts for the Trinote/ Septanote/ Principal/ Monthly 4 (which are all listed as being the same size).
And as always, thanks again for being so responsive to your customers!! We really appreciate it.