63: A Little Jolt of Joy – Tweaking our ADHD Planner for New Life This Spring!

Refreshing My Planner: The ONLY Method

A little jolt of joy today about giving a planning system some fresh life. My planning had quietly fallen off lately, and true to how these brains work, novelty tends to reignite focus and interest. So I decided to tweak my usual approach a little, inspired partly by wanting to improve my gratitude and prayer practice this season.

A small evolution of an older system

A while back I introduced an acronym called What If for intentionally flexible planning. This new version is very similar, just renamed and refocused: If Only. As in, if only I could get myself back on track, if only I could knock out a few things that just need doing.

Setting up the layout

In a weekly spread, the top portion holds specific, time-bound appointments and calls, the things with a real date attached. The bottom half is divided into four sections that spell out ONLY.

O is for one-and-dones

These are the small, nagging tasks that only need to happen once, calling to book a dentist appointment during a tight window, finally mailing birthday cards, tackling a return that’s been sitting in the house too long. They’re quick, they don’t recur, and yet they nag disproportionately until they’re actually done.

N is for needs

These are the recurring, routine maintenance tasks, things like basic meal planning or a regular quick clean pass through the house, the ongoing upkeep that keeps things at a baseline level of functioning.

L is for long-term goals

This is where I pull one small piece of a bigger goal I don’t normally give myself permission to work on, since everything else always seems to take priority first. Breaking off just a sliver of it and putting it on this week’s page makes it feel achievable instead of perpetually postponed.

Y is for you

This is deliberately for self-care, whatever that means for you in the moment. For me right now it’s a bit more gratitude and quiet reflection, along with small, manageable movement toward better health. The logic here is simple: if you’ve made room for your one-and-dones, your needs, and your long-term goal, you’ve earned the right to make room for yourself too.

If this structure sounds like something worth trying, all it really takes is any notebook and a pencil, no special supplies required.

Until next time, continue to choose joy.