Forget Tech: The Franklin Planner Can Do It All. 

I used to use the Franklin Planner and actually went through the course nearly 30 years ago. I have my digital calendars but they don’t have soul. I now have an all in one planner from Sterling Ink that has quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily planning on Tomoe River paper which is brilliant for fountain pens.

I use a Filofax planner and have since the 1970s - specifically their "Day Planner" pages designed by John Adair. For some security I have attached and Apple Tag to it in case I forget it when outside my home. I also carry with me a couple of business cards in my back pocket at all times, so I can capture useful thoughts, ideas and information - and enter them into my planner when I get back to my desk.

Love my leather Frankiln Planners. Currently using the 7 having inserts. I carry 3 months. My first entry every day is Solitude and Planning (for the day, week, month) . Great choice on your planner. 🖋🖋🖋

So happy to see you talking about the Franklin planner. I use the weekly planner now because it fits my lifestyle. I have used the Franklin planner since 1992. I’ve always loved it because it slows me down and helps me think. I still have the original tan leather binder, and it has held up very well. My children will learn a lot when they read what I have written all these years.

Can't wait for this series!

I am missing my Palm Pilot, not for planning as much as for execution though. I had built my own weekly paper template way back then, when things still mattered, based on both Covey and Fisher/Ury "Getting to Yes" and always carried it with me, for planning, habits and sharpening the saw.

OMG, love this❤ please show us how to use the franklin planner and Todoist together. THANK YOU

My Mom was a huge Franklin Planner person. I was a Daytimer person. We had a huge competition between planners but respect for each other and often compare thoughts and ideas. My year Daytimer was one of my holiday gifts my mom looked forward to getting me each year. I do miss my Daytimer....🤔

Computers are just so clinical, sterile and not very creative whereas pen and paper ignites the emotions and creativity we all have based on the feedback of the pen and paper. Like Digital vs Film digital is nice, easy, instant gratification, film requires thought, seeing light and shadow, making decisions for settings based on the film type. Give me "Paper & Film" anyday of the week..... Going to order my leadership refill tonight, thanks Carl!!

This is making me want to go back to the Franklin Planner (I haven’t used it since the early 90s!) I’m just afraid of spending tonnes of money and then not really using it. Especially as I work on multiple team projects where teams are spread across multiple countries.

I have tried all the analog systems for decades and am back to analog these days. Have you tried the Hobonichi Planner? Nothing beats it and the paper is legendary. Try the Hobonichi Cousin size . The Techo is smaller. Both are gorgeous and very portable, A whole year in one smallish notebook. I will never use anything else after using them for 5 years now. The problem with the Franklin is all the hassle of swapping pages and not having an entire year in a lightweight book. You can see everything by day, month and year plus it has an open architecture and you can use it lots of ways.

Thank you Carl. I used a DayTimer planner with zippered leather binder for 25 years+. I made a decision to go with the future and do digital, but I miss my DayTimer, it was great to use. The zippered binder is a must, because it stops anything from falling out and getting lost.

Well, I'm happy to see you returning to the Franklin Planner! Analog is way better than tech - it was 4 years ago when we spoke about that: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-V1_gX_JGWm8.html

I used DayRunner and DayTimer for years. I've tried to love digital. Lately I've been dusting off my Tule planners and thinking of returning to paper. Glad to see this.

All the OG Franklin planner fans have entered the chat. 😂❤ Carrying the system and its principles into the 21st century. 🎉 Thanks for the heads up on the Monticello paper. Fountain pens and Franklin planners = dream team.

Thank you Carl, love the Franklin Planner System!

I really love this video. For me, I am using Bullet Journal, which shares lots of same features and functions. And I do feel that I carry my whole life and all plans with me all the time.

I love paper. Nothing better ❤

I'm in.....OCT--DEC!!

Mr. Pullein, I recently subscribed to your channel and am enjoying the episodes. I'm a former Franklin Planner user. Your experiment is very intriguing and I'm looking forward to your 3 month experiment. Have a great day.

Wish I would have known you wanted to try this. I used the Franklin Planner for years and left it in 2016. February of 2024 I went back and decided to splurge and buy a new planner with my calendar pages. I made it almost until the end of June and now I’m using my iPad and Apple Pencil using a PDF template. I would have given you mine

Yay! After all these years I just did not make the switch to digital planning. I just have so much joy using analog planning. Hope you keep doing it and report back please.

I find your shift to paper and analog tools very motivating. I've been returning to my Bullet Journal and doing more analog planning and note-taking. I feel that ambient "task stress" is going away and becoming more organic in my productivity. Really great!

I mean there are tons of us on many sites and FB groups who use analogue planners and are proof that it does work… I look forward to seeing how your challenge goes :)

Carl. I used the Franklin Planner for years until I went digital. Now can’t change from the digital world. It’s so streamlined for me. I’ve noticed your posts have gone more from digital to paper lately. Have you given up on digital? You’ve helped me get organized and keep my focus with your videos and podcast, but I can’t seem to adjust to paper any more. Is that weird?

I have such nostalgia for the Franklin Planner.

Love this, Carl! Thanks for another great video

I stumbled upon my old leather planner from 1999 and found it filled with notes, which brought a smile to my face. Among the notes, I found the FAX letterhead I used back then. I just visited the Franklin Planner website and ordered a refill. Thank you, Carl!

Hello. I subscribed today because I used Franklin Planners through most high school until freshman year of college. I just stopped proper planning for 10 years then I started back planning in 2016 in hobonichi weeks. For 2025, I bought Franklin Planner and I’m currently integrating those methods into my current planner. So here to see your progress. Thank you advance.

Hi Carl, thank you for this very timely video. I am in Perth, Western Australia and I'm expecting my Franklin Planner will be delivered tomorrow or soon after. I opted for the Alex zip binder in saddle, classic size. I have chosen the 7 Habits day on 2 pages inserts. I watched your earlier video reviewing your beautifully stored collection of past pages. It was part of my inspiration to order, along with the FC system to review values, roles and then build goals around these, instead of the rather aimless (but useful) to-do list approach. I have completed the course and ordered the book too! I am hopeful that some of my fountain pens will be OK on the paper, if I stick with my fine nibs. I still have a Hobonichi for journaling, there is nothing quite like a Pilot Custom 823 medium nib gliding across that paper! I believe I have tried every planner system on the planet in the last 10 years. I hope to recapture some of the joy brought by my first ever planner system, a chunky, navy blue, vinyl DayRunner back in the 80s or 90s (can't quite recall 😂). I look forward to joining you on your journey.

Love a planner. It just doesn't work for me, going to and fro different places. I'd rather use iPhone and iPad than having to haul a planner as well as the risk of forgetting. When I found myself constantly making pics to 'take it with me', I realized physical doesn't work for me

I am set to start with my Franklin Planner on October 1. My concession is that I am using a regular $8 vinyl binder instead of one of the $125 Franklin binder.

Used my FP since 1995.sometimes drift off to the latest and greatest but always return the FP is the greatest.

You beat me to it… I was going to buy one. Used them back in the mid 90s

Sadly, no one at Franklin Planner uses one. You can tell by looking at their ads where the models have planners with just a few pages. None of their planner pages are fountain pen suitable. Regardless it is a marvelous tool.

I have been using the Full Focus Planner for a few years and other than some notes in Apple Notes and my calendar, I have mostly rid myself of a digital task manager.

Would love to see how you org your planner, how you use it daily, weekly planning etc a whole series of courses please :)

Carl, Cheers from Denver, CO USA. I have used a Franklin off and on since the mid 90s during their heyday in a couple of different career fields. I can say I don't think you'll go far wrong. Advantages are no data loss unless you don't write it in there; the forced intentionality that you reference in your video; and the ability to journal as well as plan your day and add notes to things in your day. Use parentheses to drive you to a digital resource if you need to. (9/26 Outlk 11 AM SE) - tells me all I need to reference an email from a colleague. I wish you well and I'll be subscribing.

Carl, I'm interested to hear your thoughts on weekly planning with the Franklin Covey Planner

Love this! I use the compact size of franklin planner to make it more portable, but love the space in the classic. So glad you are sharing this! Cant find too many videos using this system! Thank you for sharing!

When I graduated college in the early 90s about a dozen friends were hired by the same big insurance company over about a three year period. Their first month of training always included a week long class on using their new Franklin Planner. I wonder how/if that company is doing time management training for new recruits today?

It's kind of crazy that the inserts have increased in price to $76.95 for the classic size. I used these for a long time and I know they weren't nearly that cost!

Anyone else using a Supernote here? It‘s everything told here for me in an all-in-one minimalist form factor.

Storage/Archive is the only question I have

In 1990 I got my first time-system planner in A5. I loved the thing and used it intensively for years. I have always been in the IT industry and at some point I, like many others, am sitting on the mistake of doing everything digitally. I had all hardware and software available to me. It was clear that I also use this intensively. There is hardly an organisation app that I have not used. I have participated in every development, from the first laptop, to Palm-Pilot, all kinds of smartphones and tablets. All really great. At some point I started buying fancy and expensive leather notebooks. Why? Everything is great digital! So with force everything continues to be digital. It can't be that a computer person uses anything else. The digital helpers filled up, and I always had the impression that I was losing track and using all these tools and helpers for my own end. The older I got, the greater the longing for pen and paper, analogue processing and books made of paper and printer black. Things that I could pick up, touch, smell, feel. There came years when I barely had a week where I didn't switch back and forth between digital and analogue. With this I lost the overview even more and was not happy with it at all. Carl, since you started this analogue series, I've realised I don't have to go through this whole technical game. I can even map complex projects well in my time system. I have now gone so far as to completely empty and delete my Things 3. I will only be working in my time system plan until the end of the year. And then I'll take an honest balance. Calendar, tasks, notes, overviews, planning. My beloved fountain pens are also back in use. I realised it's not just a romantic transfiguration, but an intimate desire to slow down and simplify. I am still in the IT industry and am responsible for the IT of a large company. Digitalisation is a big word and is massively implemented with us. But how I achieve this is entirely up to me. I decide for myself which tools I need for this. Thank you for your incredibly great content.

Wonderful! Franklin Planner is like blueprints, and laptop/phone are like hammers - totally different. Just subscribed and I'm excited to see what you think after 90 days. Good luck!

I can still remember how I felt when I got my first Franklin Planner (1987 I think!). And I've used them ever since on and off through the years, with digital tools too. I've tried many planners and digital task managers, but always come back to Franklin (although it's a tie with the Full Focus Planner, which is a quarterly planner) and Evernote. I love that you're doing this series. I have the Tyler binder too 🙂.

I’ve used the pocket version since the 90s and more recently I carry the Louis Vuitton pocket agenda and MontBlanc pen with me. My days are normally very light as most my income is passive, so I can use the weekly and monthly calendars. (No business meetings or partnerships) The brain works differently when using pen and paper, I love it.

Love it! I am actually going to join you on a similar experiment as I have been resorting to paper more and more often. I would like to use Franklin Planner but I think I am going with the Levenger-type disc bound system because I already have the binder and a punch and it is more versatile in my opinion. The issue I am having is that I can't find any daily (preferably 2 pages/ day) inserts that I like in the disc bound style, If any of your loyal viewers have any suggestions, it would be greatly appreciated. Keep up the great work Carl!

I have Rheumatoid and Osteoarthritis pretty severely in my hands, so I dont like anything heavy and bulky, but I HAVE to HAVE a paper planner! It just keeps me more focused. That and Notion. I have used the Plum Paper planner the last two years.

Ridiculous! We live in the 21st century. There are a bunch of digital planners that are just like the Franklin daily planner, except you can search for anything you've written in them in a micro-second. Maybe they don't have soul like a paper planner, but they function exactly the same way, except with horsepower

I'm very curious to see how your experiment ends. And I'm looking forward to the series. I have been using a paper planner (X17) again for a few months. It works real good with my fountain pens. I use different pens with different color inks- And I really love it.

Welcome back!! I love mine, but supplement it with digital for repeating tasks. Just can't let it go.....

This does remind me that I really need to start looking for a paper diary for next year. There have been far too many occasions, this year, when I've tried to look at my calendar, notes, or task app but had no mobile signal!

I am a Franklin Planner user for over 30 years. I just can’t do digital I get distracted!😂

I think there is a Raymay Da Vinci very similar to FC insert that is tomoe river, the good thing is that they are super thin and fountain pen friendly.

Well, there goes your Todoist Ambassador role …