I'm a goal setter and enjoy the process of planning. As such, I love planners and usually end up buying a couple before the start of the year. It's fun to have all sorts of things to look forward to, and my planner serves as a chronicle of what I've accomplished and a road map for next steps. I appreciate the accoutrements that make for a creative planning session—the stickers, the colored pencils, highlighters, stencils. A few weeks before the new year, I'm like a little kid, ready for school to begin, with a pencil pouch filled to the brim, excited to give it my all to writing down every single goal, task, event and deadline. I particularly like to cross things off my agenda with a flourish. Being able to take my colored Le Pen and put a definitive line through something I've completed or achieved is highly satisfying. I enjoy the colorful visual of seeing my weeks and months being filled up with exciting activities and get motivated by all the potential. I know for a fact that when I break out a big goal into bite-sized tasks and plan timelines around accomplishing them, I see positive results. By planning, I can keep myself on track and achieve gargantuan goals faster. For example, about two years ago, when I had to plan a retreat for 100-plus people, everything from the strategic discussion topics and breakout sessions to the dinner menus and bowling teams for an evening of competitive games went in a planner I bought just for the occasion. I carefully logged every single detail of what needed to be done and without it, I would have been lost. The event was successful because the smallest of details were addressed—thanks to planning out the vision and knocking off the to-dos. Sure, there were last-minute things I hadn't accounted for but dealing with them was easier because I had the things I could control in control.