A Simple Calendar System
Finding Balance in a Busy Life
Introduction
For years, I’ve struggled with keeping my calendar organized. My latest faux pas? I was scheduled to teach a class on Conscious Spending tomorrow—right around the same time I’m supposed to be flying to California! Luckily, I caught it in time and rescheduled, but it was a stark reminder of how much I still need to refine my approach to managing my time.
This isn’t a new problem for me. The usual culprits? Aesthetics, information overload, and the occasional double booking. In college, I managed to stay on top of things thanks to the deadline-driven environment. My brain kicked into gear when a paper was due or an exam was around the corner. But life outside of school is less structured and more nuanced, with fewer hard deadlines to force my hand. As a result, I’ve faced my fair share of missed meetings, blown project deadlines, and a lack of time for the things I genuinely enjoy—reading, sports, and time with friends.
In this post, I’ll share the system I’ve been working on to finally take control of my time. My hope is that some of these ideas inspire you to do the same, because as Anne Dillard puts it, "How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” Let’s jump in!
Make It Visible
One of the biggest reasons my calendar has been so elusive is that it often gets buried beneath a sea of browser tabs or lost within various digital services. While a centralized digital calendar sounds great in theory, it’s not always right in front of me, making it all too easy to forget about upcoming commitments. I’m sure I’m not alone in this. We’ve all had moments where we get excited about an event, make a mental note, or even purchase tickets, only to realize later there was a conflict with something already on the work calendar that we overlooked. Suddenly, you’re scrambling to rebook or reschedule. Even my wife, who’s almost always on top of her schedule, recently texted me in a panic because she’d forgotten about a teacher’s meeting, and we had to move our dinner plans. Fortunately, the restaurant was flexible, but it was a reminder that even the best of us slip up.
This is why having your calendar visible at all times is so important. In the past few weeks, we’ve picked up two simple tools that have made a world of difference in staying organized: a refrigerator magnet calendar and a foldable desk note with a weekly layout. The magnet clearly displays our week, helping us visualize and track our responsibilities in one glance. The foldable note is especially handy because it’s compact enough to fit in a pocket, meaning I can carry it with me wherever I go and always know what’s coming up. Beyond these physical reminders, I’ve also added a calendar widget to my laptop for a quick, at-a-glance check each morning.
By making the calendar more visible—both physically and digitally—it’s much easier to avoid scheduling conflicts and keep track of important events. Plus, having it constantly in view builds a sense of anticipation for fun activities and special moments. Whether it’s hanging out with friends or looking forward to the latest episode of OMITB, keeping my calendar in sight has not only kept me more organized but also allowed me to fully enjoy what’s on the horizon.
Keep It Clutter-Free
By "clutter," I mean the things that don't add real value to your life. For example, a few years ago, a friend asked me if I had plans for Thursday night. I checked my calendar and saw nothing booked, so he quickly invited me to a Primerica meet-up. At the time, I wasn’t familiar with Primerica and didn’t feel comfortable saying no, so I went along. I ended up spending three hours listening to a pitch about “revolutionary” financial services and how I could both help people and make money. It was a rough night, and I can confidently say it’s three hours of my life I won’t get back. I could’ve used that time to get ahead on coursework (doubtful), watch the Thursday night game (more likely), or simply hang out with friends (ding, ding, ding). But I cluttered up my evening because I didn’t set boundaries or feel comfortable saying no. A way to combat this kind of clutter from external pressures is to have a default "no" period in your schedule—a time when you don’t add anything new unless it aligns with your priorities.
I recommend setting aside at least one week of notice, though your situation may require more or less time depending on the complexity of your life. Personally, I have three criteria that must be met before adding anything new to my schedule from external sources.1 1) It has to be planned at least eight days in advance, 2) it must fall into categories that align with my values and goals, and 3) it cannot interfere with anything previously booked. Your criteria may look different, but having a default period where the answer is "no" allows you to protect your time for the activities that truly matter to you. Whether it’s spending time walking with your family, taking a much-needed nap, or simply enjoying a quiet day at home, this downtime is essential for recharging and maintaining balance.
To be clear, I’m not opposed to new experiences or opportunities that may come my way unexpectedly. But I’ve learned the importance of protecting my time and giving myself the space to think before committing to something—especially when it comes to things like sales pitches, timeshares, or other events that don’t align with my priorities. Setting these boundaries helps me focus on what’s important to me, without cluttering up my calendar with distractions.
Make It Balanced
Do you know what’s worse than a cluttered and overbooked calendar? A life without joy. Unfortunately, many of us fall into this trap because we prioritize other people’s expectations or obligations over our own needs and happiness. Even worse, we often let advertisers and companies dictate what should make us happy—whether it’s buying the latest product, taking a specific vacation, or trying a "life hack" that promises to change everything. The result? We end up short on time, money, and mental energy, with little to no real sense of fulfillment. To avoid this, it’s essential to regularly step back and evaluate your week, month, and even quarter, identifying imbalances that might be dragging you down.
At the start of each week, my wife and I carve out 30 minutes for a quick meeting to review our calendars. We write down everything—upcoming deadlines, social events, work projects, and, most importantly, our downtime. This check-in gives us the chance to recalibrate, entering each day with a clearer picture of what’s ahead. If the week looks too work-heavy, we rearrange things to make room for personal or family time. If the month seems packed with obligations and little space to breathe, we cut out what we can to create room for rest. It's also the perfect opportunity to ensure our schedules align with the bigger goals we’ve set for ourselves.
Another strategy we’ve adopted is creating a "percentage-driven" life. We consciously decide what percentage of our week we want to spend on various activities: work, leisure, coffee dates, travel, sleep, and so on.2 By breaking down our time into intentional portions, we ensure that we’re living in a way that reflects the life we want, rather than letting external pressures or other people’s priorities dictate our time.
At the end of the day, achieving balance is about being mindful of how you spend your time and ensuring that every part of your life—work, family, personal time—gets the attention it deserves. Life isn’t about checking off every task on your to-do list; it’s about creating a rhythm that allows you to enjoy both work and leisure, connection and solitude, productivity and peace. Balance isn’t about giving equal time to every area every day, but rather about being intentional with your focus, making adjustments when needed, and ensuring that the way you spend your time truly reflects what matters most to you.
Conclusion
I know I'll probably double-book again in the future. I’m not perfect—just a person trying to get better every day. But with this system in place, I feel more in control of my time and attention, instead of letting life run on autopilot. I hope you’ll consider making some small organizational changes in your own life and see how much difference even a little improvement can make this week. Until next time, stay offline :)
I am not including job-related emergencies here. However, you should have strong boundaries at work as well. Most things can wait and are not true emergencies, so make sure to double-check that something is essential before signing up for yet another meeting or committee.
I’ll expand on this in an upcoming post about the percentage-driven life. I have found that setting up percentages as a guideline helps me more than setting up specific hour limits, money goals, etc.