What would you do if you lost your planner? I know what I’d do –
- cuss enough to make a sailor blush,
- rip my house and car apart searching for it,
- plead with every deity I can think of to somehow magically manifest it back, and finally,
- devolve into a mascara-stained hot mess.
Luckily, I’ve never actually misplaced a planner (queue knock-on-wood) – but I’m FAR from perfect, and I know better than to rely on chance. Therefore, doesn’t it make more sense to add some insurance right away to sidestep that emotional angst and trauma?
Enter: The Bookplate
As a little girl that drew and dreamed of unicorns, I proudly pasted a beautiful purple bookplate into each of my favorite books. It featured a magical pegasus, and I remember carefully inscribing my name and home phone number on the line with a calligraphic marker. That childish cursive scrawl didn’t guarantee I’d get my books back, of course, but it made me feel like I’d done everything I could to ensure their safe return.
Fast forward a few decades and today I value my planners a lot more than those completely unmemorable paperbacks. Ironically, my first planner didn’t even have my name in it! I’ve since reformed my ways, and now I make absolutely sure I don’t make the same mistake again.
Starting With Confidence & Security
Adding a bookplate to the first page of your planner makes the ritual of starting a new notebook much more enjoyable by:
- Signifying you now own it and all its potential.
- Breaking and shaking loose the anxiety of making marks on something so pure and new.
- Giving you peace-of-mind you just can’t buy.
Making sure your name and contact information is prominently displayed in your planner or journal ensures anyone who finds it knows exactly who it belongs to.
Lost Planner – Easily FOUND
My bookplate is a design of my own making that’s easy to print, cut out, and paste just inside the front cover with a glue stick. I added washi tape around the edge of the first bookplate I used – both as decoration and to make sure it stays stuck.
The wording of my bookplate is short and to the point. It’s also intentionally persuasive – it sounds conversational and human and includes mention of a cash reward, which might mean the difference between an apathetic stranger tossing your planner in the garbage and a more motivated individual reaching out to you to return it safely.
Save Your Sanity – Get A Pre-Designed Bookplate Today
You can make using a bookplate ultra-fast and easy by purchasing an instant digital download in my Etsy store – Lifehacklets. They’re available in different styles to choose from, and you can print them as many times as you need.
Losing your planner is always a stressful experience, but adding a bookplate can help you ratchet that anxiety down a notch. And who knows – this small but meaningful step might just save your sanity.