The Happiness Planner

As you know, I am a HUGE stationery fan. I just love stationery, scrapbooking and journalling. I'm a sucker for cute, pretty and lovely stationery in any form. AND when I first started getting obsessed with planning, I began to research the huge amount of planners that were on the market - and I have to say, I can't wait to tell you all about this one...

The Happiness Planner!

I'm so excited by this planner, it's unlike any others I've seen, it's unique - which is really saying something! What makes this one different is that it's designed to help you get to know yourself more, set more goals, focus on your dreams and as a result it should help you to live a more positive life.

You might be wondering how a planner can do this, so let me tell you...

The very first thing you do with this planner is to take the time to invest in yourself and record the results in the first section. (I've talked about the details and shown some of these pages in my YouTube video here). There are pages of 'self quiz' type details which you need to fill in before you start and it's so fun! You're asked to record the things that you like doing the most, what you're happy with - what you're unhappy with. The idea of this whole section is to help you get a better grasp on things, on yourself and on your plans, goals and hopes for 2016. Once you've answered all of these sections, it's actually really revealing about what areas you should focus most of your energy on, and likewise, what you shouldn't.

The planner also helps you to realise what you enjoy most by asking you in that initial section, and it then encourages of you to do more of this throughout the year - 'find what makes you happy and do that' style! Likewise it shows you where you waste time and energy, which is great for helping with time management. Especially if like me, you're constantly on the go.

Another thing that I love is that when you set your goals, there is constant prompting to revisit these goals. By recording your new years resolutions, your goals and more on the detachable printables, you can make a note of the things that you want to achieve and then, if you're feeling demotivated or have lost sight of your goals - you can revisit them to motivate yourself afresh. This is going to be great for me, because I sometimes find that I can get so caught up in everyday life that I loose sight of the bigger picture, so being able to record my hopes, goals and dreams and to keep them in my planner, means I've constantly got them with me for when I need motivating again!

Throughout the year, and on a monthly and daily basis you are asked to evaluate your happiness and record how you feel, what you've achieved etc. I love this, and with all of the other options to record your thoughts, feelings and accomplishments, I love this planner because it's like a journal too, where I can record my emotions and thoughts about everything as well as keep myself organised - win/win.

A key feature is that throughout the planner there are amazing and inspiration quotes constantly. And as you know, I love quotes as much as I love stationery, so I especially love this! It's a lovely touch, and perfect for me as I'm words obsessed!

On a practical note this planner runs for 12 months - January to December (although in their shop, you can buy a 100 day version, which is dateless - meaning you can start it at any time throughout the year). From an organisational perspective, this planner has a whole page per day - which earns it some major brownie points from me. Most planners have a week per double page, but with The Happiness Planner you get a whole day per page - which means there is plenty of space to record the things you need to remember, the appointments you've got etc. So it's excellent at giving you plenty of space to get yourself - and your life organised. There are sections specifically for your To-Do lists, your schedule, your food plans, your exercise routine etc - everything you need to get your day in order. As well as this, there are thought recording sections for what you're most excited about each day, what the good things were and what your hopes are for tomorrow. As well as this, each day starts with a quote - huge love for that!

I absolutely adore The Happiness Planner for one main reason - thanks to all of it's little extra's (daily quotes, thoughtful promptings, opportunities to record and make memories etc.) it's like a practical planner and a journal combined in one. I don't have time to write or keep a diary or journal any more. Between work, mummy duties and blogging - my days are pretty full. So this planner gives me the option to record the emotional side of life - in cute and concise individual sections. And because of that, I'm so excited to start using this, because when we reach December next year, I feel like I'll have a real tool of reflection to treasure and look back on.

As well as their planners (the 100 day version and the full year version) you can also buy Happiness notebooks and cards on the website and download extra printables to use in your planner. And there are links to the blog of Mo Seetubtim who is the mastermind behind The Happiness Planner too - so I highly recommend you check that out too.

The practicality of a planner, the personal ability of a journal, means that The Happiness Planner really is one of my favourite finds this year.

Watch my unboxing and video review here:

Find more details and buy yours here: The Happiness Planner
Twitter: @happinessplannr
Instagram: happinessplanner
Facebook: The Happiness Planner

Top Inspiring Women

I like to think I fall into the Beyonce-esque 'Independent Ladies' category of life *sings*. And I feel so fortunate that I'm living in an age where women can strive to be the very best versions of themselves. Not only that, but we are given the tools to help us, the resources to encourage us and the inspiration to motivate us to reach those goals, and make the very most of life as a woman in this modern age. I don't for one minute take for granted the fact that this isn't something that's always been the case, and fully appreciate the sacrifices that women in earlier days have made to fight for equality and equal opportunities.

I've been reflecting on the three women who've inspired me the most, who've made me proud to be a woman and have used their opportunities to do good, help, and try to make their part of the world a better place for others...something we should all do.

Angelina Jolie
I'ts taken me a long time to forgive Ange for the Brad and Jen split up. In fact, I'm not sure I've fully forgiven her. But she's a woman who has inspired me with her genuine desire to make the world a better place. As a humanitarian, she became aware of the refugee crisis when filming in Cambodia and since then has been on many aid missions to help change the course of action for refugees - including those affected by locational factors as well as factors like the Haiti earthquake. She also set up the Jolie-Pitt foundation which aims to eradicate extreme rural poverty - this is something I feel strongly about, as mentioned before, and I've followed her work in this area closely.

She also funds educational outreach programs for children affected by conflict which helps to give them the best chance possible for life. And thanks to her constant input into world humanitarian issues, she now tackles them on a more political level too - something I admire her for, because that's a level when she can really make an impact to changing the lives of those who need change the most.

Also, she's one celebrity who puts her money where her mouth is. She donates millions of her own money to the causes she works with, and is always quick to donate to aid efforts when a natural disaster occurs etc. She's not one of these celebrities to get a smiley picture taken with a background of poverty - she's in there, getting her hands dirty and getting down to the levels of those she's working to help. This is something that hugely sets her apart from other celebrities who claim to do similar. Kudos Mrs Jolie.

Reese Witherspoon
A woman who inspires me in many ways. Not only is she a mum, a businesswoman and an actress - she's also heavily involved in working for women and children's advocacy organisations. Personally speaking I find the way Reese conducts her life to be one of elegance and class. She's not one of these celebrities who's seen falling out of nightclubs, or having one too many. She's seen doing her food shopping, at the park with her children and doing the normal everyday things. I like that she's not too big for her boots and she knows the importance of family before everything else. Her southern belle, family orientated attitude is something I admire a lot, and I love that she's so vocal about how parents worry if they are good enough. She's a woman who says what we all think and uses her platform to tell others that it's okay to get things wrong.

She's also the Honorary Chairperson  for the Avon Foundation, a foundation that aims to improve the lives of women everywhere. The Avon Foundation strives to empower woman and has a large emphasis on finding a cure for breast cancer. And another huge focus is finding ways to end domestic violence and help those affected by it.

She also speaks at women empowerment conferences to help teach and encourage the next generation of female entrepreneurs. Go girls!

Audrey Hepburn
A style icon of classic proportions, Audrey Hepburn is someone who's inspired me more than many other people. In her younger years she was only 14 when she risked execution to perform dance shows to raise money for the Dutch resistance during World War II. She also ran messages for the resistance, and again, had she been found out she would have been killed, but so strong was her desire to make a difference that she did it any way.

In 1989 she was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF having experienced the need for food donations herself during the second World War. Because she experienced this need herself, she spoke openly about it motivating her to deliver aid to children who needed it. She got so heavily involved with promoting the awful conditions of third world countries, that she would give up to 15 interviews a day with the aim to raise awareness and funds.

She worked with projects that delivered training programs for women, worked directly with street children, worked for projects to deliver drinking water to places that didn't have it and many more. She never stopped striving to help, and make a difference, and she never stopped working to educate the world about the things we usually turn our heads away from. She even continued her work when ill herself with cancer.

An icon of elegance, and an amazing example of heart for people.

We live in an age where women can and do make a difference, and I for one, am proud to call myself a woman because of ladies like these.