The 6 Best Guided Journals for Productivity 2021

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Precursor

The mental health memo of today is: on this week of “Will Tsvetty finally calm down with the guided journal posts?” you’ll discover that the answer is no!

The specific goal we’re going to be targeting with guided journals this time is productivity! Ah yes, the ever so daunting task of ACTUALLY GETTING STUFF DONE. Very few of us are good at this task, including me.

So, I’ve rounded up the most effective guided journals for productivity to reach your optimal potential! They’re all very different so everyone can find exactly what they’re looking for.

*This post may contain affiliate links. By using the links on this article, I get a small amount of commission that I put back into my blog and Youtube channel. This does not compromise my integrity and I only recommend things I actually believe in or find of good quality. You also do not get charged extra for using these links. So why not!? :)*

Reminder: As per the nature of online shopping, the journals go in and out of stock. I’ve picked journals that should be accessible for many countries but if you click on the link and the book isn’t available, I recommend adding it to your cart regardless and waiting for it to come back in stock. I’ve also provided alternatives sites where possible!

What are Guided Journals for Productivity?

Guided journals unlike regular journals are journals that have already prewritten prompts, content, and writing outlines to help you achieve a certain goal or improve in a specific area of your life.

There are all kinds of guided journals out there for all sorts of things like anxiety, self-love, depression, self-care, and much more, so you’re sure to find something you love.

The reason guided journals are more effective than regular journals (in my humblest of opinions) is that the structure and path for you to get to where you want is already created for you. There’s no need to figure out how to organize your journal or what’s important because it’s already been outlined for you.

This saves a lot of time, effort, confusion, and it also makes the task of journaling that much easier which means you’ll be more likely to keep it up! With all that in mind, let’s get to the actual guided journals!

The Journals:

 

1. Legend Planner

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

Let’s start off with the planner I’m currently using! I bought this little guy in the light purple color, and it’s absolutely gorgeous!

But not only is it visually beautiful, it has everything you could possibly imagine in it to help guide you to productivity. 

I would probably need a whole post just dedicated to this planner to explain all the different features of it. There is a goal-setting section about all areas of life, reflections about your dreams and aspirations, a vision board, a monthly agenda with reflections, a weekly agenda with reflections, calendars, top goals for the month, and did I mention STICKERS?!

There is just so much tucked into this beautiful little book it’s no wonder it’s so popular. It has helped me stay on track A LOT since the pandemic hit and I’d probably be completely lost without it. Not only that, but it has helped me to notice what areas of my life I neglect, and it keeps me accountable when I’m not following through with my plans. 

The only critiques I have are that I wish there was more space to write in the daily agenda because I normally have a lot of things to do, and also the months are separated from the actual days so it’s annoying flipping back and forth sometimes. But honestly, those are such small details that I really don’t care too much about it especially considering the quality of the book.

I should also add that you put in the dates yourself so you never have to worry about wasting space or paper because you can just fill in all the dates yourself!

Top Pros:

• An exceptional amount of prompts, activities, and organizational materials. Everything you could ever want is in this little journal
• You fill in the dates so there’s never any waste
• It’s for the full year so you 100% get your money’s worth (and it’s not much money in the first place considering the quality)

Top Cons:

• I wish the daily agenda part came right after each month but instead, they’re separated which is a bit annoying
• It would be nice if the daily agenda had a bit more space for adding daily tasks

2. Goal Getter

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

The second guided journal I want to talk about is this Goal Getter journal!

If you’re new to guided journals or aren’t big on extravagance and complicated outlines, you’ll like this one. It’s incredibly simple and easy to follow.

There is a #1 goal for the day, then top 3 tasks, an additional to-do list, a daily affirmation, and a section for notes. So if your goal is to have a clear outline of tasks for your day and don’t want more than that, this will do the trick.

Because this journal is so straight-forward, it doesn’t take much time to fill in in the morning which means it’ll be great for people short on time who want to improve their productivity.

Another great feature is that it includes motivational quotes that can help inspire you to keep going.

The last great thing about this journal is that it’s super affordable and the cheapest one on this list. So if you don’t want to break the bank but want to try out a guided journal or improve your productivity on a budget, this is a great option.

So to summarize:

Top pros:

• Affordable
• Very straightforward and easy to use
• Doesn’t take much time to fill in

Top cons:

• If you like more in-depth journaling, this format may be too simple and insufficient for you
• There are no weekly or monthly reviews (could be a pro if you like things simple)

3. Productivity Planner

Next is this productivity planner. I actually bought this for my partner, and he said that he found it helpful for managing his time and tasks better.

This is one you’ll likely have to continue filling in throughout the day (unless you remember how long tasks took you and you fill it in at the end of the day). So, that could either be a good or bad thing depending on if you’re a person who likes to refer back to their journal throughout the day.

It’s very small so it’s incredibly travel-friendly if you like the idea of carrying it with you!

This guided journal is a bit more complex than the previous and has a bit more that needs to be filled in. It’s basically a journal meant to help with improving your task management.

It has space for identifying what tasks you need to get done, and a spot to write how long you THINK it’ll take and how long it actually took.

There is also a productivity scale for every day, along with weekly reviews/reflections and weekly planning. All this is meant to help you identify what is and isn’t working for you in terms of productivity and help you improve on managing your time better.

It’s a very visually simple but attractive journal, and it feels nice and luxurious when you hold it. It also has fun motivational quotes as well on almost every page!

Top pros:

• Travel-friendly
• Very meticulously written out so that you can actually identify issues/strengths in your task management
• High-quality materials

Top cons:

• Since it’s travel-friendly it may feel too small for some
• Having to refer to it throughout the day may be inconvenient for certain folks

4. The Morning Sidekick Journal

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here! 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here! 🙂

I’ve actually mentioned the Morning Sidekick Journal before in a previous post about guided journals, and I wanted to include it in here too. It is one of the most engaging and interesting journals on this list as it has daily challenges that are different every single day, keeping journaling fun and exciting (and making you more likely to stick with it).

Of course, it still also has a static tracking page for task management, which is just as important, but the challenges are refreshing.

Not only that, but it has actual tools, tips, and content (sometimes in the form of podcasts or videos) that help you learn how to manage your time better. So if you’re someone that wants a guided journal that actually teaches as well as offers a space to track your tasks, this is the journal for you.

Another thing I love about it is that it offers a space to write out distractions and things you’re grateful for. The former is important because it can help you become self-aware of what prevents you from being productive (and then fixing it), and the latter is important for general mental wellbeing.

You’re meant to follow this journal for 66 days STRAIGHT, however, the date entries are blank so you could skip a day if needed which makes it much more flexible.

And a final fun fact, this journal has been used by Olympians to help them achieve their goals which I think is pretty cool!

Top pros:

• Teaches you techniques on how to improve your productivity through various fun prompts and media forms
• Incredibly engaging with fresh content for each day while still offering the static tracking
• Offers flexibility despite it being sort of like a 66-day challenge

Top cons:

• Once you’ve finished it, you probably wouldn’t want to repurchase it as a lot of the journal is content rather than space for actual journaling (so it’s a great option for those who are struggling with productivity and need more guidance to start before going off and using a different journal with less content)
• It does take a bit more time and work than other journals on this list

5. Little More Daily Organizer

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here! 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here! 🙂

For all my bullet journal friends out there, this one’s for you.

Aside from some structural designs, the journal is pretty much blank, so you could organize it however you’d like- or you could follow the guidance of the journal creators for how to use it.

So you essentially get the skeleton for a productivity journal, but you have the liberty for organizing it in a way that suits you better.

There is also monthly planning on top of the daily planning, which can be really beneficial for folks that like having a bird’s eye view on what their month will look like and how to plan accordingly.

Some fun features with this journal are that there are fun stickers included which you can use to decorate and further organize your journal, and there’s a really pretty golden edge on the paper which makes the journal look really nice.

It also comes with a journal cover so if you’re a person who spills things a lot (talking to myself here), this could come in handy.

Top pros:

• Incredibly flexible and customizable
• LOTS of room to write
• Has a case for protecting your precious guided journal

Top cons:

• If you’re a person that needs much more guidance with journaling, this is not the one for you

6. Mindful Productivity Guide

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here! 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here! 🙂

This guided journal is simply a breath of fresh air!

It takes a much more mindful approach to productivity by not getting too caught up in the details and rather focusing on intention and goals.

The Mindful Productivity Planner has monthly, weekly and daily planning, so all your bases are covered.

It also has really fun features like success lists, gratitude lists, habit trackers, reflection and intention prompts, quotes, bucket lists, and more.

So as you can see, it encompasses a lot more than just tracking your daily goals.

Taking this type of approach to productivity can be really beneficial for folks that either value mindfulness, or need more of it because they stress too much.

It’s one of the only guided journals I have seen that takes up productivity through a mindful lens, so this one is definitely special.

Top pros:

• Takes a mindful approach to productivity which is rare to find
• Has a huge selection of prompts (monthly planning, weekly, planning, daily planning, reflections, habit trackers, gratitude lists, etc)
• Is beautifully designed

Top cons:

• If you just want to organize your day and that’s it, this journal will be too much for you
• You might need to buy it frequently as it does have so many varieties in prompts vs just “tasks of the day” pages

Best Guided Journals for Productivity Conclusion:

That about sums up our lovely guided journals for productivity!

If you’re having a hard time with time management, I strongly encourage you to consider getting a guided journal to help you improve!

However, don’t forget that being productive is not the MOST important thing in the world. Your health and happiness matter too.

So be kind to yourself when you can’t be productive, need a break, or can’t focus on your guided journal. Letting yourself rest is just as important, if not more than being a productive human.

I hope you found the journal of your dreams on this list and that it serves you well!

All my love,

T