It’s no secret that I’m a fan of Danielle LaPorte’s Desire Map, so when I had the chance to test drive the Desire Map Planner, I was all over it!
If you’re not familiar with LaPorte, she’s a bestselling author and on Oprah’s Super Soul 100.
The basic premise of the The Desire Map says that when you know how you want to feel (aka your core desired feelings), it’s much easier for you to get where you want to go. Think of it as setting “goals with soul” as they are deeply rooted to how you want to feel. After all, what’s the point in accomplishing anything in life if you’re miserable doing it?
The planner itself is based on the idea that you’re going to “do” in order to feel the way you want to feel, and that’s at the heart of the planning you’ll do in this planner.
Planner Specs
The Desire Map Planner I chose to review is the daily edition as I like to have one day per page for my planning. The planner itself is spiral bound, which I love, and is fairly compact. It’s a good mix of being big enough that you’ve got room for each day, but not being so huge that you’re lugging it around.
The planner is 380 pages total, measures 9.5″ x 7.5″ and weighs about 2 lbs.
It’s gold coil bound, features a hardcover and includes a an elastic closure band. It’s the perfect marriage of durability and looking good, while being functional for day-to-day use.
My Test Drive
I put the planner to the test during a busy week in January where I had a lot going on work-wise including lots of scheduled calls/events, along with a focus on daily habits for taking care of my mind and body.
I didn’t leave the house much that week so I toted my planner around the house with me. I tend to roam throughout the day and my planner was light enough not to be annoying.
What I Loved About This Planner
Hands down, my favorite thing about the Desire Map Planner was that the focus was not just on the hustle, but making sure my day was aligned with what I really wanted out of my life.
The planner starts off with a section on “What I Will Do to Feel the Way I Want to Feel in 2017”. In this section, it goes through your Core Desired Feelings, and your major intentions and goals for the year. Having a place to write these down that I can refer to all year long, and see daily, was a big win for me. I’ve referred back to it several times since I started using the planner.
In this intro section, there’s a page for what you’ll do to fulfill your goals and intentions for 2017 and I started a list there which I have actually referred to as things came up. One of my Core Desired Feelings is Freedom, and to support that I need to do less and say no – so when I get weak on that, I flip back to this section.
At the beginning of each month, there’s a “monthly check-in” that lets you map out what you want to focus on for the month in terms of your desired feelings, intentions and what you’ll do. There’s a large notes page too which gives room for anything you want to note – I’ve used this as an area for my random ideas.
Next up are the details in this planner. They are amazing. From the #truthbombs at the bottom of each day’s page, to the perforated pages with words on them that you can tear off to keep your post, little things abound in this planner.
In the daily edition, every week day gets a full day, and then the weekends are on a single page. That works great for me as I tend not to use my planner on the weekends.
The daily pages have consistent sections including: core desired feelings, soul prompt, schedule, 3 things, stop doing, want to change and gratitude. There are little “daily inspiration statements” with each section and these change throughout the week. Again, the details here help make the planning experience more engaging. I found myself circling the reminders as they spoke to me.
Fun Extras in the Desire Map Planner
A fun extra in this planner is the inclusion of US, Canadian and Australian holidays. Being Canadian means that was a win as I don’t have to remember when our specific Canadian holidays fall.
Plus, the calendar includes astrology events from the Tarot Lady Theresa Reed (who is amazing if you’re into that type of thing) to help you keep track of the “woo” like when it’s that pesky Mercury Retrograde.
The planner also includes a 2017 and 2018 overview so if you like to look ahead, you’ve got that right at your fingertips.
There’s a pocket at the back of the planner too, so if you like to keep stickers or other items with your planner, you can. I don’t really see that I would use that as I don’t want to add bulk to the planner.
Items of Note
If you’re not familiar with the Desire Map, you may be wondering if you can use this planner and the answer is yes – you can. There’s an intro at the start of the planner that explains how to use the planner and it gives you a run down on desire mapping.
I struggled a bit for the first few days as the schedule part of the daily pages doesn’t include times and I needed to write them in. If you schedule a lot into your days, you may find you don’t have enough space. (Or if you have big printing like I do!)
With 8 different sections on the page, it may be overwhelming if you’re not really into it and aren’t one to really reflect or set an intention. That said, I did find that some days, even if I didn’t use a section, it was still a powerful reminder that I had choices. For example, I didn’t fill in “stop doing” or “want to change”, but it did keep the idea that I could stop or make a different choice at the forefront, especially on days that get a little cray cray.
Overall, I found I did use the My Core Desired Feelings section by writing in how I wanted to feel that day. It was a good way to get clear in the morning on how I wanted my day to go. It’s a small act, but for me at least, it brings more space and calm to my day.
If you’re looking for a planner that’s about more than to-dos and schedules and, quite frankly, endless hustle, the Desire Map Planner Daily Edition may be the right planner for you. This planner will help you put your soul on the agenda.
The planner currently is priced at a very affordable $44.00 and is available through Danielle Laporte’s website.
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