In an earlier blog post, I’ve raved about the project management tools I use to keep myself organized. 

Every entrepreneur has a phase when they fret about whether they’re organized enough or well enough. Countless resources place huge emphasis on planning. Though everyday reality is sometimes different, like things running off schedule, or client follow-ups taking longer than usual, it all needs to start from one place—a well-constructed plan. 

I use the Notion personal plan for my personal and business planning, and I want to help you use it efficiently as well. This blog post is not an in-depth guide to using Notion, but a resource to help you use it better with my template (which you can download at the end of this blog post).   

Notion is great, but it does take some getting used to. You can customize Notion to display the data in the way that works for you—check lists, calendar view, boards, and more! First off, think of how you want your information to look. You don’t have to use every feature on Notion, it can get overwhelming if you do. That’s why I’m giving you my Notion template, it’s simple enough to begin with. You can customize it how you want with linked databases and formulas, if you need.

Linked Databases 

Your projects aren’t always in secluded bubbles, very often you need to reference something from another project or link to it. This is where Notion’s linked databases are a life-saver. You can build a master table and put parts of that information in other blocks. You can make updates only in the master table. Optimizing the master table is crucial, it’s like building strong roots to keep the rest of the plant healthy. Watch this video on how to build a well-rounded master table. 

Formulas 

Like Excel and Google Sheets, Notion uses formulas. However, the formulas aren’t as identical as those used on Excel and Sheets, but easy enough to figure out if you’ve worked with them. Lucky us for, there’s an entire cheat sheet of formulas compiled by Adam Listek. If you want to get back to the basics of figuring out how formulas work on Notion, check out this article with videos. 

My Notion Template 

My template is an overall dashboard of your daily tasks and master to-do list, with sections for business development and client information.

When you click on ‘Business Development’, you’ll see I’ve divided the nitty-gritty business stuff into ‘Operations’, ‘Campaigns’, ‘Growth’. Under ‘Resources’ I have sorted out the image and content banks that I dive into for inspiration or tips, my favourite being stock photography. All things related to the back end of my business are listed under Program, Operations, and Growth to keep me on track with my business goals for the year. You can change the titles as per your business goals. 

In the ‘Client’ section, I have my client information divided into ‘Discovery Calls’ and ‘Clients’. The Discovery Call section has notes from… you guessed it! My discovery calls with clients. In the Clients section, I can view the progress each project is at and track tasks. I cluster all the information about clients projects on one board. I can put in my notes from client calls, and add in documents in many different formats like Google Drive Links and Dropbox files. 

You can change these details however you want that suits your mode of business and working style.

While Notion has a sleek user-friendly interface, I like to jazz it up with fun stuff. It’s evident from the lofi vibe videos, images, and GIFs on my template.  Here are some websites where you can source cute and efficient add-ons! 

• Icons8 has the same icon in different styles! The character and popular icons are free. 

• NotionEverything helps reduce the steepness of the learning curve of Notion. You can find the template you need tailored exactly for what you’re working on. 

• Indify makes customizable widgets exclusively for Notion. In this case, widgets are little additions like a progress bar or a quote generator. Simple to use, easy to customize and a great way to make your Notion feel more personal. 

• Who doesn’t love a GIF? Get a GIF of your favourite TV show scene or meme from Giphy and you’ll break a smile even when you’ve got a deadline breathing down your neck. 

• Pinterest has become a go-to visual guide for almost everything in our lives from apartment decor to even ideas on how to organize your Notion template!