Best Laid Plans

Latest Episodes:

Planning to Travel for Less with Kathleen Paley EP 264 Aug 18, 2025

Show notes

If you've ever been curious about how you can leverage your planning and organizing skills to help you save money, this episode is for you, especially if yo love to travel. Kathleen Paley is a litigator, mother of 2, and podcast host who loves saving and having fun with her family. She joins Sarah today to share her top 5 strategies for traveling on credit card points -- everything from which cards to start with, how to maximize point earnings, and how to spend most cost-effectively.
Please note: neither Sarah nor Kathleen are affiliated with any of the companies mentioned on the episode, and these strategies should only be employed if you are paying credit card balances off in full every month -- otherwise they will cost you money rather than offer savings!
Kathleen can be found at the Reframe Podcast and The Minimalish Mom on IG.

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint Mobile: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

5 Things (Other Than Planners) To Consider Carefully Heading Into Back-to-School EP 263 Aug 11, 2025

Show notes

In today's episode, Sarah shares her thoughts on 5 aspects of life to reflect on (other than planners!) as you head into the back-to-school season, whatever that means for you.

She provides a detailed overview of routines to think through / audit / consider tweaking, and then discusses sleep, communication strategies, mood management, and fun.

Share your favorite planners for kids/teens or best communication strategies with Sarah - email sarah.hart.unger@gmail.com or leave a comment at the show notes on theshubox.com!

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint Mobile: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ADHD or Neurodivergent? Two Planner Mini-Reviews For You! EP 262 Aug 04, 2025

Show notes

Sarah reviews two planners specifically designed to help those with different planning needs.

First, she discusses the Order Out of Chaos Planner, designed by ADHD parent and ADDItude Magazine columnist Leslie Josel. This planner is designed for students and might be particularly helpful for those with ADHD, though it could definitely serve other students well, too!

Link to the planners: https://ooocplanner.com/collections/academic-planners

Second, she reviews the Fast Brain Friend Daily Productivity Planner, described as "an intentional design for the neurodivergent mind" by creator Alanah Purtell. These are Australian monthly planners with varying (and somewhat unusual!) daily layouts as well as monthly + weekly planning tools.

Link to the planners: https://www.creatorsfriend.com.au/products/fast-brain-daily-productivity-planner-single

For some visuals, visit the show notes at theshubox.com.

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint Mobile: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Planner Peace + Efficiency Hacks from Seasoned Professor Sarah McConnell EP 261 Jul 28, 2025

Show notes

It's not QUITE back to school season, but depending on where you live, it may be closer than you think! In today's episode, Sarah interviews Sarah McConnell, a professor of anatomy and histology for undergrads, graduate students and med students. Professor Sarah McConnell shares own current planner peace lineup and functional system, and then provides some fantastic tips for others in academic, from using templates to leaving helpful breadcrumbs so that each year builds on past experience without friction.

Planner Sarah mentions: Proaction Planner https://www.alifemadesimple.com/proaction-planner/

BLP Review of Proaction Planner:
https://theshubox.com/2022/01/blp-ep-79-qa-proaction-planner-review.html

Newsletter: theshubox.com/newsletter
Courses: theshubox.com/courses

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mental Load Expert Allison Daminger Answers Your Burning Questions About Planning and Household Management EP 260 Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

In today's episode, sociology professor Allison Daminger joins Sarah for a fascinating discussion about mental load, division of labor, and the role of planning! She answers three great questions from listeners, tackling challenging questions about a partner not interested in long-range planning, a partner with little predictability to his job, and a partner with ADHD.

Find more from Allison and her book, The Mental Workload of Family Life, at her website: https://www.allisondaminger.com/book, and she can also be found on substack at https://allisondaminger.substack.com.

Submit your questions for Allison on the show notes page at theshubox.com!

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Real Talk: Podcast Behind the Scenes with Sarah EP 259 Jul 14, 2025

Show notes

In today's episode, Sarah shares some real behind-the-scenes podcast talk with listeners. She chats about how Best Laid Plans came to be, how she chooses guests, how she tracks podcast logistics, what she outsources, how she handles listener emails, and much more!

Visit her website, theshubox.com, if you haven't been for links to all of her prior episodes.

Newsletter: theshubox.com/newsletter
Courses: theshubox.com/courses
Books Read in 2025: theshubox.com/2025-books

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

July Q&A: Airtight Task Capture, Planning Time Away from Work, and More! EP 258 Jul 07, 2025

Show notes

In today's episode, Sarah answers accumulated questions for July!

Topics include:

Laurel Denise + Full Focus is too much -- what do use instead?
Task management (2 questions on various angles of this common challenge!) and how not to lose all of those great ideas that come to you that you want to see at the right time
Discussion of the Alistair Method for the listener struggling to fit tasks into an unpredictable schedule (details on this method here: https://bulletjournal.com/blogs/bulletjournalist/projects-the-alastair-method
Ways to structure/plan out a period of lighter work (sabbatical of sorts)

As mentioned early in the episode, Sarah's Mid-Year Check In is available for viewing -- great for those looking for a mid-year boost! This 1-hour guided mid-year planning session is available for instant viewing for anyone who purchases access to Planning 2026 (Sarah's 4 hour annual planning course, held in December/January).

Visit theshubox.com/courses for details!

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠ixl.com/plans⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to ⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit ⁠PrepDish.com/plans⁠ for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at ⁠mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mid-Year Check In: Tips & Sarah's Own Midyear Review EP 257 Jun 30, 2025

Show notes

In today's episode, Sarah shares rationale and ideas for completing your own mid-year check in session, where you take stock of where things are, look at annual goals, and decide how you'd like to move forward. She provides ideas for the setting/scope of this session, and then shares her very own mid-year check in - processing her own progress on the air!

If you are interested in a guided mid-year check in video that takes you through the process step by step, Sarah is offering this as part of BLP at Home: Planning 2026 this year! You can get access to this video by preordering BLP at Home for next year (4 hour guided planning experience divided into two sessions, taking place in Dec 2025/Jan 2026).

All details will be shared via newsletter (July edition out 7/1), so visit theshubox.com/newsletter to sign up!

Episode Sponsors

IXL: Learning doesn't have to stop in the summer! Best Laid Plans listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ixl.com/plans.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Head to greenchef.com/50BESTLAID and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

PrepDish: Healthy menu plans and prep instruction to take the mental load out of dinner! Visit PrepDish.com/plans for your first 2 weeks, FREE.

Mint: Affordable unlimited wireless! Get your new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for $15 a month at mintmobile.com/BLP

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

June Q&A: Planner Swapping, Partner/Friend Planning Dilemmas, Planning with Unpredictable Time Blocks, Planners for Tweens/Teens with ADHD, and More EP 256 Jun 23, 2025

Show notes

It's a Q&A podcast! Topics include:

- Ways to plan/manage tasks when your time is unpredictably chopped up (gig worker)?
- How to move into a new planner midyear?
- How to talk with a partner who feels your planning systems are over the top (and you feel like they are absolutely necessary for a functional family life)?
- How to handle a close friend or relative who refuses to make firm plans?
- Planner recs for a child with ADHD entering middle school

Keep your questions coming! Email sarah.hart.unger at gmail, leave a message on the show notes (theshubox.com) or reply to the newsletter!

Newsletter signups: theshubox.com/newsletter

EPISODE SPONSORS

IXL: Make an impact on your child’s learning, get IXL now. BLP listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Visit ⁠⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

Mint Mobile: Save this summer with a Mint Mobile Wireless plan! Get your summer savings and shop premium wireless plans at ⁠⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP⁠⁠⁠

PrepDish: Delicious and healthy plans to take the mental load out of planning dinner! Visit ⁠⁠⁠prepdish.com/plans⁠⁠⁠ for two weeks free!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Travel Planning: Strategic Planning + Anticipatory Fun at Every Time Horizon EP 255 Jun 16, 2025

Show notes

Today's episode centers around strategies for travel planning, from super-long range (5-10+ years) to daily planning while on vacation! Sarah shares her favorite strategies at each time horizon to craft travel plans that reflect your values and highest priorities, while meeting your actual real-life needs (budget, kids' ages, etc!).

Mentioned:
Kelsey's "The Years Are Short" sheet:
https://www.risingshining.com/2022/10/the-years-are-short-family-spreadsheet.html

Cameras (idea from Sarah Jedd, prior guest who blogs at harrytimes.com):
https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/shop/hybrid/camp-snap-screen-free-digital-camera

EPISODE SPONSORS

IXL: Make an impact on your child’s learning, get IXL now. BLP listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ⁠⁠ixl.com/plans⁠⁠.

Green Chef: Make this summer your healthiest yet with Green Chef. Visit ⁠⁠greenchef.com/50BESTLAID⁠⁠ and use code 50BESTLAID to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping.

Mint Mobile: Save this summer with a Mint Mobile Wireless plan! Get your summer savings and shop premium wireless plans at ⁠⁠mintmobile.com/BLP⁠⁠

PrepDish: Delicious and healthy plans to take the mental load out of planning dinner! Visit ⁠⁠prepdish.com/plans⁠⁠ for two weeks free!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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