Just leaving a note here

Diaries aren’t just about tracking goals. They're also scrapbooks and art canvases. So, who plans these planners?

- Kritika Kapoor

It'salmost 2026. The air is crackling with promise. A shinier version of ourselves feels just around the corner.

The one who wakes up early, goes to the gym, meditates, hydrates, moisturises, meets weekly work goals and keeps the plants alive. And what better symbol of this fantasy self than the first blank page of a brand-new diary? New Year planners are in shop windows, on Insta ads, in Secret Santa shopping baskets. Black, leatherbound, boring? No chance. It's possible to kick 2026 off in soothing pastels, with cute doodles already in the margins. Journals can have both, matte minimalism and loud florals. The inside can have productivity prompts, reflection check-ins, meditation cues, mood meters, finance trackers and mini-therapy exercises. And one page of stickers, because what's the point otherwise?

We've never Dear-Diaried harder, and the market knows it. Of course, we'll probably flake on them (like our goals) before January even ends. Or leave them untouched because they're too pretty to ruin. Or use once and realise we're not emotionally prepared for this level of self-reflection. So, what makes for a good journal? The answer involves - surprise, surprise - some degree of planning.