It’s Monday morning and the amount of projects you have to get done this week or number of meetings you have to attend is paralyzing. Okay, maybe that’s a little dramatic, but there are days you come into work and may not know where to start. This causes you to spin your wheels wasting valuable time. Try some of these strategies to get your projects and tasks organized.
Note reminders – This is a popular way to create a list or reminders of tasks to do. The physical sticky notes are nice to stick to a notebook, on a wall by your desk or even on your computer monitor to serve as an ever-present reminder of things that need to be done. They can be easily removed, added to or, my personal favorite, checked off to show what has been completed. However, in the age of technology, if you prefer not to have sticky notes draped around your workspace, most computers offer note programs that allow you to post a digital sticky note onto your desktop.
Planner or paper calendar –A planner or calendar can be carried with you into a meeting or in your workbag, allowing you to easily access and visualize deadlines or timelines. With a range of sizes to chose from, physical planners and calendars give you ample opportunity to organize important dates.
Email calendar & tasks synced to your phone – An email calendar is a great way to set reminders at specific times when a meeting or task due date are coming up. Additionally, we all are typically carrying our phones with us, so having the ability to sync our calendar straight to our phone gives us the ability to get reminders on the go.
Files for each customer or client you work with – As you work with customers and clients, the information you share with each other grows exponentially. Keeping this information organized can begin to become difficult. To keep this wealth of information organized, create a personal file for each of these customers, both in a file cabinet and digitally. This way when something from a previous project is referenced, you can quickly pull out their file and find what you need.
A final note on organizing tasks; give realistic timeframes. If you look at your sticky note or calendar and see a particular time is busy, express this and work to set a timeline that can be accomplished. At times, you may not be able to adjust a deadline, so work on a priority basis and complete the tasks with the most priority first. However, if there is flexibility, give a realistic timeline, because it’s better to deliver before the deadline than late.
The key to staying organized is to find what works for you and follow it – even if your workstation is covered in neon sticky notes.
What organization strategies do you use to stay ahead of the game?
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