Write it Down!
by Rachel Paxton
Daily planners, electronic organizers,
post-it notes, lists...they're all ways to keep track of your daily
schedule. And I've tried them all! I don't know why I've been resistant to
writing things down. I start on a new system for a week or two and then
I'm back to trying to juggle everything in my head again.
So what's the easiest way to keep track
of your schedule? After looking for the fool-proof way to keep my daily
activities straight, I finally realized that my problem wasn't that I
hadn't found the perfect organizing solution, the problem was that I
didn't want to take the time to write things down.
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After realizing the source of my
stumbling block, I understood that I was just giving in to the urge to
trust my own memory. I didn't want to admit that I couldn't keep
everything straight in my head anymore.
I never thought I'd be a mom who was
working, carpooling, attending meetings, volunteering...it's enough to
drive any sane person insane!
To keep my activities in order, I now use
a combination of a daily planner and a large desktop calendar. The point
is not how I'm doing it, but that I have a system.
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The daily planner keeps track of phone
calls to make, lunch dates, meetings, appointments, and other
activities. This calendar is for personal, family, volunteering, and
church-related activities. I make notes of items I plan to accomplish
each day and/or week, and then check them off as they are completed.
This planner fits in my purse and includes phone numbers, addresses, and
dates I want to remember. I use a daily planner for one year and then
replace it with a new one. The old one is filed for future reference.
The desktop calendar organizes
work-related activities. On my work calendar I keep track of phone calls
to make, reports to issue, appointments to schedule. I know when time
cards need to be filled out, and what day to water the plants. I know
who is scheduled for training when, and what invoices need to be
approved, and on what day. I can look at a month at a glance, and at the
end of the month, regularly scheduled activities are transferred to the
next month. The calendar for the previous month is folded up and filed
for future reference.
Ever since I have been writing things
down I have found my life is so much more organized. My brain got tired
when I tried to remember everything myself. Now I write things down as I
think of them and check them off as I complete them. When I'm tired and
can't think my organizers remember for me.
About the Author
Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and
mom who is the owner of Organized-mom
, featuring the Easy Organizer, loaded with tools to help you plan,
schedule, remember events, keep in touch, get your family on an
organized schedule, prioritize, and more.
© All Baby 'n Kids 2004
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