How to get organised: Five secrets of success: Step 1. Write a list

by ParishHall

Simple tools; yellow highlighter, 2B pencil, eraser and a red pen. And a week-to-a-day diary.

We all need ticks for good work. Here's how to give yourself a tick for good work.
Five secrets of success.
First, write a list.
Second, decide what to do first.
Third, highlight that in yellow.
Fourth: Do the task on your list you have highlighted
Five: Then draw a line through it, and give yourself a tick. Simple. And it works.

I write things with action headings: such as Ponder, Talk About, or Buy.
After I have done the task on the list, I draw a line through it;
and then, give myself a tick.
To make your life simple, write a list. Write all the things on your mind. Start each item with an action word, like this:
Talk about - xyz; or
Ponder - abc; or
Write - xxxxx
Call - yyyyy

Communications tip: If you work from home, leave your diary lying about, open, at home, on the kitchen table, so others can see what's on your mind for the day and the week. You can also do this at work. It's a useful way of indirect communication.
You will need a home and work diary.
Leave the work one at work and the home one, at home.
Write in week to a day diary. That show one week to an opening.
Use a 2B pencil and an eraser.
And a yellow high lighter.
Use a rubber band to keep the pages from blowing over
Pin receipts and tickets in, with a pin.
I like the long dress-makers pins for this.
Sometimes, if I feel fancy, I use a red pen to give myself a tick. Or I will use the yellow highlighter to tell myself "work on this one, now".

Use a week to a day diary

Secret to an organised life.
You can find this kind of week to a day diary at stationery shops or online as financial or calendar year models..
You can find this kind of week to a day diary at stationery shops or online as financial or calendar year models..

I write my list for the day in a coffee bar at 8am

Old-fashioned, perhaps, but it works for me: I write in a paper diary, not an online diary. I like a brightly colored diary. Harder to lose. Maybe if I get an I-Phone perhaps I would consider changing to an online system.
But the thing I like about a diary - it costs little, is hard to lose and requires no 24 month payment plan. And you can pin receipts into it.

Receipts pinned to the page: When I get a receipt of any kind, I pin it to the page. To do this I like to use the long dress-makers pins with the coloured ends.

Rubber band marks the day: A big rubber band holds the day open. I put my 2B pencil under the rubber band. I sharpen it each day before I leave for the coffee bar. 

I like diaries with an account page for each month: I use this to keep a rough record of expenses. 

And contact list pages: This proves very useful when you drop or lose you mobile phone. 

 

A 2B pencil

What a 2B pencil looks like.
What a 2B pencil looks like.

Write a list. Do something on the list and give yourself a tick for good work.

Ticks form an important part of the system.
Good work!
Good work!

The art of the tick

Breaks the work into little units

We all need ticks for good work.

  • I write things with action headings: such as Ponder, Talk About, or Buy;  
  • after I have done the task on the list, I draw a line through it; 
  • and then, give myself a tick.   

Mind map of a very big idea

Try it. (see link below) You'll find it helps you to think out a problem.
I used the free trial at Mindmeister to create this mind map
I used the free trial at Mindmeister to create this mind map
Nice little online mind map tool

http://www.mindmeister.com/demo/229896731
Try this. It's fun and helps you think. And solve problems. Put in your central idea and them pop in new things as they come to you. You can see I have used it here to illustrate a "get organized" theme. I started with a very big idea: "What to do next". For the mind works, in curious ways.

Updated: 11/23/2012, ParishHall
 
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Rose on 03/05/2014

Lists do work - but I tend to make mine too long and get discouraged just looking at it. I really need to make a list of the five most important things I want to get done

katiem2 on 11/21/2012

I keep telling myself I need to develop the habit of making list. I go 100 miles an hour and sometimes forget what I meant to do here and there a thing or two. In the back of my mind I know It's a good practice. Thanks for the tips. :)K

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