What helps you keep your life on track and organized?

13 comments

1. Using planners and planning out my days and week down to a T. Setting reasonable goals and breaking down what I need to do to accomplish them.

2. Microsoft Outlook has a task reminder that will pop up and tell me what I have coming up and remind me the day of.

3. Keeping the number of things to track and organize as low as possible.

4. If I find out, I’ll let you know

5. Lists and calendar apps. I have a daily to do list and a general to do list. Anything with a specific date/time goes into the calendar. Also put reminders in the calendar and sometimes block off time to do specific things.

   My anxiety is good for making sure I get things done and arrive on time. The one benefit!

6. I use my phone as a second brain. As soon as a thought/idea/to do/to buy pops into my head, it goes into my notes app. At least once a day, I move everything out of that list to the appropriate spot. If it’s something I need to buy or get done, it goes in ToDoist, along with regular recurring tasks. If it’s an event or something I need to remember on a specific day, it does into Google Calendar. If it’s an idea or train of thought that I want to remember but don’t need to act on, it goes in a running Google Doc that is broken down into categories.

   I don’t rely on my brain to remember anything and I automate as much as I possibly can. Everything that needs to be done regularly, like water plants, do laundry, or even check in with family members is a recurring task. I set timers to remind me when to get ready for bed so I don’t lose track of time. My finances are tracked using Mint, and I have everything from bills to savings set up on auto pay. Every Friday, I have a task to check that auto pay went through and quickly review my spending.

7. Not working at home.
   I’m a college student and I suck at self discipline and can’t work at home. I just get distracted.

   So I’ll be in the library most weekdays till noon doing my stuff and it works out nicely.

   Taking breaks. Be it the whole day or the 2nd half of the day, it’s important.

   Having a good sleep schedule. When I get 8h sleep every night I have enough energy to power through the day and can pull an unscheduled allnighter without looking like a halloween decoration the following days.

8. Having to-do lists, using calendars to not have to remember anything, goal setting and planners

9. I have a diary, I use an app called Supershift which helps me keep on top of my work schedule, I also use Sticky Notes on my desktop and write to do lists on this, paper and on the notes in my phone so I don’t forget things.

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11. My bullet journal.

12. My life moves really fast – there is a lot going on. What helps me keep up is to immediately add items to my calendars (I have work, personal, and academic). If my friend tells me she has a surgery scheduled – I’ll pull up my calendar and add a note for that day. Same with work deadlines, personal appointments, friends and family birthdays or vacations, class assignments, etc.

    Also, admin day!! Usually on a Saturday morning, go to a coffee shop with a list of all your annoying tasks (like register for a parking pass, schedule doctor appointment, do your budgeting, pay parking tickets, etc.) Spend a few hours completing the tasks and just tying up all the loose ends of your life.

13. Keeping my home picked up and tidy. The moment that goes, I am in shambles.