I always felt like when my kids started school, I’d have an abundance of time and that getting things done would be easy.
Wrong.
I still have to grocery shop, do laundry, run a business, plan Sunday school lessons, and more. And I’m still disorganized. So the past month or two, I’m on a mission to improve this about myself. I’m on a mission to become more organized and to practice self-discipline, and I’m finding there are a lot of tools and strategies out there that are helping me a lot. So I thought I’d share a few.
- Family Binder This is still a work in progress, but so far I really like the idea of having a binder with all family and household information in it, from a shopping list and menu plan, to medical information, to schedules, etc. There are a ton of resources online with suggestions, but you really just have to play around with it to make it work for your family. My favorite find has been this Daily Docket from Simple Mom. I love it and it’s amazing and it helps me SOOO MUCH. I print one off for each weekday and make my lists first thing in the morning.
- The One Minute Rule I came across this in an issue of Good Housekeeping. The one minute rule is simply this: “Any task that can be finished in less than one minute is something I must do. Hang up my coat, read a letter and toss it, put my umbrella away, answer an e-mail, note down a citation, pick up my phone messages, file a paper, put a cup in the dishwasher, put the magazines away...and so on. Because the tasks are so quick, it isn’t too hard to make myself follow the rule — and I get big results.” (Read more of the article here.)
- Google Calendar has been incredibly helpful in managing our family's schedule. At any given moment, I can view my work calendar, school calendar, and my husband's calendar. I even have a meal plan calendar so that planning is easier. (Include the links to your recipes in your calendar to make meal time even easier!) I also hear wonderful things about Cozi, which not only manages calendars, but to do lists, shopping lists, etc.
- Evernote I feel as though I've only just begun to discover the merits of Evernote, but so far I love it. It's basically a digital file cabinet that you have on you at all times that can include photos, documents, voice memos, lists, and more. Also, when I receive emails (bills, emails from clients, etc.), I can just forward them directly to my Evernote to be filed. Pretty awesome!
I’d love to hear how you do it. I have so many women in my life whom I admire and know that I could learn a lot from, so please share!
