I don’t know about you all, but I struggle to stay organized on a daily basis. I wear a lot of hats, and what works while I’m in homeschooling mom mode doesn’t necessarily work when I’m keeping track of numerous appointments. And all of that is completely different from staying focused on what I’m writing.
I’m one of those people who likes to be organized, and someone who absolutely has to write everything down. If it’s not written down, half the time it doesn’t get done. I’m also a huge fan of check lists.
In addition to a large desktop calendar, I thought I’d share some of my favorite tools that I rely on every day to stay organized.
Planners – These Do It All Planners are magnificent. Not only are they good for seventeen months, but they have plenty of space each week to keep track of everything, tear-off shopping and to-do lists in the back, and a bunch of stickers to use on the month-long calendar pages that are included. I actually keep two of these at my side. The Mom Planner is used for all things kids and appointments. The top row is for appointments and activities, the next row down is to keep track of our son’s school and seizure activity, and the third row our daughter’s home school studies. That leaves three more rows to use however needed.
Then I have a second one dedicated strictly to keeping my writing organized (and yes, I added a Wonder Woman sticker to the cover). In this planner, I keep track of important dates coming up, newsletter schedules, book promotions and releases, word counts, and more. Not only are they great for keeping me on track now, but I keep the old ones to look back and see what I might have done this time last year with a book.
Word Count Pages – I keep track of my words written when I’m working on a new book. I usually just write them down at the end of the day in my planner, but this time around, I tried something new. I made a diagram to color in with each 500 words added to the book. This has been a lot of fun, and I think I’ll be doing this for my future books as well.
Rocketbooks – Some of my absolute favorite tools are my Rocketbooks. If you haven’t heard of these before, they are fabulous notebooks. I toyed with the idea of ordering these for some time before my husband bought them for me. When combined with Frixion pens, it’s perfect for perfectionist note-takers like me. LOL I love that I can erase anything I write by using the erasers on the pens. There’s an application that I’ve downloaded to my phone that makes taking pictures of these pages easy and automatically e-mails them or uploads them to an appropriate folder in my Dropbox. Once I’ve taken pictures, I can then dampen a cloth that comes with the notebooks and easily wipe away all writing, giving myself fresh pages to start over with.
These Rocketbooks are wonderful because I no longer have to keep track of six other notebooks or remember which one I wrote something down in. I’m one of those people who always uses pencils because, if I mess up stuff on a page, I need to be able to correct it, otherwise I have to start over again. Being able to easily make changes, take a photo of my notes, and then start over with a clean page makes all of my little OCD tendencies so much easier to deal with. lol
Google Calendar – Finally, I rely heavily on my Google calendar online for any and all appointments. Reminders are sent to my phone 30 minutes before the appointment (or earlier, if necessary) to keep me on track.
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What about you? Do you have certain tools that you rely on to keep you organized? Answer below, and you’ll be entered for a chance to win a $5.00 Amazon gift card. A winner will be chosen randomly on Saturday, March 2nd and contacted through e-mail.
Melanie D. Snitker is a USA Today Bestselling Author who writes inspirational and sweet romance novels. She and her husband live in the beautiful Texas Hill Country with their two children who keep their lives full of adventure. They share their home with two dogs, a guinea pig, two lizards, and four frogs. In her spare time, Melanie enjoys photography, reading, baking, computer games, and hanging out with family and friends.
I have a kitchen calendar with large squares. It’s great for writing up appointments and notes.
Hi Melanie- wow, that is a lot to keep track of! We have a calendar that hangs up in the kitchen, it has large squares and I write our family appointments, birthdays, catch-ups etc on that. I have a digital daily planner to keep track of work stuff, but also use post it notes for immediate to-do lists.
Blessings:)
I try to put everything in my calendar on my phone.
I have a large calendar that I use and it really helps.
Hi Melanie! Thanks for sharing your organizational tips. As a busy mom, pastor’s wife and teacher, for years I kept organized with a wall calendar and two a pocket calendar in my purse. I still have both, but also use google calendar for my phone. When working to keep my sanity – every Sunday night on a legal pad I made a to do list, which listed the weeks appointments and major events for my classes. This was crucial for the sandwich years when I added carrying for my parents appointments and bill paying to the mix of my own home, church, and school activities and responsibilities. Some habits are hard to break, even as a retiree I still plan out my week in a spiral notebook, which I keep for a year. I track my reading in this notebook. Interesting blog. Best wishes with your son. Rejoicing that life is looking up for him and your family.
Hi Melanie. I use a pocket calendar that I keep in my purse and I keep a calendar posted on side or my refrigerator. I write in pencil too! I also use a dry erase board in our home office that I section off into days of the week and write Dr. appts and business appts on for the current week. Helps to know at a glance times that are already taken when scheduling future appts for the week.
Blessing
I love planners. I have to stop myself from buying tons of them :) right now we only have two: I have a bullet journal for all the hat scheduling and then a wipe off marker calendar on the kitchen wall that I use to communicate big things with the family (they’re in the bullet journal too, but o don’t need everyone paging through that to see what’s happening today ;) )
No tools. Just a brain that tells me everything I need to do all the time. Yesterday I started out raking and burning the mess from the winter and high winds. The wind started blowing so I went in and cleaned up the garage and yes, mopped the floor as it has epoxy on it. Then I have my canning closet in the garage and I took out all the empty jars we ate from this winter and boxed them up and ended up rearranging all the other canned goods, from that I cleaned my car, then supper and dishes. When I sat down all I could think of was what I didn’t get done. Haha
I absolutely love my planners and could not do without them! Plus I use journal notebooks, and pens, oh my, I have all sorts of colored pens and highlighters to keep straight! I also use my emails to keep me organized, tons of folders in my emails, lol!!
I bought beautiful planners for years but never kept them up. I still stop and admire them in stores and force myself to leave them on the rack, because I know myself by now.
I have two wall calendars, one in my writing area and one on the kitchen wall. Both have my hubby’s nontypical work schedule marked on them and appointments and vacations and big things we both need to track. The one in my writing area also keeps online webinars etc organized. Anything coming up SOON goes on the whiteboard on the fridge.
I have a Word document called Running To Do that is nearly always open on my screen. The first page (or so) consists of the big things on deck for any given month, like the date of my next Inspy Romance post and its subject as soon as I decide. When it’s written and scheduled, I change the font color to medium gray – I can still read the line, but it’s not jumping out at me like the lines that are still red, green, and blue!
I also have a Scrivener folder with the million bits of information that I need to keep handy but aren’t necessarily on the running to do list. Scrivener is a great program that allows nested documents that are easy to move around. I use it for my writing, but also for things like this.
Never really got used to an online calendar. I’m not sure why. Maybe because I already have a system that works, even though it’s multi-faceted?
My phone calendar is how I make sure I make any appointments, I would be lost without it.
Hi Mary! Oh, those big calendars for the kitchen with large squares are always wonderful!
Hi! Those large calendars for the kitchen are great. I forgot that we have one of those as well, but it’s more there for my son to see and keep track of things himself than for me. I love the pictures on it, though!! Post-It notes are a great idea! Thanks so much for sharing!
Those notifications the phone sends out are gold, aren’t they?
Thanks for sharing, Lori! Those large calendars are definitely helpful.
Good morning. Good post. Yes , I have a calendar where everything goes on. I have a note pad in my sewing room of what I want to accomplish and when. My husband is a techy, so he recently had a calendar put on his tablet and had me put the same one on my tablet, so we could be “on the same page”. Sigh, I really do forget about the tablet one. But I am trying to make it a habit that every time I put something that is pertinent to him, it goes on the tablet calendar. A work in progress.
Thanks for sharing, Renate! You have some great ways to keep things organized and on track. I think it’s great you’re still planning out your week in a spiral notebook. I used notebooks for years, and even thinking about it now, I remember the feel and smell of them. I do miss that part of using my Rocketbooks! Thanks so much for your wishes for our son, and for rejoicing with us! It’s been a long road, and we’re glad to see things finally improving. <3
Thanks for sharing, Pat! The use of a white board is a fantastic idea. Yes, I have to use something that can be erased because no matter how hard we try, plans are always changing. Isn’t that so the way life is? LOL
Hi Everyone! I’m out the door to my son’s appointment but will be back later this morning to respond to all of your comments. Didn’t want you to think I’d forgotten about you! <3
I struggle to stay organized as well. My google calendar is synced with my work and family appointments and keep me on track. The notifications help me as well. I don’t know what I did before it lol
I struggle with organization myself. My calendar is on my phone and the alerts are fantastic. My best organizational item at home is the triple laundry sorter. You have a place for lights & darks together, whites and towels. I wish it could be a four bin sorter, but there is barely room for the triple sorter. At least everything is basically sorted out.
I’ve started using a Bullet Journal this year. I’m still struggling to remember to look at my schedule, but it is helping as I create the weekly calendar’s.
I rely totally on my Google calendar. If it is not on there, it won’t get done. :-)
I’ve heard great things about bullet journals, but have never tried one myself. The wipe-off calendar in the kitchen is a great idea!
Wow, sounds like a busy – and windy – day yesterday. It’s hard not to think about all the things we didn’t do even after a largely-productive day, isn’t it?
Oh, all the fun pens are great, aren’t they? I love those!! Good point about folders in your e-mails, I have a bunch of those, too!
Oh, I love your idea of having an open Word document for to-do items and things like that. What a great way to jot things down when you think of them – like the ideas for your next post, etc. Then changing the font color. I’m going to have to remember that!
I use these planners I get, but I don’t think I would use planners I had to set up first, though. Mine definitely has to be ready to go! LOL
I would be lost without my phone and the reminders as well!
Thank you, Lorie. My husband and I do use the same online calendar, but I admit it took me a while to get used to it as well. It’s nice now, though, because we can keep track of each other’s appointments that way. LOL
Hey, Michelle! Oh, I agree with you. If it weren’t for my Google calendar and it letting me know when something is coming up, I’d miss so many appointments. LOL
The triple laundry sorter would be a great idea! I’ll bet that really saves on time – what a great idea!
The Bullet Journals look so neat! It seems like it takes quite a bit to set it up – is that true? Or is it pretty easy to do?
Yes!! Google calendar is a life-saver for me too. Thanks for responding, Betty!
I use the calendar on my phone for appointments and a pretty wall calendar at home to remember birthdays. At work I keep a running “to do” list on paper which I update every couple of days.
I have to write everything down too. Nothing fancy, just ones picked up at the store. I use my yearly planner for everything – appointments, bills, birthdays/holidays, etc. – and just anything I want to remember. I save them as well and compare from year to year. My pocket planner I use more for doctor appointments and symptoms and illnesses. I always have my ongoing grocery list and, of course, my kitten wall calendar in the kitchen.
I had always used pens for work and home until I started homeschooling and then I started using a mechanical pencil. Planning and recording involves a lot of erasing. I got so used to them, I’ve kept it up and use them for just about everything now.
I have a weekly spreadsheet I made, for every half-hour each day that I’m awake. I fill it in every Sunday with non-negotiables, and then I add “would-like-to-do” tasks throughout the week. If I don’t get something done one day, I move it over to the next.
Hi Melanie! I use Google calendar plus an app called Remember the Milk. I love them, but I think half of my brain now lives in my phone. :)
I have a smaller day planner notebook kind of thing for weekly lists and dates. I have a large calendar in the kitchen with gorgeous bird photos that all appointments, birthdays, grandkid schedules that I need to know go on.
Wall calendars in the kitchen and in my office plus my phone calendar..ALL help me keep up with appointments, etc.!
I try to put everything on my planner.
That sounds like a great combination, Ellie!
Hi Linda! Using a mechanical pencil is a great idea. Erasers are super important, in my opinion lol Your kitty wall calendar made me smile. Love kitties!
How interesting! That’s a really good idea. You know, when I was homeschooling my son, I had very specific blocks of time set up for us and that did work very well. I guess we went more laid back now, but it’s still very effective!
Hi, Sally! I’ve used that application before, and it is wonderful. Yeah, sometimes it’s scary how much I rely on my phone for things!
Sounds like a great way to stay organized. I’ll bet the bird calendar is fun to see!
Sounds like you’ve got a great system going, Jackie!
Planners are great – especially when they have lots of room in them!
Hi Melanie! Thanks for sharing. Im going to check out Rocket books. Sounds amazing.
I have a pocket calendar in my purse that is usually the master calendar. Then there’s a calendar with big squares by the phone in the kitchen, by my desk in the bedroom upstairs, and by my desk downstairs :-) They don’t always get updated. I didn’t have a smart phone until this year, so haven’t converted over to using the phone calendar yet.
I have a calendar on the wall in my kitchen where I write down my doctor appointments for my husband because that is where he will look first. Even though I do have some addresses in my contact list on my phone I still have an old-fashioned address book and I have another smaller address book devoted to my passwords, etc. Never thought that I would need to keep track of passwords but almost everything requires one now. I have been fortunate in getting books to review so I have a day planner to remind me when those reviews are due.
I just use the calendar on my phone for every day type of appointments and such. I use the notes section on my phone to keep track of any lists I need to make. Our homeschool plans are supposed to be in my homeschool planner, but I’m not always great at keeping that up to date.
My huge color-coded calendar on our kitchen wall and my color-coded Google calendar for family and kid activities, and my Outlook calendar for all my book reviews.
I have two calendars to keep track off. One fits in my purse, so it can go everywhere with me, so I can keep track of appointments for myself and my Mom. My other is a planner, where I keep both of our appointments, plus all of the appointments I have for my work as an insurance agent. When I have webinars, when I have client appointments, etc. Keeping them both can be a pain, but I have to make sure they’re both up-to-date so I don’t schedule wrong!! Heaven help me when one of her doctor’s changes an appointment we had scheduled for 2 months at the last minute! Then, I’m counting everything out (again!) to make sure we don’t have to change something else!
I’m an Exec Assistant so I have to keep my supervisor organized and I do a good job of it! However, my inbox is a different story! It’s more important to make sure his is up to date than that mine is. lol
I use an outlook calendar as well as a paper planner at work. At home, I like a wall calendar where I can see the month at a glance and know which days/evenings we have events. I also use my phone calendar.
I just really love using spreadsheets, and some times I’ll also use a notebook/agenda. But, wow! I really loved your Rocketbooks!!
i use a calender app on my phone
I love using a personal planner to stay organized!
I like the chart to color in and I will have to try that, I am a planner type of girl myself.
Big one and smaller one for in my purse too.
Linda Marie Finn
Faithful Acres Books
I bought Rocketbooks for my kids for Christmas! They’re so fun.
Unfortunately, I’m not a very organized person. A planner usually gets ignored by the middle of the year. The calendar on my phone helps me, though!
I use my big kitchen calendar and lots of notepads. Honestly I keep a lot of stuff in my head, and my husband always checks with my mental cslendsr before making plans. My sonnis a toddler now, once we have school stuff for him as well I may need to get a family whiteboard.
I also need to write everything down! And it’s different hand writing and “cellphone writing”. I have a planner and use it a lot, my sister doesn’t believe that I still write most things on paper but it’s just different and I can organize my thoughts better.
I use reminders on my phone for things that I can’t absolutely forget so I can set an alarm for it.
I’ve never heard of Rocketbooks! I’m not good with planners lol
So far, keeping everything in my head :) hey, it works!
I have a calendar on my kitchen wall where I post all my Drs. appointment so I don’t forget!
I am always keeping track of tasks using Google Calendar, Google Tasks, and just plain old paper (sometimes I try to organize things into categories so they make sense and I can figure out priorities in my head…). I’ve tried creating excel docs with columns for different kind of tasks (personal, home, kids, husband, professional contacts, project 1, project 2, project 3.. project N).. also tried KanbanFlow.com for that, but plain paper usually wins (for what I have to do immediately) and I just stick it to the wall behind my work computer. For everyday meetings and keeping track of new tasks, Google stuff wins everytime.
They really are awesome!
Hi Margaret! Those pocket calendars are wonderful. It does take a while to get used to the phone calendars.
Thanks for sharing, Connie! Sounds like you have a lot of great ways to keep track of everything. I think an old-fashioned address book is a fabulous idea. I need to do the same!
Using your phone to make lists is a great idea, too, Melynda!
Sounds like you’ve got everything nicely organized. Thanks for sharing!
Wow, that’s a lot to keep track of, Trudy! I’m glad you’ve got things set up so well!
Those inboxes are so hard to keep cleared out. I used to be really good at it, but not so much lately. It’s on my to-do list LOL
Spreadsheets are a good idea! Yeah, the Rocketbooks are wonderful. They are a little spendy (I thought about getting them for quite some time before my husband actually bought them for me lol). But they are so worth it!
The reminders they send are so helpful!
Thanks for sharing, Chanel. Personal planners are great!
The color chart has been fun. I’m going to create one for my next book, too, I think. A smaller planner for your purse is a great idea!
The phone calendars are awesome because they are with us everywhere! I’m sure your kids loved the Rocketbooks – what a great idea for a gift!
If I tried to keep track of things in my head, I’d be in so much trouble. LOL Thanks for sharing, Mandy!
Yes! I have this need to write it down. Even though I rely on those reminders on my phone, I have to see it written down somewhere.
That’s awesome! Yeah, I can’t keep it all in my head, I’ll forget something. Or a lot of things LOL
That’s a great place to keep a big calendar!
Thanks for sharing, Priscila! I like the idea of using Excel, but I don’t think I’d keep up with it for whatever reason lol
I have a 3 yr check book size calendar with pages for notes that is with me ALWAYS! Using the calendar on my iPhone/iPad SEEMED ideal, but they didn’t always sync up right away & I’m REALLY GOOD at triple scheduling myself. LOL The iNotes is a lifesaver – I’m a Note Girl. Unfortuneately, I’m extremely good at losing paper notes (or leaving lists at home), so it’s handy to have notes on my phone.
I have to make a list of things to do and mark off to stay on track.