Get a Master's in Organization
I love, love, love to be organized and more importantly buy new school supplies in order to reach maximum organization. I have compiled a few pointers help you start your own organization journey.
Why do you need to be organized?
This may sound like a stupid question but it can actually be really vital. Ask yourself: 'Why do I need to be organized?' Is it for school? work? finances? recipes? whatever it is pin down a definite term for it and move forward from there. You may find that you need to get organized in more than one way. For example: I need to keep my school stuff organized as well as my information on clubs, internship searches and I like to keep recipes I like organized as well.
How do I work best?
Once you have determined what you need to get organized, now it is time to determine how do you best work. It can be different from issue to issue as well. For example: I detest doing reading textbooks and articles on my computer, so I print them out or buy the book. I feel like I am distracted when I am reading something on a screen. I like to be able to highlight and put a whole mess of sticky notes all over my work. However I use programs like Evernote or Excel to keep my recipes in order or all the notes from clubs in one place. If you have never heard of Evernote, I would really recommend checking it out. It is free to create an account and you have a sort of virtual notebook to keep everything in order. You can even import stuff from online into your notebooks. It is very handy with sharing notes from clubs, I can just send someone my minutes from a meeting to keep everyone informed and on the same page.
Create your organized space.
Alright now the fun part. Get your materials and however you decided to keep in organized--- just go to town! Create color-coded folders! Download Evernote and make a notebook for every recipe category possible! Get those highlights and sticky notes in an order! Make a real effort to keep your organized space organized. It is easy to get sloppy, make quick actions so that your once organized space becomes a total chaos.
Forgive yourself.
If this is your first real attempt at getting organized, then you will mess up. I still fall into periods of unorganized-ness and I am still perfecting my organization skills. It seems that as technology progresses, I may have to adjust my organization system and that's okay! Embrace the change. Embrace the chaos. The earlier you recognize that your system is slacking, the sooner you will get back on track.
Why do you need to be organized?
This may sound like a stupid question but it can actually be really vital. Ask yourself: 'Why do I need to be organized?' Is it for school? work? finances? recipes? whatever it is pin down a definite term for it and move forward from there. You may find that you need to get organized in more than one way. For example: I need to keep my school stuff organized as well as my information on clubs, internship searches and I like to keep recipes I like organized as well.
How do I work best?
Once you have determined what you need to get organized, now it is time to determine how do you best work. It can be different from issue to issue as well. For example: I detest doing reading textbooks and articles on my computer, so I print them out or buy the book. I feel like I am distracted when I am reading something on a screen. I like to be able to highlight and put a whole mess of sticky notes all over my work. However I use programs like Evernote or Excel to keep my recipes in order or all the notes from clubs in one place. If you have never heard of Evernote, I would really recommend checking it out. It is free to create an account and you have a sort of virtual notebook to keep everything in order. You can even import stuff from online into your notebooks. It is very handy with sharing notes from clubs, I can just send someone my minutes from a meeting to keep everyone informed and on the same page.
Create your organized space.
Alright now the fun part. Get your materials and however you decided to keep in organized--- just go to town! Create color-coded folders! Download Evernote and make a notebook for every recipe category possible! Get those highlights and sticky notes in an order! Make a real effort to keep your organized space organized. It is easy to get sloppy, make quick actions so that your once organized space becomes a total chaos.
Forgive yourself.
If this is your first real attempt at getting organized, then you will mess up. I still fall into periods of unorganized-ness and I am still perfecting my organization skills. It seems that as technology progresses, I may have to adjust my organization system and that's okay! Embrace the change. Embrace the chaos. The earlier you recognize that your system is slacking, the sooner you will get back on track.
your little mouse
I graduated pharmacy school 3 years ago but still find ways to buy calendars and pens to organize my days, weeks, month, and year. :D
ReplyDeletethat's awesome! Colored pens are absolutely wonderful!
DeleteThis is a refreshing piece for those looking to organize themselves. Finding out how you work best is the key step to get organized. You could definitely learn from other people but what works for them might not work so well for you and vice versa. And yes, embrace the chaos :)
ReplyDelete