I typically role my eyes at advice regarding improved productivity because it's all such obvious solutions. "Have a calendar." "Plan ahead for the week." "Clean your stuff." For an easily disorganized person like myself, this was never satisfying or informative.
My friends and family currently view me as a meticulous planner, but this behavior doesn't come naturally. Throughout my childhood I was known for losing important papers, always running late, forgetting big events, and driving my parents crazy with a disheveled bedroom.
Here's the truth: there are traits or skills that people are born with. If you want the trait of being organized, you have to train your brain to learn this new habit. And a habit is formed with repetition. Figure out what works and repeat it until you don't have to think about it.
Different styles will work for different people. But I am a person that has juggled two jobs (totaling in 70 hour work weeks) in addition to school and managed to earn all A's. It's a challenge, but if we want it bad enough, we can achieve it.
1. Clear out your shit. It's a major cliche, but effective. I knew I wanted to purge most of my belongings, so I created something that I refer to as my "Touch List." I made a list of every item that I touch in my apartment throughout the day. For example, I wake up and chug my water while coffee is brewing. So I wrote the bullet points: "Water bottle. Flower coffee cup. Coffee maker." After that, I took inventory of my seasonal items such as holiday decorations, summer floaties, etc. The goal since then has been to get rid of everything else. It's been a process, but all ready so worth it. Then I spent a day being brutally honest with myself while going through my clothes. You wouldn't believe the difference in my closet space.
2. Clean your shit. I have two rules for myself in terms of cleaning: #1 is to not leave any of my dirty dishes in the sink before going to sleep. I know that I won't want to do them in the morning, and I'll really let them pile up. Rule #2 is the Ten Minute Clean. Every evening I take ten minutes to do a quick tidy; pick up clothes off the floor, throw away trash, pack my bag for the next day. It's another simple way to not let the mess become impossible to manage.
3. Write that shit down. Some people prefer using their phone or Google calendar as their planner. I prefer physically writing out my life in a paper planner, but this is totally up to you. Regardless of the method, I find it crucial to invest in a planner system. In the morning I find it easiest to have a brain dump of everything I want to accomplish. Then I re-write those tasks in my planner, and use my best judgement on deciding where to put each task. When my work schedule comes out at the beginning of the week, I look ahead and plug my shifts in before anything else. That way I can visualize the days that will be the most stressful, and I put larger tasks on lighter work days.
4. Take a damn break! When I have a huge work load, I set an amount of time where I will be fully invested in that task. Then I take a break to walk around, stretch, get water or a snack, or even watch an episode of my current show. If I don't give my brain a cool down period, my focus quickly goes out the window.
5. Balance is bullshit. The saying goes "balance is key." But I don't completely agree. I have school, work, fitness, nutrition, sleep, writing, social time, a long-distance boyfriend...too much going on for one day, and that's a universal theme for most people. A key lesson that I've learned is to prioritize the day in front of you. You can only do so much, and different days will demand different priorities. Today, you might have a 12 hour work shift where you need to focus, and then you'll come home craving quiet time. Tomorrow, you have a major test to study for. The next day, you feel isolated so it's time to see friends. Assess what is most important and go from there. Rotate your tasks and maintain them. Chip away. Remember, one day at a time!
6. Don't be a bully. I have this horrible habit: I get so much done by the end of a day, but I lie awake in bed thinking of everything that I still have to do. We HAVE to stop being our own worst enemies! Be proud of yourself and all that you do. Even after failure, be proud that you tried. Being productive and successful is awesome, but putting yourself out there while giving it 110% is the real accomplishment. You're awesome!
These are my extremely basic tips, and I would love to go more into detail in the future. Perhaps I can go over how I've been minimizing my belongings and making sure to only keep what has purpose. Or even my organization tips. Hopefully you find this topic interesting like I do; I love hearing about how others stay on top of the insane amount of crap that needs to be done.
Happy Thursday, friends! Hold your head up high and finish the week strong!