This is a question that I have been asked a lot. It seems that many of you want to understand how to be more organised. I understand, I get it. Being more organised makes life a lot easier, in every area of your life. Being organised means that you don’t get caught out too late for forgetting things, it means that you don’t waste time hunting for items that you need, it means that the proverbial ball does not get dropped.
It just means that everything runs smoothly, doesn’t it? But how to reach this holy grail? Well, I would suggest the following 5 key areas, and if you can get all of these working well for you, then you are going to amaze yourself with how much more organised you are!
How To Be More Organised
Get Organised By Planning Ahead
This is a good place to start, as to really stay on top of everything and be more organised, you are going to need to plan ahead.
It’s up to you how far ahead you begin to plan, as it will depend on where you’re at now.
If you find yourself getting part way through a day and then realise you should have got xyz done, have missed an appointment or occasion or are feeling a bit lost that day, then you should probably just start by planning for the day ahead.
Plan your day, in as much or little detail as you feel comfortable with. Ideally, think about it the evening before so that you can empty your head of everything before you go to bed.
It should help you to sleep better, without lots of random thoughts swirling round your head.
Eventually, to really be more organised, you are going to want to at least plan a month ahead, and then a little bit longer with bigger projects.
It is worth taking stock towards the end of a month and then thinking about the coming month and what it holds. Do you need to get gifts for a birthday? Do you need to make or buy an outfit for something happening at your child’s school? Do you need to book an appointment in? Think about all that you could do with planning for the coming month and start to do so.
Use Lists To be More Organised
Which all serves to bring us onto this next point, use lists. This is the key!
If you want to be more organised, you are going to want to make lists an integral part of your day.
Looking back at the last point, it is worth drawing up a list of tasks that you could do with completing for the month ahead, a headline list of the bigger projects that you need to do, the out of the ordinary tasks.
For example, you might need to get gifts and a card for your sister, you might need to book an optician’s appointment, you might need to arrange to get a tree chopped down in your garden and perhaps a visit to the vet for your cat. These are the things that don’t crop up daily, but you know you’ll feel better for sorting in the month ahead. Then write them down.
Spend a bit of time thinking about this monthly list as you want to ensure you get everything noted down, and out of your head.
After this, refer back to it and tick things off as you work through them.
You might then want a weekly list, and you will definitely want a daily to-do list.
Write your daily list out the evening before, and then work through it the following day ticking things off as you go along. Along with tasks, work and chores, do be sure to add in rest and relaxation time for yourself, it’s equally as important. Pop going for a walk on there, sitting down with a book, having a soak in the bath and so on.
No, I’m not suggesting you have to schedule every second of your day and your wind down time, but I am aware that when people first start using lists that can easily get overwhelm and try to do too much. This improves over time, but my top tip for starting out is to add the fun stuff in too so it does not get overlooked.
This one needs to become a habit to really work for you. Commit to doing this for one whole month and see how you get on.
You might also find these lists that every household needs to be useful.
Have dedicated spaces and places
This just makes life so much easier.
When you know where everything goes, you will have clutter free spaces. When you know where everything is, you won’t lose time searching for things.
Ensure that everything you have in your home has a place to go. You’ll feel the benefits of this one quickly!
Make routines your best friend
Sometimes, when we do things for the first time, they can feel lengthy and cumbersome. They take longer that we’d want them to and we can forget things.
This is why routines should be your best friend.
Routines mean your mind doesn’t have to think quite so hard about what it’s doing and things should get done regularly.
A morning routine can be really helpful, as you will want to start your day brilliantly and keep that momentum going.
Then you will want to build in routines into your daily life, and start small and build up.
Think about those things that you would benefit from doing daily or weekly. Could they be completed more efficiently? Could you do with enlisting help with them? Could you combine any tasks to make things run more smoothly?
Start by identifying one area that you could build a routine around and give it a go.
Avoid procrastination
If you can do this, you will get so much more done, and with that, feel more organised!
However, it is a tricky one to master. If I fall down on any of these, it is always this last one. And so I can share tips from personal experience with battling this one.
Firstly, identify it for what it is and be honest with yourself.
Procrastination is not taking a much needed break. Being organised, planning and having lists is not about being ‘productive’ every second of the day. I cannot stress this one enough.
Being organised should simply make your life easier and actually free up more of your time so that you can take breaks and recharge, rather than spending all day chasing your tail. Being organised should give you a break.
‘Productive’ should include a mixture of tasks you need to do, balanced properly with looking after yourself. Every day is different and listen to your mind and body on this one. Sometimes that to-do list simply needs to shift on a day and you need to have an early night, curl up with a book or have a good chat with a friend. These things are not procrastination, they are important.
Procrastination is easier to spot, just know your own habits around it. When you see it, do whatever you need to boost your mood and motivation. Perhaps a walk in the fresh air, playing some upbeat music or a quick cuppa will lift you. Then look back at that list, remove your distractions, and crack on!
Feeling more organised?
A combination of any of these things will make you more organised, even if you just try one of them.
If you can get them all working smoothly for you, you are winning!
I have just added complete personal planners to my shop now, so grab a pack of those if you need a little help getting started with those lists!
What do you think? Can you see yourself putting some of these tips into place? Do you already use these methods to stay organised?
If you’ve not tried these things before, pick one, just one, and see how much progress you make with it.
Once you have got into the habit with one of these things, so that it becomes second nature to you, you’ll see how easy it is to keep on going, and then you might want to try another idea or two.
Best of luck with your journey on ‘how to be more organised’!