Coffee Talk #197: How to Get Organized

It’s Tuesday! Grab your cup and let’s chat.

If we were having coffee together today, I’d tell you that my planning hat is ON. I’m currently working on plans to engage my students this fall/winter, plans for our next round of fitness events, plans for future virtual workshops and groups, and still making my way through my summer plans list.

If we were having coffee together today, I’d tell you that I hosted another fun LIVE Coffee Chat today on “how to get organized.”

This is a HUGE topic with so many moving parts, so we narrowed our focus to this:

☕️ Scheduling workout dates
☕️ Creating a list of priorities
☕️ Building a space for you

If we were having coffee together today, I’d ask you this — what do you think is your top barrier for getting organized? I hear these three the MOST:

1. Don’t know how to get started
2. No time/time management issues
3. No space for myself to focus

So, let’s chat! The first thing you want to do is recognize that you want to get more organized! Bam! Look at you being all accomplished.

Next, let’s talk about tools. Do you want to use a paper calendar or agenda? Are you more of a digital fan? Consider what you might actually use (not just those things being marketed to you). It’s only a helpful tool if you will USE it.

If you’re using a paper calendar, consider also having a special pen or marker set. I love color-coding tasks based on priorities so I can ‘quick glance’ my agenda and determine what is the biggest thing for the day.

You’ve got the interest, the tools, now let’s talk about the space. It’s so important, especially with virtual work/working from home, to designate an actual space in your home for yourself. It doesn’t have to be fancy! You can designate the end of the counter, a corner of a room – just something that you can mark off (we talked about an idea using painter’s tape to designate your space in the live chat) and put your name on, declaring it as YOURS.

Interest, tools, space – now let’s get to the nitty gritty — planning your tasks. I recommend highlighting three – yes just 3 – priorities for the week. If you start calling everything a priority, nothing is truly a priority, and nothing will get done. My three priorities each week are usually 1) personal growth 2) contracted work  3) fitness/clients. Maybe yours can be 1) personal/me 2)family 3) work. Choose your three!

Once you have your WHY, or your priorities outlined for the week, then you can start thinking about daily tasks that will fuel/accomplish those priorities. Start with planning for one day at a time. What do I need to do on Thursday to meet my priority for X? I usually have 4-5 daily tasks that fuel my priorities.

Now, SCHEDULE those tasks. Use different colors, highlight, set alarms on your phone – physically schedule the tasks – even if it’s a workout. That signifies that it’s important to you, and if you share your calendar, that it’s time you cannot be scheduled for something else.

Once you’ve built your schedule, it’s time for ACTION. I recommend doing the HARDEST task first each day, which might be a new habit you’re trying to build. For example, if you’re trying to fit working out into your day, schedule it first. Make it the THING you need to do before all other things.

What tips do you use to get more organized? I’m outlining my top 6 tips:

6 Tips to Get More Organized

1. Choose your tool. Keep it simple. Physical calendar? Something digital? This is what I’m currently using.

2. Create a space for yourself. Designate something – it doesn’t have to be a whole room – as YOUR area. Make it known. Decorate it. Write your name on it.

3. Create priorities for the week. I recommend no more than 3: personal, family, work. Then, create a small daily task list that relates to those priorities. I suggest no more than 10 tasks each day.

4. Schedule your most important tasks. Like a workout. Actually physically write them down and attach a time. Of course, be mindful of expectations that you have for work and family and be flexible in your approach, but start to create sacred time for your tasks.

5. Do the hardest thing first. Eat the frog. Maybe you’re trying to build a new habit (work out! eat breakfast!). Make that task the first thing you do each day. If you’re able to accomplish your hardest task, the rest of your day will feel so much easier and you’ll be able to stay organized.

6. Be flexible in the process. This is a tough one – you want to stay STRONG about your priorities, but be flexible in the approach. For example – if you scheduled your workout first thing, but something crazy happened that day and you couldn’t do it, don’t give up! Reschedule your workout for another time that day and stick to it. If it happens a lot, your schedule getting moved around, maybe it’s time to take a hard look at the schedule you’ve created. Be willing to be flexible!