Sunday, January 10, 2010

Calling 2010: Help! I Need to Get More Organized


I don't make New Year's Resolutions per se, probably because I've learned through the years that I really don't keep them. Well, except for the year I resolved to do 365 days of crafting on Flickr. I actually did that, of course Flickr later deleted my account and all my photos went "poof". But that's another story.

I've recently taken on a new assignment at work, essentially I have been given double the geographic area and double the staff that work for me. I'm struggling at bit with taking all this on and remaining true to my own standards of how I do my work. I pride myself on completing my assignments on time, responding to phone calls and emails quickly, and knowing what is happening in the programs I am responsible for. I've been challenged, as the work has seemed to triple or quadruple, rather than just double.

It seems the only way I can really manage is to get more organized in how I do the work. I'm working hard to become as paperless as possible. I'm beginning to organize my computer files so things can be found more easily. Documents I need most are going to be stored on my hard drive. I bought a rolling computer case and have a new laptop and docking stations on order. Already, I can access my computer remotely as I travel around and I use my smartphone to read and answer emails. I'm using Outlook to make notes about meetings I've had and making my to do list there as well. I've programmed my phone to call frequently called numbers at the push of a button. I just got a new Blue tooth so I can make and respond to calls when I'm out of the office.

I've done all this, but still feel a bit like I'm drowning in the work and the paper. So if you have any organizational ideas you want to share, I would welcome them. Believe me, it's not really a New Year's resolution but 2010 is the year I just have to get more organized!

10 comments:

Memories for Life said...

Wow...gotta love technology :) I hope you are able to get all your work organized and under control :)

storybeader said...

sounds very organized! Probably through the year you'll tweek things here and there. I hate trying to find things at work on my computer. I've noticed that long file names are very handy, and I do a title search when I can't find something. Hope that helps {:-D

Anonymous said...

Wow!!! I think you have everything for your organizing.. and wow.. you just share me some technologies that I've never known about them.. LOL

I'm kinda old fashion so I have a mini journal nearby to write almost everything I have to do and every idea in my head.. and then once a week I copy and separate them to To-do-list book or iCal or new-idea-sketch-book.. now I try to organize my price lists for all shops to one price list book coz now they are in separate sheets.. :D

maryeb said...

Every year I vow to get more organized myself.
Good luck with you effort.

Erika said...

if only i could get a tiny bit of my husband's organization skills. As a former teacher I thought I was organized; then I met him!

Splendid Little Stars said...

New responsibilities almost always bring new challenges. There's just so much newness that it takes a while to settle into it. I'm sure as some time goes by, you'll find yourself more and more on top of stuff, and the work more manageable. It sounds like you have the tools to accomplish this!
My organizational idea is this: Take some time every day to just be yourself, to relax, to be quiet, and just be. It helps put things in prospective.

Shining Windows said...

i am in the same boat. good luck...

Haley said...

i got your message on my blog. here's a link to the free better bucket hat pattern on ravelry:
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/a-better-bucket
take care!

Misobel (Mary) said...

That's a great focus to have for the new year! I saw a link the other to something that looked very cool - digital post-it notes!

For me, nothing has been more effective than writing it down. I'd love to see you blog in the future about any applications or programs that are helping you get organized.

Wishing you health and happiness in 2010!

tamdoll said...

Good luck being more organized this year.
I wish I could help you become more paperless - when it comes to art, I have a million scraps of paper all over the place with ideas jotted down. I also have some sketchbooks - but they're haphazard.

Online I store my lists of books that I want to read - at goodreads.com and yarn projects that I want to make at Ravelry. (I started keeping things online because last time my pc crashed, I lost a lot! Backup, Backup, Backup!)

For volunteer projects and other work, I usually open up a folder in my Documents area and start a new one for each subject and then just name the heck out of each one so I can use Search when I forgot what I've called the file.