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How I Stay Organized When Life Gets Busy

by How She Styles

When you have a 9-5 job, a blog, a YouTube channel, and a wedding to plan, things can get pretty dicey. Some things slip through the cracks, others get forgotten all together. I have been trying quite a few ways to keep organized and on top of all tasks every day. Here’s what has worked for me and what didn’t exactly keep me on track.

 

What Has Worked

 

Notes App To Do List

I have a running to do list on my phone in the Notes app that I am always accessing. These are broad tasks that I want to accomplish. For example, “figure out blog and video ideas” is pretty much always on there.

 

The Notes app works for me because I am able to see a broad task that I want to accomplish if I am burnt out from actual to do list tasks (more on this later). I can look at that list and see that I need two or three more post or video ideas this month and spend some time brainstorming.

 

When I have a good idea, the Notes app is where I jot it down. I have a note for blog ideas, video ideas, resources for information I am trying to learn and more. This helps keep it all in one place for me to easily look over later.

My Actual To Do Task List: AnyDo app

I have been trying to find a to do list app that I love and this is absolutely it. I have the free version, but they also have a subscription that provides more features. I am pretty happy with the free version because I only use it for the calendar and the to do list which are provided.

How I Stay Organized When Life Gets Busy

This app holds my content calendar (also linked with my iCal if I need to see the calendar without looking at my phone). I can see what posts I have scheduled and can add specific tasks to each day.  Another bonus is that it is super easy to edit if things change.

How I Stay Organized When Life Gets Busy

The app has another tab that is just your to do list.  Your tasks are split up into four sections: Today, Tomorrow, Upcoming, and Someday. I like this feature because you are not only able to organize your tasks, but also prioritize each task by day and by the order they are listed.

 

Did I mention there is a very satisfying line through each task when you tap that it’s done? Because that’s pretty nice too!

My Declutter Story - The Face Of Style

Paper Planners

This is going to seem a bit excessive, but I have two paper planners. One planner holds a copy of my content calendar along with a more workflow-type to do list. This breaks down each task I need to accomplish to complete a larger goal. For example, to post a blog post I need to do the following:

  • write the post
  • edit it
  • read through it a final time (out loud)
  • take photos
  • edit photos
  • lay out photos within blogpost
  • link any products, blog posts, or videos mentioned
  • adjust post for readability and SEO
  • add tags
  • add a featured photo
  • schedule it

 

It is a workflow I can follow as a reminder that there is always something I can be working on.  Plus, it’s more things I can check off throughout the week!

In this planner, I also write out my most important goal for that week which keeps me focused on getting that done first.

 

The only thing I keep in my second paper planner is wedding stuff. I only use it to keep track of dates and deadlines for payments, meetings, fittings, etc. This makes sure I will never miss anything, especially when it gets closer to the date of the wedding.

 

What I Want to Work On

 

I have a pretty solid system, but I need something more substantial for scheduling social media posts. I usually post to Instagram using Planoly, but I don’t have a system for any of my other social media platforms. I need a schedule so I can use social media as more of a marketing tool. The only annoying part is that a lot of the scheduling apps and websites are subscriptions that you have to pay for. I want to get the hang of scheduling with a tool before I pay for it. I am considering creating my own schedule via Microsoft Excel. Let me know what works for you when it comes to scheduling social media in the comments below.

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10 comments

Jane Davidson | Typically Jane October 27, 2017 - 2:33 pm

I swear by my paper planner! I don’t know what I would do without it. If I lost it, I would be completely lost. I’m using Erin Condren this year and loving it. And, yes to note apps too!! They are great for jotting down things on the go!

Reply
How She Styles November 2, 2017 - 9:51 pm

Writing things down just feels more concrete to me, like I am more likely to get it done if I can physically cross it off, but notes app is perfect for those spur of the moment ideas

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Alison Steck October 27, 2017 - 3:35 pm

Nothing beats having an actual paper planner!

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How She Styles November 2, 2017 - 9:53 pm

Yes! writing things down just feels like the final paper when electronic planners are like the rough draft because you can make as many changes as you want. On a paper planner once its in there’s no erasing (at least if you use pen).

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Lena October 27, 2017 - 3:48 pm

I am glad I am not the only one with 2 paper planners… I like to keep things separate but concise! I need to try out these apps!

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How She Styles November 2, 2017 - 9:54 pm

Same! I told someone I had two paper planners and they looked at me like I was nuts! I like when it’s separate because then it’s not too crowded and overwhelming.

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kasiagrobelny October 27, 2017 - 5:59 pm

I’ve been hearing more and more good things about old school paper planners, maybe it’s time to give them a whirl!

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How She Styles November 2, 2017 - 9:56 pm

They are nice for me because I treat it like my final content calendar I really think and plan out my month before I start plugging in content and makes me really think about what will work for each week.

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platformsandpacifiers October 29, 2017 - 6:24 am

All I have to say is: HELLO SOUL SISTER! I’m a planning/planner/calendar/todo list maniac! I don’t care for digital to do lists/calendars though 🙁 Everything I have is on paper with the exception of alerts for non automatic bills to pay!

Also it is NOT weird to have two planners, I used to have two as well when we were planning our wedding! I was able to keep everything more orderly that way! Plus when your wedding is over you can put your wedding planner into a box and save it as a keep sake!

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How She Styles November 2, 2017 - 9:58 pm

Well hello to you too!! Love the feeling of writing things down, I don’t know how to explain it! I am glad you understand 🙂 The apps are really just for convenience so I don’t have to carry my planner everywhere I go (even though I do anyway).

Also, great idea to keep the planner as a keepsake! Definitely doing that.

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