Staying Organized – Tips to Save Time
When I was younger, one thing my father always told me was to stay organized. Of course, as a youngster, I never listened to his advice. Throughout my school and college years, I developed a habit of being disorganized, almost chaotic. It was only years later that I realized the importance of staying organized when I had to run my own business.
There’s a common phrase: “time is money”. This phrase may not seem important when you are in school or college, but becomes the bedrock of your life when you are in your mid-30s and can’t find time to even have two proper meals a day. Just take a step back and consider all the time you waste just looking for stuff – this is time wasted that you could’ve saved if you had stayed organized.
Iin my younger years, any time I needed to use the desk, I would have to stash piles of books, notes, newspapers, etc. into a corner before I could get down to work. This not only wasted time, but also gave my room a sense of chaos, which, undoubtedly, also creeped into my work. Staying orgainzed, you not only save time, but also engender a calm, collected state of mind.
Staying organized doesn’t take a lot of effort or time. Simple things such as placing books or files back in their original location after using them, marking separate areas to keep different stuff (a separate drawer for keys, another one for office stationery, etc.), and using a simple planner are very easy ways to keep your house and work area neat and clean. You can start with your computer: collect all those downloaded files lying around in various directories and make a separate ’stash’ which you can track easily. Delete the ones you won’t be using any longer. Do the same with your real life – throw away any stuff you won’t be using in the future. One great way to become disorganized is to become a hoarder.
Use a piece of software such as Microsoft OneNote or Evernote (free) to keep track of where you’ve kept things, things to do, daily plans, etc. Such software can be a real boon for busy professionals, so utilize them fully.
It is easy to stay organized and takes as much effort as keeping things in a disarray. It is just a matter of habit and practice.
