Has the concept of getting organized by using your inbox as a task list ever crossed your mind?
The sad truth is if you have never thought about it, you probably are doing just that!
Over the years as a Pro Organizer, I have learned that most of my clients keep emails in their inbox as reminders of things that they have to do later.
While this seems like a simple solution, emails quickly pile up and the tasks and 'to do's' that remain in the inbox get buried quickly and the idea of becoming organized flies out the window in overwhelm.
A recent article titled Simple Tips For Getting Amazingly Organized published in Forbes Magazine explains how and why you should use every day tools like your inbox and phone reminders to streamline your life:
What are some simple ways to get and stay organized?
"You’ve done checklists, to-do lists, countless scheduling apps, and the latest in memory tricks. Yet, it can still sometimes feel as though your desk is cluttered, your inbox full, and your calendar is a mess. Are there any tips to getting (and staying) organized that are easy to implement and maintain?
Beth Beutler is the owner of H.O.P.E. Unlimited, providing collaborative virtual assistants and business soft skill education for overwhelmed professionals so they can excel. She's also the author of 52 Ways To Be More Organized. I recently interviewed Beth on the LEADx podcast to learn a few of her go-to moves to staying on target. (The interview below has been lightly edited for space and clarity.)
Kevin Kruse: What are some of your favorite tips for people who are super crazy busy?
Beth Beutler: Well, let me give you a couple of practical ones. One tool I have found helpful is to keep a small dry erase board at my desk. So often, we take sticky notes and pieces of scrap paper and jot things down real quick and all that, and they end up staying on our desk and cluttering up the visual field of our desk. And they may be old and we don't need them anymore, but we're just used to them being there. With a dry erase board you can quickly jot down that number and then erase it when you're done or transfer it to something on your computer. So that's a real practical one.
Record reminders to yourself on the fly. Almost all of us carry smartphones now and have either have OK Google or Siri or some kind of assistant like that, that you can just say, "Hey, remind me..." You know, you think of things sometimes in an impractical place and so if you can pull your phone out and say, "Hey, remind me of this particular person I need to call or task that I need to remember." Now, I wouldn't do that for a recurring task, you need to manage those probably with a task management system, but we all need those occasional things that say, "Oh, it's my friend's birthday, send her a text later." Things like that that you can record or message."
To read the entire article click here.
