Do you use the start of a school year to get motivated or organized? Even if you’re not a student or have a family member in school?
My main job (dance/theatre) occurs during the academic year (September-May). With everything starting and getting back into full-gear, lots of information and emails come my way. Around this time, I prepare and refocus for the remainder of the year, with my creative jobs and as well as administrative work.
Today, I’m sharing what I use to keep track of everything.
HERE ARE MY GO-TOs:
Planner – aka my brain. If I don’t write it down, I won’t remember it well. There are so many formats out there, which is phenomenal. I use the smaller midyear edition from Day Designer aka teacher’s theme.
Pens, markers, and pencils – Been using these lately.
iPad – great investment piece!
Below is my repetoire of organizational tools, a combination of physical items and online programs:
BINDERS | Storing paperwork, class rosters, lesson plans, choreography notes. When you’re busy and on-the-go, it’s crucial to keep items in a reliable place. And let me tell you, sometimes it’s good to just write stuff down first!
HIGHLIGHTERS / COLOR PENS | Remember highlighting paragraphs in school books? You can bring that back in your everyday life. If you use your planner or notebook for several projects or jobs, color coding is a wonderful thing; helping you organize line items. My faves are these fineliners from Staedtler. I do my best to keep this up, but I get lazy. So I’m working on staying consistent. It’s beneficial for me to use specific colors for specific jobs, easy to track for future reference. Bullet journal lovers, these highlighters are fun.
ASANA (task organization) | If you prefer creating paperless to-do lists or organizing online, Asana is a wonderful tool, as well as a good backup to your planner. There is the capability for information to be sent straight to the app from your emails. There are other useful websites but Asana has been helpful for me.
GOOGLE DRIVE | Being able to access files when I’m away from home is such a blessing! Especially on the days when I don’t bring my laptop along. Easy to share with others who are also working in the cloud. If you don’t have access to Microsoft Office or other programs, Drive is a great resource.
CANVA, PICMONKEY, ADOBE (graphic design) | In addition to creating graphics for my jobs, I like to decorate and spice up my space. Here is what I use these programs for: binder covers, pictures for my worksheets / welcome handouts, and the things you see on Joyfully Inclined. It has also been a major help for my photography editing and sharing. These programs are easy-to-use; for free or a low-cost, you can create high-quality graphics that will impress clients and others.
TIPS:
- Start small.
- Figure out what’s your best way to organize.
- Stay consistent.
- Know that all the prep work and action you do now, will lead to success later aka no stress.
Who says organizing has to be boring? There are so many resources to help you do what you need to do every day. Thank goodness! Just get a managable routine going, but also be open to change it up, and you’ll be good.
Whether you’re organizing schoolwork, work projects, or side hustles, September / the fall is a great time to get organized again and finish out this fourth quarter strong!
(Photo credit: SheBoldStock.com)
Leave a Reply