need help with self organizing skills

[SoreArms]

I am trying to be more responsible with my life now. I've jsut never learned to be organized, I do everything by the fly and often sind up digging a deepre whole.

I need help on learning to organize my daily schedule at work, school and personal life. I ned to learn how to make a budget and prioritize spending needs. etc......

Any good book or web site you guys can recommend would be greatly appreciated.

 

[MonsterMan2]

Get yourself a Franklin Planner. The planner will guide you though every possible thing in your life you need to prioritize and teach you how to use it. I'm not sure about other day timers, but Franklin is the best in my opinion.

 

[calveless wonder]

may sound corny...but buy a large dry eraser board and some magic markers.

Put the board somewhere visible where you can see ALL the time, so that it's basically staring you in the face. Write some inspirational quotes or whatever it takes to get you motivated to be organized and responsible..

then...divide up the board however you like. For instance, i have it separated in 5 different parts

House (Anything involving bills, cleaning, laundry, things i need for the house etc)
School (assignments due, papers, tests )
Me ( Anything related to bodybuilding or self maintanence)
Etc - self explanatory
Job - self explantory...

Write everything you have to do in the right category, and next to it if applicable, put the deadline you want the task to be done by.
Update it daily and try to redo it every few days once you've cleared enough tasks. Also make sure you right down any responsibility you have ASAP, otherwise you might forget and it'll get lost in the shuffle.

It may sound a little strange at first but it is very very effective.
It also helps if you carry around a little notepad if you're out of the house alot, so you remember what to put on that board when you get home.

I implemented this a few months ago and my life has been completely different. IMHO this works much much better than a palm pilot for the simple fact that you can always see it right in front of your face without having to look for it.

 

[poolcleaner]

awesome idea, i'm going to give it a go

 

[tuc biscuit]

Nice idea on the whiteboard

 

[40+guy]

What ar ethe things that give you the most trouble? When I read what you have written I see many different problems: Money management, time management, possible issues with tracking obligations, and problems making priorities....

What do you think you want to address first.

The whiteboard works good at home but can't help you a whole lot when you leave the house/apt.....

 

[SoreArms]

What ar ethe things that give you the most trouble? When I read what you have written I see many different problems: Money management, time management, possible issues with tracking obligations, and problems making priorities....

What do you think you want to address first.

The whiteboard works good at home but can't help you a whole lot when you leave the house/apt.....

all of the above

 

[40+guy]

All of the above from that list is like saying that you want to lose 60 lbs in six months and grow some muscle. Pretty tough.

I woud suggest picking the one that is causing you the biggest pain in the ass and starting there- which one is it?

 

[SoreArms]

Definately money

 

[40+guy]

So is it handling the $$$ or keeping track of the bills?

If it is handling the money - what do you mean?

 

[SoreArms]

I'm a check to check type of guy. Get paid, buy food, pay a bill or two and then spend the rest. Always tell myself that I'll start saving, but it never happens.

 

[40+guy]

Some people work best when they have something to save for, has that worked for you?

Do you know where you sre spending your money- tracking it- or does it just seem to evaporate over the course of the month?

A lot of it is a matter of self discipline, how are you in that dept?

 

[juve]

dexedrine, adderall, ritalin

 

[SoreArms]

yeah, my money seems to disappear. No discipline, impulse buyer and I don't shop around.

I live well above my means

 

[40+guy]

The big question is are you spending more than you make (ie are you incurring debt). Like many things managing money is all self control. The first steps require a little time and effort on your part, then it gets tougher.

1. Track what you spend for 1 month living life as you always do. Get a notebook and write it all down- everything....even if it is a quarter in a parking meter. Once you have done this, then sit down and try grouping your spending into categories. Some people do it by types of things, others do that and then code them (use two different highlighters, plain for needs, colors for the other two categories) in the neccessities, the niceties, and the extravagances. Then look at them and decide if there are any things that you could do without.......if there are then start doing without.

 

[L_Seven]

dexedrine, adderall, ritalin

Amen!

 

[Raina]

Sometimes my schedule gets to hectic it's overwhelming. I've learned that the best way for me to calm down about nearly anything I'm stressed out about it to write out lists of everything I need to get done, day by day, and stick to the lists. Life is easier to deal with when a plan is set.

 

[vnlegend]

it's best if you start slowly. First, find something that might be hard for you to do (something you don't like and procrastinate doing it) and somehow get it done by the time you want. Another thing is not putting things off, do the things that you need to do first, and then go relax and have fun later.

 

[resonator]

The only thing that may work, like quitting smoking, is making a conscious decision to change your habits. Little things would probably help though, try setting your homepage to your bank balance page so that's the first think you see when you log on to your computer. Seeing your balance everyday really puts into perspective how much you really spend. Another thing that has helped me is to not get money from the ATM anymore, only when I absolutely have to. When I have cash in my pocket I'm more inclined to spend it.

 

[Razorguns]

whiteboard thing works well. i used to do that.

I now write them on little pieces of white paper and stink them in my pocket. my "to-do" list. I can instantly take it out and see what i gotta do rest of the day wherever i am. Archiac and rudiementary? Yes. Practical and efficient. Hell yeah.

 

[big4rt]

may sound corny...but buy a large dry eraser board and some magic markers.

Put the board somewhere visible where you can see ALL the time, so that it's basically staring you in the face. Write some inspirational quotes or whatever it takes to get you motivated to be organized and responsible..

then...divide up the board however you like. For instance, i have it separated in 5 different parts

House (Anything involving bills, cleaning, laundry, things i need for the house etc)
School (assignments due, papers, tests )
Me ( Anything related to bodybuilding or self maintanence)
Etc - self explanatory
Job - self explantory...

Write everything you have to do in the right category, and next to it if applicable, put the deadline you want the task to be done by.
Update it daily and try to redo it every few days once you've cleared enough tasks. Also make sure you right down any responsibility you have ASAP, otherwise you might forget and it'll get lost in the shuffle.

It may sound a little strange at first but it is very very effective.
It also helps if you carry around a little notepad if you're out of the house alot, so you remember what to put on that board when you get home.

I implemented this a few months ago and my life has been completely different. IMHO this works much much better than a palm pilot for the simple fact that you can always see it right in front of your face without having to look for it.

This is exactly what works for me.

 

[Cornobbled]

The big question is are you spending more than you make (ie are you incurring debt). Like many things managing money is all self control. The first steps require a little time and effort on your part, then it gets tougher.

1. Track what you spend for 1 month living life as you always do. Get a notebook and write it all down- everything....even if it is a quarter in a parking meter. Once you have done this, then sit down and try grouping your spending into categories. Some people do it by types of things, others do that and then code them (use two different highlighters, plain for needs, colors for the other two categories) in the neccessities, the niceties, and the extravagances. Then look at them and decide if there are any things that you could do without.......if there are then start doing without.

Microsoft Money works wonders. Tracks everything you spend money on. Then it will let you break it down into catagories.