5 Ways to Stay Organized with Tasks that Need to Be Done

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Have you ever wondered how life got so busy? I mean, I don’t know about you, but I’ve had times when I really had to evaluate things and ask myself why I was so ridiculously busy! There are times when we can feel like there is so little time and so much to do. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like that feeling! Here are 5 ways to stay organized with tasks that need to be done. Get ready to say goodbye to stress and overwhelm!

How to Organize Tasks

I can remember times when I’ve had so much on my plate, that I had a hard time figuring out how I was going to organize it all. I had to figure out what I needed to do, what my deadlines were, and how to keep track of it all.

I’ve tried sticky notes, notes apps on my phone, notebooks, calendars, trying to go from memory, etc.

It gets even more tricky when you are trying to manage your tasks, your husband’s calendar, and your children’s events. There are appointments, events, deadlines, chores, due dates, and so much more. Things can get overwhelming and out of hand quickly if you don’t have a plan to tackle them.

Say goodbye to the disorganization and headache of trying to remember all the things. You don’t have to miss deadlines or look at a messy home any longer.  I recommend these 5 tips to stay organized and get things done efficiently and on time.

1. Use A Planner to Stay Organized

I’ve tried Google Calendar and a good old-fashioned planner and there has always been something about the planner that suits me! I highly recommend it. 

Don’t get me wrong, calendar apps are helpful and especially useful when you are planning with multiple people. I’ve used it to keep my husband in the loop with what we’re having for dinner and to keep track of things we both had on our calendars.

However, I love my planner because there is just something about writing things down and checking them off when accomplished! A paper planner is also great because you can use it to keep track of everything in one place. 

Here’s what works great for me:

Every Tuesday morning, I sit down in a quiet place and write my weekly tasks in my planner. I include chores, meals, deadlines, due dates, exercise, business, phone calls that need to be made, date night, Sabbath, errands, plans with my daughter, etc.

This allows me to quickly look ahead and see what’s coming up. If someone needs me to do something, I check my planner for availability for a new task to be added. I can see when I’m unavailable when I’m taking a break, etc. It’s all in the planner!

I refer to my planner multiple times a day. Once I complete a task, I check it off and I feel like I’ve accomplished something. Once I’ve completed one task, I move right on to the next one. When I get the important things finished I can go to sleep at night feeling productive. 

It really helps me stay on track with everything. And usually, if it’s not on the planner, it’s not a priority (exceptions can be made here).

2. Prioritize What’s Most Important

As I write things in my planner, I evaluate what’s more important. Time with God is a priority. Things that are time-sensitive are a priority. This means, that I make sure to do those things first. It also means I make sure that I get those tasks done before I go to bed at night. And if for some reason I procrastinated, I don’t get to go to bed until it’s done.

Setting this boundary for myself ensures that I really make it a point to take care of what’s important. I like to get these tasks done first thing in the morning. For example, I start my days with quiet time with God. This way, I know it’s been taken care of, and no matter what happens throughout the day, that has been taken care of. 

I do the same thing with tasks that have deadlines like bills due, preparing for birthdays and holidays, travel plans, business tasks, etc. These are taken care of right after I spend time with God, so I know that they are completed and I don’t have to give them a second thought.

So, what happens if you complete the tasks that you’ve prioritized but you ran out of time to do the other things on the list? You roll them over! Do you remember rollover minutes? Minutes that are unused roll over into the next month? It’s the same thing here.

Any tasks that were not completed because you had other prioritized tasks, get rolled over. If you spent time with God and spent most of the day working on a work-related task like training, you may not have had time to sweep the kitchen floor or vacuum the living room. It’s no big deal, just roll over the sweeping and vacuuming into the next day and plan to tackle it then.

This takes off pressure or undue stress. The key is to prioritize and get those tasks done first!

3. Use a Timer While Time Blocking

I love this one! Allow a timer to be your best friend. Timers can work wonders. They motivate us to get things done quickly. I like to use them to let children know how much time they have to complete a task. It’s effective for them and it’s effective for me. I believe it will be effective for you too!

Set a timer for your task and commit to getting as much done as you can until the timer goes off. This is especially great for things you may not be as motivated to do, like chores. If you need to put away laundry, see how much laundry you can put away in 30 minutes. Set your timer and don’t work on anything else but laundry until the time goes off. 

Need to clean the kitchen? Set a timer for 15 minutes and don’t do anything else until the task is done. And this works with things other than chores as well. You can set a timer to cook dinner, work out, avoid watching too much TV, or complete work. 

You can even use this while you are time-blocking. Time blocking means that you are scheduling every part of your day. It’s helpful because you are breaking your day up into bite-sized chunks. For example, 8:00-9:00 you work out. 9:00-9:30 you shower. 9:30-10:00 you eat breakfast, etc. Time blocking is an effective time-management strategy.

I love using time blocking when things are overwhelmingly busy. It helps eliminate stress and allows me to feel in control as I complete tasks that would otherwise feel too challenging to get done.

Once you’ve planned out your day, turn on your timer and get started. It’s easier to manage when you see things as 15-30 minute small tasks throughout the day instead of being overwhelmed by a laundry list of things to do.

4. Do NOT Multi-Task

This one is short and sweet. It may be tempting to multi-task but don’t do it. I had to work myself out of this habit because I used to be the multitasking queen! I would love the challenge of completing 2 or 3 tasks at the same time. 

What I’ve learned is that it requires more energy and work from your brain which can only focus on one thing at a time. It lacks the capacity to successfully complete multiple tasks simultaneously. Therefore, when you try to focus on more than one thing, it reduces your productivity and efficiency. 

I think about times when I’ve tried to talk on the phone and go grocery shopping. I can do them both, but I find that I move a little slower throughout the store or I have to ask the person on the phone to repeat themselves. Sometimes, I even have to walk back to the previous aisle to take something back because I grabbed the wrong thing. That’s inefficient and it’s wasting more time than saving it.

I don’t know how true it is, but I’ve read that multi-tasking also lowers memory and IQ. I’d say it’s definitely not worth it. Let’s just focus on one task at a time. Give that task all your energy, completely quickly and correctly, and then move on to the next thing.

5. Create Simple Systems

The final tip that I want to share to help you stay organized is to create systems. Systems are simply procedures or methods of doing things. Here are some examples of systems:

• Have a designated place for mail
• Establish how to organize paperwork
• Keep your pots in pans in the same place all the time
• Organize your pantry and fridge and maintain it
• Keep your child’s sports gear together in one place for easy access

When you have simple systems in place that the family adheres to, it will help you stay organized. 

If your children have extracurricular activities like baseball or ballet, teach them to keep their things in one place. Maybe it’s a storage bin in the garage or a duffle bag by the door that has everything they need for that activity.

Having this system in place will eliminate the need to go on a scavenger hunt for the missing baseball or the ballet shoe when you’re already 5 minutes late for practice.

Creating a system and a location where you keep your purse and keys will prevent you from having to look for them while you’re scrambling out the door to get to work.

Utilizing systems in your home will help keep you and your family organized and stress-free. They can also save you lots of time! Once you’ve mastered systems in your home, you can implement them on your job and anywhere else you may need them.

Staying Organized with Tasks

I hope you got some ideas for organizing that you can implement in your own life. Organizing doesn’t have to be hard or time-consuming. Be sure to save this blog and listen to the podcast, so you can start implementing my 5 ways to stay organized.