My #1 tool to stay organized!

I am a planner girl

I love nice girly notebooks, calendars, folders. Don’t let me start on washi tapes and colorful gel pens. I already mentioned how I like making lists, so you can imagine my feelings towards post-its.
But you know what? With three kids, all the chores and driving somewhere all the time (do you sometimes feel like you drive a taxi or something?) my planner system doesn’t work for me anymore. I was quite frustrated when I realized that.

In need for something new

I didn’t mind dragging the planner with me all the time, but I noticed that I didn’t use it even when I had it with me. My shopping list was in there but since I had kids with me while cruising between the shelves, I simply couldn’t put it in the cart seat or hold the whole thing in my hand.

I rarely had time to sit down and put everything to the planner the way I wanted. And I found myself always waiting for when I have time to do that. You see, I didn’t want to just write the stuff down. I wanted it pretty. If it wasn’t pretty, I was not satisfied with it and I got kind of angry every time I looked into the planner.

I think I sound like a spoiled kid, but you know what – I don’t care. I was not happy and that was a signal something needed to change. It was time to redefine the system. The results of the changes I made are amazing and that is why I need to share with you!!

There’s an app for everything

This is not some revolutionary eureka moment or anything like that, it’s a simple fact – I am glued to my phone. All the time. First, that’s how preschool and school might contact me about my kids’ emergencies, that’s how I contact my husband. Second, that’s where all my social media apps, emails and so on lives. But no Candy Crush. I needed to pull that plug.

Back on track – I knew I probably need some app, to have every info I need with me all the time. I don’t know if you ever looked for calendar/planning/productivity/organizing apps. If you haven’t – trust me, you’re doing this on your own responsibility. There is sooooooooooooo many!!! And every single one seems great and promises you wonders.

I think Evernote is very popular now. I tried, it’s very functional, but honestly, I didn’t like it. Again, maybe I am spoiled, but Evernote is so raw. Visually I liked OneNote better, but again, it lacked something. Or maybe it had too many options for me to want to use it repeatedly every day. It was really hard to choose the app that would click with me.

Da da daaaaaaam!

Then Uncle Google found this jewel for me.

Ladies, I present to you, Google Keep.

It’s post-it block in your phone (or desktop if you prefer that). Only better! You can make checklists, add photos, you can record your voice. Your notes can have different colors, you can label them, move them around, search, share, pin them to the top, add reminders. I don’t know what else you could want with your notes, but probably you can do it in Keep. Did I mention it’s FREE?

I started using my phone’s calendar (also Google!) and Keep. Synchronized together it’s a powerful system. I have my what-I-need-to-do-daily checklist, that I uncheck with one tap of the finger in the evening, so it’s ready for the next day. I’ve got my shopping list pinned in the beginning of the view so it’s easily accessible. All my posts ideas for the blog I write (or even more often record) whenever they pop into my head, label them and add a red background so I can find them, even without a searching.

Will it stay?

Surprisingly, I quickly got used to the electronic system in place of my lovely paper planners. It’s just so convenient! Although I won’t lie, I still have a sentiment towards any stationary I see. I’m just in the phase of my life when time is a very limited asset, everything must be here and now, so it’s more efficient to have everything on my phone. We’ll see how the life goes, but I imagine myself as a grandma who handwrites letters and have plenty of journals,

We’ll see how the life goes, but I still imagine myself as a grandma who handwrites letters and have plenty of journals, notebooks and planners.
Different phases, different needs, different tools.

What do you use to stay organized throughout the day? – let me know in the comments!

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