First, thanks for the great discussion on my earlier post about balance! It’s always good to know that you’re not alone in this. Today’s post kind of goes along with that…tangentially.

I’ll make a confession that I can be a rather scattered person. Not precisely disorganized, although I won’t invite you to look in my basement. I’m just the type of person who’s brain jumps from one thing to another, often faster than I can up with.

So, years ago I started carrying around a little notebook to remind myself of things. There is all sorts of stuff in this notebook from grocery shopping lists to books that I want to read to the usual to-do lists. And it really helps!

Then there is the day-to-day life stuff to keep track of. When I started my current job, I started needing to keep track of all sorts of stuff; meetings, desk shifts, days off, weekends working, meetings (did I mention that already?), deadlines for projects. I’ve kept a day planner for a long time, but needed to pull a part of my old life out and start using a bigger one. Yes, I still use a paper planner, mostly because I don’t carry a computer with me everywhere and I haven’t given in to the temptation yet of a Blackberry or similar device. Actually I tried something like that years ago and discovered that it’s easier for me to use the old-fashioned method. My planner generally stays open on my desk all week so that I can add things to it as needed. It actually helps me keep my personal and professional life organized during the weeks.

The there is Remember the Milk. If you are one of those to-do list keepers but don’t want all the little pieces of paper all over, this is a great tool. It’s online and super-easy to use. I have to admit that my life has become much simpler since I started using it. I even use the note feature to add extra info about items on my list. And for stuff that I need to read online, the link feature is fabulous. Everything I need in one place. There are a couple of other similar tools out there. This just happens to be the first one I found.

So, these are my three things I use to keep it together. As you enter the professional world (or reenter in my case), it’s good to think about how to keep on top of things. Most of us have a lot going on each day and this can definitely help keep the stress level (not to mention your work) in check. Plus, this stuff helps me realize when I might have too much going on and to evaluate the times when I need to ask for help.

How do you stay organized?