Hello!
As a self-professed organisational freak I relish the start of a new year where I can head out and stock back up on all my planning and stationary needs.
Now, I should probably begin by clarifying the level to which my life is organised and provide a disclaimer that you should feel absolutely no obligation to be anywhere near my level of organisation or as others have noted my "excessive" tactics. But maybe one item will strike your fancy!
I personally am a bit of an obsessive organiser. My life is neatly scheduled, from morning and evening routines, to work to-do lists, dinner plans, university organisation and my fortnightly budget. I would vastly prefer if the entire world ran on the schedule I did as it would make me feel more "normal" but alas most people live in the moment and you know what - that's OK too...
But we could all stand to be a *little* bit more organised.
On an average day I try to squeeze absolutely as much as I can into my waking hours. This is usually pretty easy to do considering the balancing act I perform everyday to keep my priorities being actioned and my mental health in the green zone. Here is what I have on the go at any given moment:
- University (I'm currently studying a double degree in Arts/Science and complete usually 2-3 subjects a trimester with uni running all year round)
- Work (I work full time in the Department of Infrastructure doing... well actually my job involves a lot of coordinating - by the end of this post you might understand why I was offered it ;) )
- Exercise/diet (I'm trying at the moment to implement quite a strict diet and exercise regime which involves tracking my calorie intake and output in a neat spreadsheet my dad made - if it all works out I'll fill you in!)
- Mitchell (I have a very wonderful boyfriend who I live with and who I try to spend at least some part of my day with and who very politely deals with my structured life - thank you, I love you!)
- Psychologist (I see a psychologist every 4-6 weeks to talk through my feelings - this is something that has only really recently become a consistent part of my life but it is quickly being a very very important part of getting me through)
- Coco (I have a loveable, almost ten year old Labrador named Coco who is almost as needy as her mother and requires walking, feeding and loving daily)
- This blog! (obviously as you're reading it you know I run a little blog where I get to actively spend time writing as often as I possibly can)
- Family (I have a very large, very spread out family and I do my best to keep in contact, remember birthdays, keep up to date with their lives and visit as often as I can)
- Friends (the small relics of a social life that I do have usually take a back seat in my usual ordeals but occasionally I push myself to reach out and ensure I'm not the worst friend in history)
- Life admin (everything else! The laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning, hustle and bustle of getting through the week)
So, as you can see... I'm a little bit busy.
Generally the week flies by and I find myself suddenly mid-way through July looking around in awe at how exactly I got there. This won't be the pace forever but for now it is the constant - the best I can do is plan ahead and manage it!
To assist with this I keep a number of planners/diaries and I utilise them daily.
Here is a quick wrap up:
My day-to-a-page diary for work
My notebook for daily to-do lists at work
My schedule for university, pay days, budget and big deadlines, appointments etc.
My small notebook for all things lists! grocery lists, blog ideas, study plan inspiration etc.
My writing journal - for all my sudden spurts of inspiration, ground-breaking ideas and thoughts.
Wall planner - for upcoming uni deadlines/study plans week-to-week
On any given day I have all of these squished into my handbag (aside from the wall planner!).
I know its a lot, but its also about as important to me as my right hand having all of these items nearby to help me keep my life neatly diarised and organised into to do lists that I can tick off.
I've attached pictures below of each item for your interest and left a link where I can to where I bought them in case you want a copy too (most are from Officeworks but that's because I'm a fan of easy to use simple items with big pay off value):
I couldn't find the exact one I bought, but I've linked similar!
I couldn't find the exact one but I've linked a similar product from the same family!
So there you have it, my daily organisational tools that keep me on track and on top of every aspect of my busy schedule.
I hope something in here interested you or possibly inspired you to try something new in your day to day life to get just that tiny bit more organised. Trust me - being organised makes everything else flow just that little bit smoother.
I hope you all have a lovely week!
Till next time,
Rhi xx