Keep on keeping on

Sample task lists

Every week I have a list of what needs to be done that week for work, as well as my personal life. I then use that list throughout the week to keep on target for my project deadlines. I add to it as needed, cross things off when they're done, and make notes to myself if something changes or needs to be updated.

I used to break my weekly lists into daily lists, as well, so I didn't end up at the end of the week with the whole list waiting for me. I don't do that anymore because it got frustrating if I didn't complete everything on the list for a given day.

By having a general weekly list instead of the daily lists, I'm able to look at my list at the end of the day and know that I still have time to keep working on the list. It helps me take on a "keep on keeping on" mentality rather than a "hurry up and get it done!" mentality. Either way, the tasks get crossed of my list, but one way is frantic and stressful while the other way is more relaxed and encouraging.

I'm the type of person who has to take things one step at a time. If I get too ahead of myself and get frustrated I end up falling behind where I need to be and get even less done. So I have to take it slow, one task at a time.

Whether you're looking at a long list of stuff to do at work, or you've got company coming so you need to clean your house, remember to take it one step at a time, cross one task off at a time, and focus only on what you have to do in the next moment. Just keep on keeping on, and it'll get done.

A sense of accomplishment

A sample task list from my home office

December has been a busy month, particularly for the kids being with Monty. There was a definite shift at the office, and being the holidays, there was a lot going on at home, too.

And now, the month is almost over. I still have a lot to do this week before I bring Puck and Tink home, but I've been able to look back over my task lists and calendars with a sense of accomplishment at all I've gotten done.

As you probably know, I'm big on lists, so at the beginning of December, I made a list of bigger projects I needed to get done before the kids came home. And every time I crossed off one of the tasks on my list, I felt productive, and got a sense of satisfaction from it. There's a lot to be said for drawing a black line through words on a piece of paper.

Sometimes it's the little things you have to hold on to.

I think that's why I let my task lists be messy. I make a list at the beginning of the month (or week), then add to it, cross things off, and change things around as time goes on. The messiness of my list speaks to my productivity for the month (or week). It reminds me that, even if it doesn't feel like it, I am making progress, task by task. And that keeps me motivated to keep moving forward.

What do you do to stay motivated to accomplish your tasks?

How I use my calendar

Not my calendar, but very similar

I've written about my organizational methods before. I've talked about my task lists and my day planners. But that was when I was a freelance writer. Now that I have a traditional job as a marketing writer, my methods have changed.

I'm the type of person who has to write things down. That's why I make lists (almost) compulsively. And now that I work part of the week in the office and part of the week from home, it's even more important for me to keep track of my projects and deadlines. So my calendar has become a task list and planner in one.

The planner I use has monthly and weekly pages. I use the weekly pages for everything from appointments and birthdays to my tasks and deadlines for the day. I use the monthly pages as an overview of deadlines, appointments, meetings, and events.

It looks messy, but it helps keep me on top of everything. It also helps me see what days I have time to do other things (coffee with friends, for example). Days that aren't completely full of scribbles might have room for something.

Of course, there are things that need to stand out (like Tink's doctors' appointments), so anything that's important and personal gets highlighted in yellow, and anything that's important and work-related (like a conference or retreat) gets highlighted in pink. That's just enough to allow those items to stand out on my calendar.

Examples of my task lists

I still make weekly task lists, and then use those lists to create my daily lists within the planner. I've started keeping my weekly task lists in my planner with a paperclip so everything is together.

It may not be the most effective organizational method, but it works really well for me. I'm able to keep everything together, stay on top of my projects and deadlines, and have it in a format that can come with me everywhere I go.

How do you stay organized?

Working partially remotely

One of the good things about my shiny, new job is that I work partially remotely. Part of the week I work from my home office and part of the week I work in the company office.

Working from home is not a new concept to me, so that wasn't a big deal. The transition I had to make was working from home only part of the week. Not only do I have to shift mentalities based on where I'm working that day, but I have to make sure I prioritize my task lists in a way that uses my time wisely based on where I'm working that day.

Working from home

The days I work from home are usually more productive in terms of actual writing work. Since I'm not in the office there are fewer distractions. I may have phone meetings, but most of the days are spent creating words and rearranging them. The team is always just a phone call, email or IM away if needed, but those days are quiet days of work.

Working in the office

The days I work in the office are the days I touch base with my supervisor and team and go to meetings. These are also organizational days. One of my days in the office is always at the beginning of the week (Monday or Tuesday, usually), so I get my weekly task lists in order, find out what everyone else is doing for the week, and make sure I have what I need to work from home on my remote days. Sometimes that means interviewing a coworker or doing research, other times that means getting materials together and having a one-on-one meeting with my boss.

When I was freelancing, I had to prioritize projects, stay on track with deadlines and make sure I had what I needed from clients in order to get work done. The same is true in my current job, but now I have the added benefit of being able to touch base with team members and coworkers to help me.

I haven't been at my shiny, new job very long, but I think working partially remotely is more of a challenge than being in the office all the time or at home all the time. Like anything else, it's about finding a balance that works for you, as well as staying organized, but shifting your mindset a few times a week can be difficult sometimes. (Not to mention getting used to writing with my shoes on....) But I'm glad I have the schedule I do. I like being able to have days at home to devote to writing, and I like having days in the office to connect with the team and get organized.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of your work schedule?

Keeping track of projects

As a freelance writer, it's important to keep track of projects, especially if you have many "small" clients. I've tried different methods for keeping track of my projects from week to week (even day to day).

For a while, I was using spreadsheets to keep track of what projects were active, what phase of the project I was on, and when it was due. It was fine, but if I forgot to update the spreadsheets, things got jumbled and frustrating. So I abandoned that.

I've found what works for me is task lists and calendars, just as it works in my personal life. As soon as I get a project, I write the deadline on my calendar. Then, when I use my calendar to make my task list each week, I can see what deadlines are coming so I know what I need to work on and when. I have one task list that mixes home and work life, but since I work from home and those two aspects of my life are so interrelated, it makes more sense to me to list it that way. In addition, any meetings or appointments I have get written in the top margin of the task list page. As the week goes on, I add to the task lists, amend them, move things around, and generally make a mess of the pages. But it makes sense to me, and they help me get things done.

In addition to having my task lists, which I keep on my desk, I use my calendar for appointments, meetings, and deadlines. If there's a particularly important task I need to get done (email a sample to a client or call to move an appointment), I write those tasks on my calendar, as well. Once I have my weekly task list, I use my calendar to divide it into daily task lists. My planner has monthly and weekly pages, so I use the daily spaces on the weekly pages for  my daily task lists. It gets just as messy as my weekly task list pages, but having everything in my calendar helps me see what's going on and what's coming.

I've tried using digital calendars and organizers. I have a BlackBerry, and I've tried using a combination of the calendar and task list apps that came with it to keep myself organized, and know that I'd always have it with me. But I'm the type of person that has to write things down or I'll forget them. So as much as I'd like to use spreadsheets or something else to keep track of my projects, I just can't. I've tried, and it doesn't work for me. It's more important for me to find a system that works for me than to use something that's technologically advanced or whatever. So I'll stick to paper and ink, and help contribute to the materials used to make recycled paper products.

How do you keep track of your projects?

Writing in June

Puck and Tink are safely in Florida with Monty until the end of the month. Puck, especially, was excited to see his Daddy again, and talked about little else except going to "Mickey's house." I know they'll have fun, and while I miss them fiercely, I'm trying to stay positive and use this opportunity to stay busy and get caught up on some things that have fallen behind.

Yes, these are my actual, factual task lists for this week.

There are some typical mom-related tasks on my list for this month, like deep-cleaning the house, rearranging the living room, and getting ready for Independence Day. But there are also a lot of writing things on my list.

I have a grant application that needs to be sent by November 1st, and I need to work on that. It's a whole big packet of "stuff" to send to the organization, and I want to make sure I have everything in order in plenty of time.

As part of the application packet, I need to work on the coffee house book. Not only do I want to work on the coffee house book in its own right, but I am including an excerpt from it as part of the application. I know what section I'm using, so I need to finish the background work for that section and write it.

I also decided to do Camp NaNoWriMo this month. I figured since the kids are gone for the last half of the month, I'd be able to make the time to write something for it, and it would be good for me to work on something other than freelancing or the coffee house book a little bit. Not that I don't love devoting my creative energies to them, but it's also nice to work on other things once in a while.

The novel I'm writing for camp is a sort of coming-of-age novel. It's intended to be pretty light reading, and I know I won't do anything with it other than write it for camp, but it's just something different to work on for a while. I figured that since the coffee house book is so dense, something lighter to work on would be good for me.

I always have a lot of writing to work on, but there's a lot of time this month to write. (And I hope that writing will help distract me from missing Puck and Tink.) I may just have to keep track of my word count for this month and see how much I actually get done.

What are you working on this month?

This Week's Task List

I have quite a bit to do this week in preparation for our Easter trip (we leave April 2), so the bulk of my task list is over on my personal blog.  But I do have some writerly things to do this week.

• Continue working on the coffee house book
• Continue rewriting Newly Wed (NaNo novel 2009)
• Finalize prep for ScriptFrenzy
• Continue working on the grant application
• The Artist's Way tasks for week 8
• Goal Search (#1)
• Color Schemes (#3)
• Things you're not allowed to do (#4)
• Ideal Day (#6)
• Ideal Ideal Day (#7)
• Start looking for poems for National Poetry Month on the blog (that's right, folks! It's that time again!)

This Week's Task List

• Cardiology appointment (Tuesday afternoon)
• Continue working on the coffee house book
• Continue working on Newly Wed
• Continue working on grant application
• The Artist's Way week seven tasks
• Mantra task
• Album task
• Sacred space task
• Collage task
• Favorite films task
• Reading topics task
• Collage place task

This Week's Task List

• Continue working on the coffee house book
• Continue working on To Be Married (formerly Pondered)
• Continue working on the writing grant (due in October)
• The Artist's Way tasks for week five
• Grievances task
• Image File task
• Imaginary Lives task
• Twenty with money task
• Sixty-five with money task
• Mean to self task
• Ten items task
• Creative block task
• Payoff task
• Person to blame task
• Update website

This Week's Task List

• Continue working on rewrite of NaNo novel in preparation of NaNoEdMo
• Continue working on coffee house book writing
• Continue working on grant application
• Environment task (#1) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Time Travel task (#2) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Life Pie task (#5) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Artist's Prayer task (#6) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Closet task (#8) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Situation task (#9) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way
• Reading deprivation task (#10) for Week 4 of The Artist's Way (if needed)

This Week's Task List

I got a bit of a late start today.  Thankfully, Hubby's home from work today so I should be able to get caught up pretty easily, which will be put me in a good position for the rest of the week.  At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

• Work on grant application organization
• Work on the coffee house draft
• Power through the chapter 2 rewrite of Pondered
• Childhood room task for week 3 of The Artist's Way (#1)
• Childhood traits task for week 3 of The Artist's Way (#2)
• Inner Compass task for week 3 of The Artist's Way (#7)
• Five people who are dead task for week 3 of The Artist's Way (#9)

What do you have going on this week?

This Week's Task List

Since I'm doing The Artist's Way for the next eleven weeks, I've decided to start including those tasks in my weekly task list, as well.  Some of the tasks are somewhat involved in their descriptions, so I'm just going to list the tasks without going into details. Although, for those who have the book, I've included the task numbers so you can see which ones I've chosen for this week.

• Outline essays for grant application
• Finish rewriting chapter two for Pondered*
• Write at least two sections for the coffee house book
• Bean's six-month check-up (Tuesday evening)
• Write morning pages every day
• Take my artist for a date
• "Basic Principles" task (#1)
• "Where does your time go?" task (#2)
• "Affirmations" task (#5)
• "Life Pie" task (#7)
• "Ten Tiny Changes" task (#8-10)
• Weekly check-in (Sunday)

---

*"Pondered" is the project name for the rewrite of my NaNo 2009 novel, which I titled She Pondered These Things in Her Heart.

This Week's Task List

I'm adjusting my schedule.  I'm going to start getting up early to write rather than staying up late.  Bean usually gets up between 5 and 6 a.m. for an early morning snack, so my plan is to stay up when he gets up (even though he goes back to sleep for a little while, usually) and write until he's up for the day (usually between 9:30 and 10:30 a.m.).  We'll see how it goes.  Here's what's on my task list for this week:

• Pondered (NaNo 2009 novel) rewrite
• coffee house book draft
• finish converting writing documents to Google Docs
• start sending pictures from my hard drive to Google Docs (yep, they do pictures, too!)

This Week's Task List

I'm testing out a new schedule/routine this week.  Since my darling little java bean is wildly curious, he's decided he doesn't like to nap during the day.  He's afraid he'll miss something.  So he sleeps much longer at night and is awake all day.  That's fine, but it means I have to adjust my time management to be able to get things done.  So we'll see how it goes this week.

That said, I do have things I need to accomplish this week:

• Tristan's story first draft (coffee house book)
• Vivi's story first draft (coffee house book)
• Pondered chapter 1 rewrite (NaNo 2009)
• convert all Word documents to Google Docs

This week's task list and my newest writing adventure

I've been sort of getting my feet wet with my NaNo novel (project name: Pondered) again.

I let it sit for about six weeks, and in that time I thought about it quite a bit.  I realized I do want to clean it up (and not just for the free proof copy I'll get thanks to the good folks over at NaNoWriMo), but in order to do that, I basically have to rewrite the whole thing.

The good news is that I know exactly how I'm going to rewrite it, I've been working on my new lead character's bio, and I've already got a rough outline for the first part of the book.  I should be able to start rewriting it at the beginning of February.

I know you may think me crazy for writing both the coffee house book and rewriting my NaNo novel at the same time.  You're probably right.  But I'm going to do it anyway.  (Wish me luck!)

So this is what I have going on this week:

• Finish the character cards for the coffee house book characters
• Finish Ruth's character biography for Pondered
• Finish the new outline for Pondered
• Write at least three character stories for the coffee house book

This Week's Task List

Well, my schedule has pretty well normalized itself after the adventures of Christmas and New Year's, as well as Hubby's grandparents visiting last week.  It's a different schedule than I had before Christmas since Bean is a little older and teething, but it's a schedule nonetheless.

So here's what I have to do in the office this week.

• Finish writing the first drafts of Tristan and Vivi's stories
• Finish my character biography cards for the coffee house book
• Finish the coffee house book outline
• Start reading through my NaNo novel for editing

This Week's Task List

Hooray for a new year!  I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season, and that you're ready to get back to your old routines (or new routines, if you've made changes for this year).  I'll be spending the day getting back into the office, getting myself organized, and starting to tackle my 2010 projects (hooray!).

• Email client to set deadline for new set of articles
• Write SEO articles for a client
• Work on character biographies/outline for the coffee house book
• Continue brainstorming the funeral book
• Start reading through NaNo 2009 novel to start editing

This Week's Task List

Hooray for the week of Christmas!  I'm really excited to be celebrating Bean's first Christmas!

Thankfully, I don't have much to do in the way of work, so I can concentrate on getting ready for the end of the week.

Monday:

• Finish up content for the website renovation
• Do some coffee house book background work
• Write article for Examiner.com

Tuesday:

• Finish up content for the website renovation
• Do some coffee house book background work
• Write article for Examiner.com

Wednesday:

• Finish up content for the website renovation
• Do some coffee house background work
• Write article for Examiner.com

Thursday: CHRISTMAS EVE


Friday: CHRISTMAS DAY

This Week's Task List

Lots of my time this week will be spent on my personal task list, but I do have a few office-related things to do before Christmas.

• Write website content
• Finish up end-of-the-year stuff that's been lingering on my desk
• Finish December prep for the coffee house book

This Week's Task List

• Content articles for a client (several topics)
• Content writing for my new and improved website (to be revealed Jan. 2010)
• Work on schedule for coffee house book (and other big projects for 2010)
• Work on character biographies for coffee house book
• Work on outline for coffee house book