Ask HN: Any advice on becoming more organized?
I am a Getting Things Done adept since more than 10 years. I believe it's made me consistently more organized and productive.
"Getting Things Done (GTD) is a personal productivity system developed by David Allen and published in a book of the same name. GTD is described as a time management system. Allen states "there is an inverse relationship between things on your mind and those things getting done"."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getting_Things_Done
Good luck!
I'd highly recommend reading Everything in Its Place by Dan Charnas - he examines the methods and strategies employed by top chefs to produce high-quality dishes efficiently under time constraints and applies the teachings to aid the modern knowledge worker
Decide that things will be found quicker and be easier to keep Clean if they are kept Tidy.
Marie Kondo's books on learning what material possessions bring you joy, are nice.
Donate and Toss items you don't need taking up space in your Life. Stay on the lookout at Thrift stores for things other people didn't like, but that you do.
Have dedicated spaces for things, and If you always lose something, then store it where you first thought to look for it?
Keep your things tidy and in working order so that they can be of service without causing you needless frustration. So that you appreciate them and are more likely to keep them tidy and in working order so that...
Not that I manage to do all of this, my room's a mess
My advice is to make changes that let you completely eliminate the need for doing certain things.
It's much easier to be organised when you only need to do one thing a day/week/month instead of 10 different things.
I'd love to hear more about why your current systems are failing, and who you're trying to become!
Feel free to throw something on my calendar: https://calendly.com/taylor-town/30min
Take a look at 'lean manufacturing' concept - you'll get a lot of insights about how to get organized. Good starting point - youtube channel of 'FastCap company'.
My personal tips:
- label everything
- 'Mise en place'
- get rid of extra stuff
- 'it's easier/cheaper to fix problem at early stages'
Lean does not apply to knowledge workers. Consultants have perverted the idea to apply for knowledge workers but it’s just going to waste lots of time organizing things that don’t need to be organized and tossing things that might come in handy eventually.
Agree. Lean is for physical objects. To organize your information best methods:
- P.A.R.A
- Zero Inbox
- 'messages for future self'
List and categorize and quantize everything. If needed get your self spreadsheet software like Libre Office.
You have to be more specific. What part of your life do you want more organized?
Be more organized there is no magic trick to it.