It seems that I get busier and busier each day that passes. I’ve had to definitely step it up in the way that I organize and manage my time. In the past, I used to write a daily to-do list on a sticky note, paste it on a book, and that was it. This system no longer works anymore.  I am not saying that it won’t work for someone else, but for me, it doesn’t.

I’ve been using Google Calendar religiously now. I use different calendars for different reasons, which gives a nice color-coded effect to everything while keeping me on task. I have an Android phone, and so I am able to see my calendar on my phone almost similar to how I view it on my computer.

To manage my daily to-do list, I was using Remember the Milk and syncing it with my Astrid Tasks on my Android. However, Remember the Milk told Astrid Tasks to shut it down because they want people to use their paid app. Astrid Tasks did have another version (with less features) that synced with Remember the Milk, but I saw that the newest push now synced with Google Tasks. I decided to revisit Google Tasks again. It works for now. One thing that Google Tasks need to introduce is repeated tasks. I am a little disappointed that Google hasn’t done this already. If anyone knows a way to do it, please let me know!

Not going to lie. I sometimes resort back to my old system of using a sticky note. I usually do it if I don’t have much time, and I want to have something in front of me now.

Another thing that I have done to keep up with everything is going practically paperless. One of the perks of doing that is that I am “going green.” I still use paper for some things, but I usually try to have all my documentation on the computer. The only time that I really need to print something out is if I really have to analyze the content, or I need to send it out.

Apps are my friend! I use it to manage all aspects of my life.  I sometimes wonder what I did before technology was around.

When you are a single mother and have your own business, you have to be on top of everything.  I found a system that work for me. You need to find the one that works for you.

Written by: Shevonne on November 16, 2010.

Tags: freelance writer, Freelancer, organization, time management