What are you life admin tips?

[WhatWillSantaBring]

I am permanently drowning in things to remember - when do the cars need their MOT, what's the expiry date of my DC's passport, when's the dog next due its flea treatment, pay the window cleaner, change the water filter etc etc. I can do it, but it takes up so much energy, I want to have a list I can check AND more importantly, that DP can also check.

How do you organise yourself to remember everything? Lists? Calendar reminders? Is there an app or a book?

Please spam me with your bright ideas, oh collective wisdom of the Mumsnet.

[BettyOBarley]

I've tried apps and phone calendars and all sorts but I always come back to a good old fashioned diary. I have an A5 cath kidston one which is diary on one side and To Do list on the other side. Everything that doesn't get done that week gets carried forward to the next week.

I also have an A3 sized weekly wipe clean planner on the fridge which I write the week's activities, clubs, remember £1 for school etc. so everyone sees it regularly and things don't get forgotten.

I like the monthly meal planning idea, it's one of my hated jobs too

[Verbena87]

@Camrette thanks for sharing the admin-time slot idea. Definitely going to give that a go.

I use a Filofax with a kind of personalised version of a bullet journal inside. I’d be lost without it, works much better than digital stuff for me. Before that I had a rhodia goal book which also worked well.

[looptheloopinahulahoop]

As much as possible is automated eg paying most bills by direct debit. If I have a one-off bill I pay it as soon as it comes in and then it's done.

MOT reminders come from the garage but I remember anyway.

Car tax reminder come from the DVLA so I don't forget those (and do them on the day they arrive).

The insurances renew automatically but I check each time to make sure they've not increased it by some silly amount. However, if they have, it's a pain in the bottom to have to call them - why can't you sort out insurance changes online and tick and untick the options you want?

I don't use a water filter.

A relative of mine writes everything on a calendar - she does use water filters and reminds herself when to change her toothbrush head etc.

[TheDuchessofDukeStreet]

Not exactly admin but I admire a colleague at work who has a special alarm on her phone to remind her that it’s time to wrap up and get ready to leave work.

[2andahalfpints]

Google calendar, family all use the same account for it so everyone can see when it is a birthday coming up or the pets are due flea treatment etc.

[ElectricMistofelees]

I work on the basis that I’ll forget everything. I put every single thing I need to remember in a calendar and set a reminder of necessary. Annually things like MOT, weekly things like milk payments, and just stuff I need to get done tomorrow like “phone mum”. My OH does the same and if he’s not out something I needed to know in the calendar, such as me needing to be in for the kids whilst he does something, then he deals with the fallout. Only takes a couple of times of one of you forgetting to make it a habit!

[EatingAllThePies]

What am I missing about google calendar. Have downloaded but I can't share it with anyone?

[Nuggetnugget]

I have direct debited a lot including mobile and so on. Motor tax comes via email reminder. As does renewal for professional stuff. I get a postal reminder of things like House and car insurance. I tend to remember birthdays and so on easily.
I have a traditional calendar that I write our work patterns.

[Supersimkin2]

@Wallywobbles brilliant list.

Might ‘rouleaux de printemps’ be what I think they are?

[Umbongoumbongo999]

I have a Clever Fox planner like this cleverfoxplanner.com/collections/undated-weekly

I'm onto my third planner, unlike a diary they are not dated so you can commence any time. Other posters have mentioned colour coding, this planner has stickers which you can use for different events/activities. For example I have one for my on call shifts, and another for exercising. I put all of my annual commitments on the monthly planner when I get a new planner, such as birthdays, holidays, weddings, bills, MOT date etc. Then I update weekly as I go.

My schedule is really hectic, and I'm always looking for ways to improve my productivity and manage my time. I listen to the podcasts Getting Things Done and Before Breakfast (the latter is really short bursts so not onerous to listen to frequently).

I also use an app called trello for lists. You can share lists with other people and colour code etc. I use this for meal planning and shopping lists. On a day to day basis we all add items to our Alexa shopping list as they run out e.g if the kids use the last of the peanut butter, and whether it is me or DH doing the shopping we always check what is on the alexa list to add to Trello before we go.

[Slimmingstar]

Jesus! I just hope to remember stuff. Few appointments/classes go in my google calendar and I hope for the best.

Everyone’s different, but the thought of such a rigid and structured life fills me with equal horror and depression! 😂

[Ilikecheeseontoast]

Some good ideas. Good old fashioned diary here!

[Laquila]

I can just about keep on top of everything (Google calendar, KeepNotes, active use of the search function in Gmail, WhatsApp etc) apart from bastard meal planning. I am BLOWN AWAY by the monthly meal plan idea (thank you to everyone who's mentioned it!)...off to see if I can cobble together 31 of them...

The only tip I can add is to keep a record on your phone of gifts yours kids receive (bdays, Christmas) and, if you have the energy, gifts you give to other kids. Then you don't have to rack your brains when it comes to thank-notes/messages, and you've won't inadvertently give the same thing to the same kid year after year! Also it serves as a good gifting guide list for suggestions.

[Wallywobbles]

[quote Supersimkin2]@Wallywobbles brilliant list.

Might ‘rouleaux de printemps’ be what I think they are?[/quote]
Yes. They're spring rolls. But just wrapped in the rice pancakes not deep fried. Incredibly quick and simple to make.

[JustJoinedRightNow]

We call those summer rolls @Wallywobbles - your name sounds much better!

[nancywhitehead]

Bullet journalling is great if you have a lot to remember, although you do need the time to do it. I like to have things on paper.

I do also use a phone calendar apps and to-do lists, outlook calendar for work stuff too, I'm not the most organised person but it works for me!

[HuntingoftheSnark]

Wall calendar, with columns for people/events. One column is birthdays, and I write all the cards for that month at the beginning of the month (well stocked card drawer covering most occasions). Then tick on the calendar once posted.

[newnortherner111]

I have all appointment in both the personal at home Google Calendar and in the work one (marked Private of course). Forgetting is not my main concern, double booking more so.

[reluctantbrit]

Google calendar, we link 4 calendars in it, no way we could it with a paper one. Especially when we are back working away from home, we need to be able to check straight away.

Regular ones like insurance, MOT etc are set up with an annual reminder so no need to add them back on again and again. Birthdays are linked to our online contact list and merged into the calendar as well.

Other stuff is added as soon as the appointment/booking is made. School holidays are added when the term dates come out.

[MrsToadlike]

I am absolutely going to set up a monthly meal plan, what a great idea. Don't know why I'd never thought of it before

[BertieBotts]

I have ADHD so I really struggle with this and need absolutely foolproof systems.

I tend to use a combination of Google Calendar, Google Docs, Trello, and YNAB.

For me what I've found to be essential features:

• The list needs to be able to be automated (for example, setting up recurring tasks) - bujo does not work for me because I simply do not do the task of re-entering the information every day. I know that is part of what makes it work best for some people, though, making them consciously interact with the plan and process regularly.

• It must sync in multiple locations, so that DH can check it, I can check it, I can update it from my PC (where I live) or my phone (surgically attached to me) We are both on Android.

• It needs to be flexible - easy to move something around or change it without it causing a load of complicated knock on effects that need to be fixed manually.

• Cannot be overly saturated with reminders, or I start to ignore them all.

I would recommend you identify what the essential features are for you.

I use google calendar for all appointments and reminders. I set up a widget on my phone so I can see the schedule for the day/week (week is better post corona as there are so few events on there). Set up separate calendars for daily routine, events that affect just me, events that affect DH as well, so I can hide and re-view as necessary e.g. if my daily routine is clogging up the page. It's colour coded. Anything hugely important is in red or orange. Social is yellow. Relating to DC is light blue. Relating to work is dark blue. Travel is even blocked in, in pale blue. Routine related is purple, medical appointments are hospital green, food related is a more plant-y green. Boring tasks are grey. Etc etc. All the school holidays are in there.

I even stick things in like "Phone doctor to make appointment" "Check schedule of garage online" "Research pram systems" and if they don't get done, I move them to another slot in the future so they can get done then.

Google Docs holds my "master to do list" which I check first thing every day, as well as things like spreadsheets for any current projects (due a baby so preparing for their arrival etc)

Trello has our meal plans and shopping list, I title the meal plans by date, which means if I'm feeling lazy I can search old archived boards and just quickly grab an old meal plan that I used in May in some other year, or a couple of months before when I first set it up. I have a widget which allows me to add items one at a time so I can very quickly add anything we have run out of. I tried to set this up using Google Home because people mention that they find this a great solution, but gave up after I could never find where Google stored its shopping list For the shopping list part, I tend to do an online shopping order on Wednesday to be delivered on Saturday, but if we go into the shop for whatever reason, I can easily re-order the list according to the layout of the supermarket which makes shopping really easy and quick.

YNAB keeps track of any upcoming financial obligations and helps me save for them. This is the only one I pay for, we do pay for extra Google storage as well but that's not needed for the docs, it's more for photos. I find YNAB saves us more than it costs. I put things like passport renewal, MOT, etc in here with the month as part of the category name so every time I check the budget I can see when something is coming up.

Tody is another one for things like changing water filters, running maintenance wash on washing machine, that I really liked. You can pay £5 a year per device to sync it on multiple devices, but it doesn't sync to computer. I stopped using this one though for reasons that I forget and didn't renew the subscription.

I had to get past a mental block about paying subscription fees for organisational tools - in the end I made a category for them in my budget and I consider it paying for the convenience/brain space/service, almost like having a tiny mini digital PA to offload some of these tasks to, and MUCH cheaper! That helped me see the value in it rather than just immediately going oh no, I'm not going to pay for something like that. You would pay extra for a washing machine which had a cycle that works better with your life than a cheaper one which did not, or more for a nursery that fits around your work better than one that did not, so this is not that different. And usually much less than the price difference in those kinds of things.

[dementedma]

Blimey, some very organised people on here. I'm not techy enough to do all the app stuff. DH bought an Alexa but only ever use it as a radio. I'm hopeless. Stuff gets written up on a wall calendar, shopping lists on the backs of envelopes, vital stuff has been known to go on the back of my hand.

[DarlingWithoutYou]

We're an Apple family. So use iCalender for everything. All appointments and stuff like 'dog flea treatment' goes on there.

We also use Notes and share notes with each other. We have one called Birthdays with everyones birthdays listed by month. Every few weeks I go on funky pigeon and buy the next round of birthday cards, you can set them to be posted in the weeks ahead which makes things easier.

[Sadieeloise5687]

Do all minor admin STRAiGHT AWAY (things like paying for things at school or filling in a form). It’s so much easier and takes less time to do quickly then forget than have to keep reminding yourself over and over ‘oh I must do said form’. Honestly makes a world of difference and you feel so on top of things

[Wetnoseandfurryears]

Ignore it until your DH does it

Or ...

If you leave it long enough it will go away.