Can you become an "organised person"? Any techniques? I'm talking about a complete personality change required here

[Tinker]

I think I'm beginning to get sick of myself being so disorganised. I've been off work for over 3 weeks now. At the start of the summer holiays I vowed I would have the house tidy and be organised about holiday stuff etc. The house is still a tip and I left it until yesterday to ring abour insurance, green card, breakdown cover etc - we leave tomorrow! Also, only remembered yesterday that I should have registered last Friday for exams I'm taking in December - without the good humour and goodwill of the person dealing with this I would have had to stump up £200 up front. At work I'm either in a state of boredom or panic - things only get done when I have my boss on my back.

HOW do you change to from being a person who needs deadlines to get anything done to someone who passes through life smoothly and seamlessly? Anyone have any realistic workable tips/techniques?

Thanks

Spacemonkey - my parents waited 20 years after separating before bothering to get divorced. Even then, my dad thought my mum was being a bit hasty in ruling out the possibility of a reunion. Compared to that, you are a model of marital efficiency .

Oooh I could hear someone talking about me! And here you all are - What a fab conversation title.

I have always had trouble keeping myself organised. I have two small children and find myself blaming them, but the fact is I've always had trouble right from living on my own at University.

I am now living in a village where people 'pop' in on me and I have to be better. I also need to not miss appointments and be there when I'm expected to be. Both things seem so easy but for me they are so not! Its nice to know I'm not alone.

I have cracked the paperwork organisation with the calendars and diaries that are mentioned above which is why I have started to sell them over here. It has made me less organised to a certain extent as taking on a new business and having two children under 5 is a lot!

I'm coping by tiring them in the morning and having some time to work in the afternoon.

I have a helpful husband too!

I wish the house had come along the same way but at least my life isn't quite as chaotic as it used to be!

Sarah

It sounds absolutely awful, but I'm convinced that if only I gave up Mumsnet, my life would be a haven of organised, efficient motherhood and work.

I used to be incredibly flaky. Still am, but slightly less so. I still have to be threatened with court action before I manage to pay my bills. I regularly pay £25 late payment charges on my credit card bills, because I haven't got round to paying them. But - my house is now much tidier than it used to be. So I can actually find things. I have found that shelves, shelves and more shelves, with spaces to put things in, in their own space, is very helpful. As are au-pairs.

That's the only tip I've got.

I hit a bit of a low point this year, well culmination of all thats happened over the last 3 really. Getting out of bed was an achievement. I felt I had so much to do that I didn't know where to start. Anyway, when I began to feel a bit better I set myself a task each day. This sounds awful but even if I managed to wash up and clean the kitchen I felt like i'd achieved something (honestly). So, each day I set myself an achievable task and if I manage that then I don't feel so bad. If I manage more then so much the better. I do work btw.

For work I have a piece of card longer than my planner that I use as a place mark for the right day. I divide this card into 3 vertically and title each column- 1)Very Urgent 2) Urgent 3) To do. I then scribble out each thing as I do it. Not much use for home but I find it invaluable as a teacher.

MeanBean, me too with credit cards, until I set up dds for them. Could you do that? Tinker, you're the only person I know who crosses things off lists before you've done them !! No tips except: I gave up mumsnet for a week once and got LOADS and LOADS done. It was, as someone else said, truly staggering. But boring as f*

My house would be tidier if Mumsnet vanished, i think, or id just sit here refreshing the page for the week till it did come back and then nothing at all would get done!

When my tv broke down I did think that perhaps my flat might get tidier, but in fact it got much worse because it turned out that any cleaning I did was prompted by the ad breaks. There's method in my chaos.

I think with your bills you need to set up a direct debit for the minimum - just think what you're doing to your credit rating and to your wallet. £25 is a lot in our house and can't imagine its any different in yours.

I then write a reminder on the calendar to pay the rest on credit cards. I tried the pay it all by direct debit idea like my mum does but I used to get stung when I didn't have enough in my account. At first I'd write the amount up there but its a bit embarrassing if its been a heavy month on the old credit!

Sarah

morningmayhem, i couldn't resist, that is just the sort of thing i absolutely love - dh will loathe it - but come to see the wisdom in time

I keep trying to avoid this thread but i know i really need to sort my self out.

I used to be quite organized even after i had Dd's 1&2, but since having Ds (20mths ago) my organization skills have gone to pot.

I forget school things, bills and have no housewrok rota at all.
I quite often feel overwhelmed, especially as we have lots to do at the mo too.
IF I do go back to college in Sept I just know a few weeks into it i'll just feel completely overwhelmed, panicked and ill, because i won't have given myself enough time to do things properly.

ooh, i did him an injustice, he said it was a marvellous idea

Urgh, thread's too long to read all of it! My top tips are:
Use an internet diary and set it to send you reminders about anything and everything, not just appointments, birthdays etc.
Use a brought forward file. Rather lo-tech but its a concertina 1-31 file. You put in any paperwork related to jobs that need to be done, print out any emails etc you have sent needing an answer, write yourself notes and put them in, keep hospital appt cards etc in the dates for the next appt so its to hand. You MUST remember to check it though! Works a treat and so simple!

daft question davros, but how do you do an internet diary? do i need to get software?

No, just go to Yahoo and register. You can set reminderes, repeat dates such as birthdays, send inviations to other people, e.g. DH's dentist appt etc, choose to allow certain people to share your diary so they can check you availability (I don't do that one!), you can also operate it from any location, e.g. home or work etc

Where on Yahoo please that sounds great!

Cheers Davros x

Just go to uk.yahoo.com/ That takes me straight to an area that shows all the Yahoo facilities as I am already registered and signed in. Presumably if you're not registered you will get an registration option there. BE WARNED you will also get access to Yahoo Groups, just as addictive as MN..... You also get access to Yahoo mail so can have another email address with your ID so you've got another option if you want to register with some obscure name and can then have an anonymous email address

Cool! Just set up my AOL calendar. See, used to have AOL 6 so it didn't have these things. I am now on the Road to Efficiency. Put in that I'm off on holiday totmorrow (in case I forget)

Late payements on credit cards - always falling foul of this, defeats the object of moving debt around on 0% cards really. Could set up dds but don't pay off balance each month and want to pay more than min. However, do have dd set up for egg card - nearly backfired this month since last bill was quite low so had set it up to clear balance. Hadn't changed it for a few months since not used the card and then woke up in the middle of the night this week in a cold sweat remembering that I now had quite a substantial sum on it and hadn't changed the dd request. An "organised person" wouldn't EVER get into that position.

Nutty - I'm impressed that you could even coin the term "housework rota"

I've been to yahoo! and I'm all signed up

I need something that sends me email reminders. Does it have that?

I'm so unorganized, but have had to come to grips with bills. My (chaotic) method is this: have a "Pay me" folder and shove bills in it as they come. Like stour advised, have minimum dd for the credit cards, but aim to pay more as you get to them. I also have dd for things that have to be paid (eg mortgage). Then every 3 weeks (aim for every three weeks, because it'll turn out to be once a month if you're like me), just sit down and pay them all. Get online banking and check that everything is up to scruff at the same time. As you pay a bill, write on the bill what you paid (if it's not the full amt) and the date paid and shove it in the "To file" folder. Get proper filing equipment (ie hanging folders) and file every so often. If you get nice big folders, you can put it off for 3 months or so.

I have needed stuff from the files (loads were in the "to file" folder, but I knew where it was!) and it's helpful to know you've kept it all. I also shove all the warranties, receipts, etc in a folder called "receipts". Like everything else, it's having a place to put stuff. If you know where it is, no matter how unorganized "where" is, you'll be able to find it when you need it.

I also keep two diaries, kind of. One is a date book of appts, and one is a notebook of to-dos and lists and vague notes. The vague notes diary is the most helpful day to day. I just write stuff down as I think of it and then a look over the past couple of months will tell me what to do, eg, must submit insurance for stolen bike (from 8 weeks ago). I try to keep a running to do list and do, of course!, cross off things that I've already done, even if I have to write them down first.

Oops, one more helpful thing, I keep a notepad hanging in the kitchen with a "touch and and die" pen on it (I usually end up writing in crayon, so that doesn't work). Then I write down things that I need as they go out.

Wow.... really long post. I'm pleased. My house is an absofuckinglute mess, so I've go no tips there. I'm what is generally known as a slob. I really need help on that point.

Tinker - I'm with AOL, how do I set up the claender thingy ??

Now let me guess...

Is it that icon that says 'remind me', god i'm so thick sometimes.

lol jj

AND I take a long time to do messages, off to do the yahoo thing.

ah..

Willl do the yahoo thing tomorrow.. see, this is how I get behind.