Negative Feelings About Getting Organized

I constantly feel like I have so much to do and so little time to do it. The point of David Allen’s Getting Things Done is to show you how you absolutely can get all the things done you need to do. He talks a lot about agreements within his book, particularly agreements you make with yourself. He argues that the most important agreements you make are the ones with yourself, which I kind of agree with. At the end of the day, the only person you have to answer to is yourself.

Social Media: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Everyone with any kind of social media page has heard this statement: “You know, being on social media for too long can be really bad for you.” Typically, we just continue doing what we were doing on Facebook or Twitter and are like, “Yeah right. Sure I may spend a lot of time on it, but I’m fine.” We also hear a lot of people who say they are taking an extended break from social media to focus on different aspects of their lives, but they end up back on it a week later saying “they just couldn’t do it.” Why is it we just can’t put the social media away?

That Illusive Future

The future is scary. I think it’s scary at any stage in life honestly. It’s unpredictable, and what is unpredictable is always terrifying. Somehow, though, we always find a way to keep going and embracing our futures. David Allen says that everything we do in our life is a small step in working towards a bigger picture. He calls these our Horizons, and suggests that it is always important to keep them in mind.

Keeping Hold of Your Ideas

I know I am not the only one who thinks of this awesome idea that I want to explore later in the day but then forgets it as soon as I move on to something else. It happens all the time! I’ll think of something when I’m driving or on a run or in class or making dinner, but I can never recall it after I arrive at my destination or when I finish my run.

Creating Your Own Space

Finding a place to sit down an work on a project or an assignment can be very difficult sometimes, especially if you are, like me, a commuter student who spends sometimes 10 or more hours on campus. Sometimes, I never know where to work, and when I get home, I’m so tired that it’s even more difficult to find a space to work without falling asleep. David Allen states in Getting Things Done that it is imperative that everyone find a space they can successfully work in. He says the basics are simply a writing surface, room for an in-tray, and a space for digital tools, such as your laptop.

How to Be a Better Runner

We’ve all been there. We pick up running, been doing it for a while, feeling pretty good, but then we hit a plateau. We stop seeing progress. I’m running more and more miles, but I’m feeling tired now and am not getting any faster.

A Simple Way to Make Yourself Feel Good

Have you ever walked into someone’s room, or even your room, and said, “Wow, you have A LOT of stuff.” I certainly have. My boyfriend is kind of a hoarder. He keeps everything. And, when a person keeps everything, it starts to pile up. On the desk. On the bookshelf. In the closet. On the floor. It kind of makes living hard sometimes. I’ve asked him why he doesn’t just go through it, and he always responds with, “I just don’t have the time.”

Making the Switch: Tools for Getting Things Done

All of my life I have used a weekly/monthly planner. Starting in about 4th or 5th grade, my school would provide one for all of its students, and this continued all the way to my senior year. After I graduated, I went out and bought my own for college every year. As you can see, I’ve been stuck in the agenda mindset for just about 10 years.

Trying to Get Things Done

I used to pride myself on my organizational skills. In high school, I was the Queen of Organization; I had a calendar that I stuck to; I did just about everything that was on it; I had clearly labeled folders for each of my classes and for homework; my books folders were organized in my locker by class period (1, 2, 3, etc.). It all worked out very well for me, and I did well in my classes.

A Good Place to Start

I was recently hired as a staff writer for my college’s newspaper, and I wrote my first article for it this passed week. It was a welcome back to the students, both old and new. In the article, I spoke a lot about how we made it from little freshmen to preparing to graduate in 8 months. It’s really hard to believe just how quickly college went by.