For today’s podcast, press the “play” button above–or read the brief summary below! Don’t forget to check out the announcements at the bottom about “Four Weeks to Finished!”
——–
Quick Note from April: Our oldest daughter, Alia, essentially grew up with the STEP system, and while not all of our children are in love with organizing, Alia has appreciated the peace, predictability, and overall sense of calm it has brought to her schooling, world travels, work, marriage, and life!
Today she is sharing how her STEP Command Central specifically helps her manage all the details as she is traveling, preparing for a move in a few days, and keeping up with her studies and work.
I had SUCH a great time listening to this, and I hope you will find it beneficial, as well!
Take it away, Alia!
Today I am sharing how I use my STEP system/Command Central to stay organized, calm, productive, and more while I am in a very busy state of life. My husband and I have been away from home for the past month for travel and work, and we are also planning to move apartments right when we get home. There’s a lot going on in life, but I know that I have the tools to stay on top of everything that comes my way! Here are 5 STEP-related tips that have helped me:
1. Use a Context-Based Next Actions List
I have been using my next actions list to not only prepare for travel, but to plan out my days so that I can accomplish the tasks that come into my life. I use my Notes app on my phone to create simple categories (like conversations, errands, texts, phone calls, etc), and I put the different tasks into the categories when they come to mind or when they are part of a larger project.
For example, in order to prepare for the trip, I needed to get an oil change for my car, and I added that to my “errands” section. When I was planning out my days before the trip, I checked my errands list to see what I needed to do, and I was able to schedule a good time that works best for me.
2. Create a Current (and Someday) Projects List
I want to make sure that I am not overwhelming myself with lots of unnecessary projects. I have a list of projects that I will accomplish someday, and when they come to mind, I know that I can add them to this list and come back to them later when I have more time and energy available. The projects that I am currently working on for work, school, and personal life are listed out, along with their next actions so that I know how to best move forward. This helps me to only have 7 or 8 current projects during the month instead of trying to tackle 20+ projects at one time.
3. Create Calendar Reminders
There are some tasks and ideas that come to mind that need to be done on a certain day. For example, our landlord asked us to text her a week before moving in to set up a time to get our key for the apartment. I put that task on my calendar, and I did not need to keep that in my mind and worry that I would forget to text her on that certain day.
4. Keep My Email Inbox at Zero
I process my emails each day and sort them into the correct folder so that I will know what needs to be processed later on when I have the time, and where I can reference emails that contain receipts or other important information that might need to be referenced later on.
(At the bottom of this post, I’ll link to the “Emails to Zero Live” class that my mom, April, taught last week!)
5. Create a “When I Get Home List”
While this is not directly part of the STEP program, this is something that I have learned from my mom. When we are in the middle of a busy holiday season or when she is traveling, she makes a little list for herself of the things that she wants to do and work on once she is home or once the holiday is over.
I have loved implementing this in my life because I can write down the different tasks and projects that I want to work on when I get home, and I can put them in the correct place (on my next actions list or projects list) later on. This helps me get all of the different things out of my head and into my system to be processed later.
I hope this is helpful, and I wish you the best as you move forward with your own STEP Command Central!
And remember…
In the month of June, our whole community is going to be moving forward building STEP Command Centrals, and we would love to work with you!
Our BEST support is in our “Four Weeks to Finished” program: https://LearnDoBecome.com/4weeks
We also have a one-month calendar to complete the STEP Modules inside our “Steps to Everyday Productivity” program: https://LearnDoBecome.com/STEPprogram
AND we have a free Community Facebook group where lots of fun will be happening throughout the month to build a strong foundation for a STEP Command Central: https://LearnDoBecome.com/FBfamily
And click here to reference the video replay of “Emails to Zero Live!”
I always get so much out of Alia’s podcasts and posts. Somehow she speaks my language! This is one to keep. Thank you, Alia, for showing we can get it all done one step and reliable system at a time!
Thank you so much, Mary! This was such a fun podcast to record, and I’m so glad that it was helpful! 🙂