Creating organization for creatives

Do you love lists or are you a visual person?

I love lists. I have so many lists: a to-do list at job 1, another one at job 2, a meal plan list, a grocery list, a list of writing projects I’m working on and plan to work on, a random to-do list on my phone for things like “add windshield washer fluid to car,” and don’t even get me started with how many sticky notes I have on my computers at job 1, job 2, on my laptop at home, and on my bathroom mirror.

I might have a problem.

Anyway, I realized the reason I love lists so much:

Our minds are made to create ideas, not store them.

This is why we jot down or doodle ideas on whatever scrap of paper or device we have closest to us.

But is that effective? Absolutely not!

When I have ideas floating around my phone, car, work, hand (you still write notes on your palm, too, right?), and a million sticky notes everywhere I go, I feel like a crazy person. Plus, I waste time when I’m attempting to tackle a project because I don’t even have the skeleton of a plan to follow.

Finding a way to organize your thoughts and projects is necessary for the creative mind.

When I figure out a systematic way to organize my thoughts and I use it, my creativity flows stronger and fearlessly. I’m allowed to type all the things with abandon because I know I can edit it or even delete it (AKA save it in another folder for later).

Allow organization to help your creativity flow from your fingertips.

I love writing lists out, but I don’t always have a notebook with me or it’s too cumbersome to handle when jotting down a quick note to myself. So, I went to my app store. With technology these days, there are so many free apps you can use to organize your life.

I like using Trello because I can organize many aspects of my life (writing projects, blog posts, job applications, and more) all in one app through separate “boards.” I can also add due dates for projects and see these due dates on a calendar. Plus, what I do in the app on my phone syncs to what I do on the computer, so whether I’m at work or on the go, I have my visually-appealing to-do list with me.

Challenge: Organize your creative projects this week by using an app, notebook, or sticky note system. Whatever works for you! Combine your random notes and ideas into this one system. Then comment below with what system you’re using and why.

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