"Touch things once" - one of the organization's principle - I'm not agreed!

When you touch something only once, than you don't leave open loops, I understand that. But it can use lot more energy to do this! Let's see some examples.

Image credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/100087993@N03/12473675813

Example 1: Making order

I'm trying to make order in a room. I touch a thing what belongs to the kitchen - I go to the kitchen. I take something to bath, then an other to the living room, than this to the bathroom??? Silly. Isn't easier collect everything not belongs to the room (touched first) finish with the room, and after than touch it again and bring to the other room?

Example 2: Sorting laundry

When I sort laundry I touch things more than once. I have 5-10 categories (I don't know exactly), and when I start to sort, I don't make so much pile. I decide, "I do first light color clothes". I have here "misc" and "T-shirt" categories. That means I do 3 piles: these two, and everything else. I have decide only between these 3, and not 10 (or how much I have :D) Than I load the washing machine, and go an other round with pile 3, and I might take out "dark misc" and "dark T-shirts". And leave all others unsorted. (Rep. from beginning :))

Example 3: Mails

Touch once means: I come home, take out the mails, I toss advertisement in garbage - this is ok. O, here is a bill to pay -let's turn on computer, log in to my bank account, and pay??? No, this is silly. Mostly all of our bills has to be payed in 30 days. That means we can pay once a month, and every bill will be payed before the deadline. We have a drawer for bills, I toss all of them here, and I have a recurring task reminder in my calendar (scheduled for the weekend) - on that day I go through the bills.

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How work together my paper planners and Google Calendar with my apps?

If you didn't read my last post about how I use Todoist and Evernote - do it now first!
While the apps help keep me on track, with automation, reminders, quick collecting, I also need for planning the paper and pen. When I use them, I think differently, more deeply.
The whole planning system is like a zooming process.

Year

The farthest picture is the year for me.
I filled out the Powersheets - what helped me to crystallize my goals. But I don't really use the monthly sheets, I just read my goals through every months.
For my work I made a yearly plan (you can take a look on it in this video, by about 8 minutes). Both are written.

Month

I made a separate monthly calendar booklet for myself for the year. At the beginning I wasn't sure, if it is a good idea, but I needed more ring space, so monthlys has to be removed. I'm very satisfied with this solution. (For next year - advice for myself: use thicker paper! :)) This calendar is, where every time related things arrive. It lives in my main planner's pocket. I synchronize this with the calendar in my pocket - but only those things are going to my pocket what can influence appointments - "give pocket money for kids" is in A5 but not in pocket. When I'm on the go I bring only the pocket with me. If I have to make an appointment in my pocket, I don't write it on paper (I would forget to copy), I write it on little post it note, and that stays there until I didn't copied (I have a task in my daily review "check pocket".)
For work I have also monthly calendars, where I write deadlines, and plan out on what day on what big thing I will concentrate.

Week

When I do my weekly review, I copy all events to the Google Calendar, because I need reminders. Every new item in Google Calendar goes automatically to Todoist (with IFTTT), so I can see them in more place (sure, what sure). 

Day

The daily focus from the monthly plan goes to the daily page - what I also need to write. Even if I have my little tasks from Todoist... I copy my tasks from Todoist to my daily page! Not all, but most of them. I need to plan out, in which hour I do what. (Not too detailed, but like "daily routine", "write xy pattern", "phone calls", "little things".

It might be a little chaotic... A little summary:

Tasks are collected in Todoist. They are scheduled there according to paper planning. Tasks are copied to paper planner (daily pages).

Other stuff are going to Evernote. (Templates, routines, archive, supporting materials, project infos - no tasks! Pending items)

Appointments are going on paper planner, and are copied to Google Calendar.

Time-related items (my kids have today a sport competition - when, where, what they have to have.... - are going as a photo into Todoist [TICKLER] "project". 

All real planning happens on paper. Almost all information keeping happens on computer.

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More-and-more planning in apps (Todoist and Evernote)

My planning system is a Frankenstein :) I had Evernote since years, but I didn't used it too much. But as I saw a lot Todoist/time management videos, I learned about Evernote too, and started thinking on, how I could use it, how I could organize my stuff in it. I love the idea going paperless: I want to scan all my documents, and toss as much as possible (contracts of course not :)).
How my system works now?

Todoist

Todoist keeps all my to do-s. Every little thing, and big recurring things too. I organize them into big groups, like: work, family, personal, and I have some "extra", like to buy - I shared this with my husband, I write here the shopping list, he can go with his phone shopping and check them out.

I'm not sure yet, what is best for "tickler" stuff - keep them in Todoist, or Evernote. Future events have documents with informations, and I want a reminder for them. Keeping document is better in Evernote, but getting reminders from two places? Not sure I want this.

Evernote

Whatever I can think on, goes to Evernote. Files, archives, ideas, emails forwarded... I have here something "GTD like" organization. Inbox: where everything arrives - if I wouldn't do like this, I would forget tagging stuff. Planner keeps planning tools, like review templates. Projects for 3 main part of my life: work, family, personal. For work I keep two stack: active and inactive projects. Filing cabinet keeps documents, without grouping. Saved recipes, documents, notes, infos saved from the web, etc. Pending is for... pending items :D Like orders (I just forward the email what I get...), and other things I'm waiting for. I check this weekly, and archive what is not any more pending. Archive is for archived projects.

Evernote keeps also my reviews. This is really genial: I can write in the same note to do-s, instructions, place to write, and files. Why I don't keep these todos in Todoist? Because like this I can go through my review in one place! This is my weekly review note:

First the reflection for the past week: I finished these, list of tasks: like process inbox in Todoist and Evernote. That was great, and not so great, and journaling, if I have any thoughts I want to write.

And tasks for planning the next week:

And take a look on my daily review, here comes the best part - this note contains files too. I created my weekly chart in excel - and the data copies entries into yearly chart automatically! I could delete the "refresh the yearly chart" todo from my weekly review.

And how it works together?

In Todoist I have a task "daily review" - ok, go to Evernote, copy the daily review template, fill out, done. Next please.

In Todoist I have a task: work on project xxx pattern. This can be a little bit complexer. For a project in Evernote I have more notes - one for the whole projects, with informations about timeline, deadlines, and internal links for all related notes, like Pages document, where I write the pattern. I have a note for "supporting files".

And I also have tasks in todoist in that project. This is because I can add a task to Todoist with only one keyboard combination. When I check my test thread and I find a mistake I have to correct, or just have to do: cmd+shift+a - and the task created in Todoist inbox. When I process the Inbox the task goes to the project. For this tasks I don't place a reminder! I have just one for the project. I go to that project tasks list, and working on them.

This post starts to be too long, so I stop here. And maybe next time I write about how comes to picture my planner and Google calendar - because here are also changes...

It might be confusing, please ask if you want to know more about anything (don't ask how to make things in the apps :) I can give you links, ok... :D)

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