I know so many people who think the more they do, the better, putting quantity of work forward instead of quality. I believe that with good organization you can achieve the best of both worlds, using your time to it's fullest.
People usually underestimate the value of a good organized lifestyle. You don't have to become compulsive or anything, just take on some good habits. It's also not just a matter of knowing what to do any when. It's the satisfaction of knowing you have everything organized, you are safe to relax, since you won't forget anything.
I think this is the essence of organization. Not only knowing what to do when your working, but the ability it gives you to actually drop the pen and not think of it at all. Much counter-productivity comes from not being able to let go of your problems.
So how should we go about organizing ourselves? My suggestion is using twofold. First of all you need the method, second of all you need the means. You can read about countless methods on the internet, one of the most prominent ones nowadays is GTD, or Getting Things Done by David Allen. I also recommend reading some productivity blogs, like Hack Your Day
or Lifehacker. These blogs specifically write about this subject matter, oftentimes focusing on the GTD method as well.
Next comes the platform. Once you’ve found a method you like you should set out to find a way to make it work easily. You may only want to use a pen & paper notepad or organizer, but you may drift toward online solutions like Remember The Milk
or Vitalist. Both ways have their merits and disadvantages. I use a combination, since I like the ease of access that comes with jotting down notes on paper, but I also enjoy the flexibility and reportability online solutions offer.
In all honesty the method you use and the software is not important. What’s important is that it all works for you. Read a bit about GTD, scan the mentioned blogs for info and create your own method that accommodates your every need. I wish you all the best, be organized, be productive!
