Who doesn’t like a list? I constantly have lists going on for various things. At the moment I have an app on my phone for keeping track of the Christmas presents and how much we’re spending. I have a list in my phone notepad of my husbands presents, this needs to be separate from the other list! I have a separate shopping list for food, drink and cleaning items. Then there is the list of other items needed for Christmas, such as wrapping paper, gift bags and relative specific cards. Those are the ones just for Christmas! As you can see, I like to have everything set out so that I can look at it and be able to pick out what still needs to be done.
Along with planning for Christmas, I also have a nearly 3 year olds birthday party to think about. So there is yet more lists going on for that, a potential venue that needs booking, invitations that need writing and sending, party bags that will need buying and making up. This is a very important job that needs completing to ensure a happy birthday girl. So I am of course putting a lot of thought in to what I do and where we have said party!
Life in general has a tendency to be disorganised, which I find frustrating but I do my best to remedy this and maintain order wherever possible. Keeping track of appointments, social gatherings and classes is one way I try to make sure that I am prepared for the upcoming weeks and months. By having those things already arranged and planned, it means that any unplanned things which crop up are easier to deal with.
My work life takes a lot of organisation. For my day job I generally have a task list to work from, which is created for me by my line manager. This helps me to structure my week accordingly and ensure that everything that needs completing, gets done in a timely manner. My most recent business venture into selling make-up has meant that I have needed to create a new system for keeping track of customers orders, checking up on parcel progress and keeping up with who has made payments. There are some tools provided to us by the company, which mean that we can keep track of how much money we are making, our taxes etc. I like to have my own physical order book at home to keep track of each individual customers orders. This means that I can track who orders what and how often, that way I can see which customers are repeat purchasers. Keeping track of all my orders, payments etc is very important for this, so that I know how well I am doing with my new venture.
My VA business started out in a similar way, with lots of different lists. I researched insurances, website creating platforms, what paperwork I needed. I made lists of all of these things so that as each part was complete, I could tick it off and know that my business was progressing along as it should be. Any work that I have undertaken so far as part of my business, I have made sure that I have checked through any relevant task lists. This is how you complete a job efficiently and ensure that nothing is left out or missed. Lists are great for aiding organisation and planning. This is a staple part of how I keep track of everything and I will continue to use this method, whether it is in the form of a written list or something saved onto a phone, laptop or other electrical device.