Got a lot on your plate? Need more systems in your life and need them ASAP? Then grab this 5 minute simple system and get on your way! Today is all about sharing the details on how to organize your notebook so you never lose a note again in your life!
Listen below for the entire episode on The Systemize Your Life Podcast
5 Minute Simple System
This is going to be a quick system hack for you on all things notebooks. I use a notebook for all the things, all the time, and today I am sharing with you my system for keeping my notebook organized! You are either a one notebook kind of gal because either you don’t take a ton of notes or don’t have a ton of things to take notes for, OR you are like ME and you take a TON of notes in SO many different areas of your life that you would blow through one notebook in about a month.
Through my notebook system, I teach that you should only have ONE notebook in your whole life for ALL the things. Get rid of the sticky notes, get rid of the multiple loose-leaf sheets of paper, or a notebook in the purse, a notebook in the bag, a notebook in the car, and a notebook everywhere. Ditch ALL of those notebooks and get yourself ONE notebook that can be YOUR notebook, and your notebook only.
I am going to teach you what to do with that notebook so you know what you need to do to be able to find your notes in the way that you want to be able to find them.
“Ditch ALL of those notebooks and get yourself ONE notebook that can be YOUR notebook, and your notebook only. “
What I Do With My Notebook
I take tons, and tons of notes about ALL the things at ALL the times. You are going to have TWO notebooks. One is for your personal and the other is for your business. If you are extremely involved in something else – maybe it is your ministry, maybe it is your kid’s school, maybe it is something outside of the work that you do and your personal life – meaning what happens inside of your home. And it’s a place you go often and take a lot of notes for then you may want another notebook, a third notebook, for that place.
How to Organize “The Notebook”
Whether you are working with one notebook, two, or three – regardless, each notebook will be organized in this system. For me, I have a personal notebook and it is where I have my parenting class that I am currently going through, sometimes I need to just chicken scratch general notes in there, my Bible study notes are in there, my sermon notes are in there. These are different categories that I have for my personal notebook. When I say notebook, I just mean the pretty notebooks from Target.
Step 1
First and foremost, you need to decide the three or four categories you are going to have for that notebook. As I mentioned, my personal notebook has four categories: sermon notes, Bible notes, parenting class, and general (for ideas as they come). For my business notebook it has 1) My Academy group calls, 2) My own personal learning in there, 3) My mastermind from my Mastermind that I am in, and 4) A general section. You will know the categories based on what YOU are typically taking notes for over and over and over again!
If you are constantly wanting to write things down as you listen to a podcast then you are going to want to have a podcast section in your notebook. If you are constantly wanting to write down notes when you are at a coffee shop with friends, or when you go to that business mom’s meet-up and you are like “Oh, I need to write that down!” have a section for that!
Step 2
Here is the simple step #2. You need to create dividers for the different categories in your notebook. There are thousands of ways to do this, but it is really simple! You can get the paper clips, which are not permanent, so I don’t love those, but it is nice if you are wanting to move those around. Or, use a cute Washi tape or duct tape and create tabs on the sides. This is a similar concept to Bible tabs. You are going to create these within the notebook and label them what each category is.
Step 3
Here is the final step on this incredibly simple and easy system for organizing your notebook so you never lose another note again. On the side, when you open that paper when you are writing in it, you are going to write the date and the category. What is it that you are talking about and what the date is at the very top-right hand corner of the page. By doing this you are indexing it for you. You are able to know exactly what it is and when it was done. That is all you need to know and you will have the most organized notebook of anyone you know!
Next Steps
If you are looking for more systems in your life to take better hold of managing your time, your household, and your productivity, come check out the details of The Systemize Your Life Academy, as well as come join us in the Facebook group for incredible community and support as we navigate life together. Until next time friends!
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I find more systems for my business?
Inside the Systemize Your Life Academy I have a whole section on how to systemize your business. Systems are the key to taking you farther, faster. Systems will open up so much mental space so you can grow your business AND spend more time with your family.
