30 Days to a More Organized Life, Day 1: Get a Notebook & Pen

The first task to living a more organized life is simple: get a pocket-sized notebook, a pen and keep them with you.

Always.

This small step is the biggest you can take to becoming a more organized person. With a notebook on you at all times, you can catch ideas as soon as they come to you.

Think about it: how often does something like ‘I need to call the repairmen’ or ‘I need to pick up milk’ pop into your mind, only to be forgotten seconds later? Thousands of times would probably be an underestimate.

Why do you forget? Usually it’s because when you think of something, you can’t do anything about it at the moment. Merlin Mann put it best: “The time you remember you need to buy more toilet paper isn’t when you’re in the supermarket.”

When you are in the supermarket, you end up wandering the aisles thinking ‘what do I need to get?’.

The notebook will change that.

I recommend getting a cheap notebook that fits in your pocket. If you really want a fancy fisher space pen & Moleskine reporter’s notebook go ahead, but cheap works just fine and it may even be better. I use the cheapest notebook that I can find and use an inexpensive bold pen like the Pilot V10 Grip:

(As a side note: don’t substitute your phone as a note-taking device. You want to be able to record a thought instantly. Smart phones, while amazing, still can’t beat the quickness of flipping open a notebook.)

Your notebook must be with you at all times – it should be as vital an object as your wallet or purse. Write down any thoughts that occur to you during the day: things you need to do, errands, responsibilities, foolish business ideas. Write them all down. Later on, we’ll cover what to do with these notes, but right now it’s all about establishing the habit.

Go and get that notebook and pen, right now.

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Header photograph by pittaya