Getting more things done

I used to think I was quite an organized person.

But I still struggle to handle all the paperwork, answer all the e-mails, talk to all the people and plan the events and do all the other things I feel God is calling me to do.

Recently I've read a couple of great books on managing time: Getting Things Done by David Allen and Do it Tomorrow by Mark Forster. The former is the June 'Book of the month'; click here to read the review. The latter will be featured in a couple of months' time.

As a result of reading and pondering these, I now have a new system for dealing with all the 'stuff' which I have to process. Do it tomorrow is not about putting things off, but making a list each day of the tasks for the following day, and not adding those little 'urgent' things which crop up, or following the interesting web links... all the other things which seep away at my time.

I had a tidying-up blitz - that was a good thing, too; and I have better systems for collecting what I have to do, and organing priorities and tasks.

I commend the idea of having a sort out and learning new skills in this area every so often. Why not allocate a day over the summer when you get sorted and set up for the future? For me, this is already reaping rewards.