How Notebooks Can Help Boost Your Productivity at Work
~ Originally posted February 20, 2019 ~
There are so many reasons to use notebooks at work but the most important one is to boost your productivity. Writing things down helps you learn and retain information. Plus there's no better way to organize a project than with paper and a pen.
Notebooks and planners help you create a focus for your day and give you a place to record ideas. They allow you to manage multiple tasks and then track and document your work to show your progress.
Depending on your needs you may want to use more than one notebook. I use a separate notebook for meetings, then when the meeting is over I migrate the tasks I need to complete over to my bullet journal and create a plan. I also use a monthly log to help plan recurring tasks and any deadlines or events.
You may want to have a separate notebook for each project you’re working on or one for each client you will be working with.
There are endless options for how you can organize your information into notebooks. Whichever option you choose, remember that you are trying to increase your productivity, not make things more difficult.
WHAT TO WRITE
The information you record in your notebook will vary depending on your job but there are some general things you will want to keep track of:
Goals - top 3 for the day/week
Ideas
Lists
Follow-up tasks
Appointments, meetings, phone calls, etc.
WHEN TO WRITE
Over time you will create a regular routine of recording information in your notebook. For example, I like to write first thing in the morning. I list out my top 3 tasks for the day and look to see if I need to prepare anything for an upcoming meeting or appointment.
Some other ideas include:
At the moment you want to remember something
During a quiet moment between tasks
In the morning to help motivate you throughout the day
Before you go home to reflect on your day and look ahead to tomorrow
At the end of the week to catch up and migrate missed tasks to the next week
Creating a work journaling habit can help boost your productivity and give you a place to record all those little bits of things you don't want to forget.
If you're not sure a work notebook is right for you, I suggest you give it a try and test out the benefits for yourself.
Grab a small notebook at the dollar store and take a couple of minutes at the end of each day to detail the positive things that have happened or you've achieved. At the end of the week, review what worked and what didn't so you can make any adjustments.
BEFORE YOU GO:
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