20 Great Tools to Keep Your Life Organized
Photo by Teo
Every Monday is Productivity & Organization Day at Zen Habits.
It’s the ultimate quest of anyone trying to become more organized or productive: the ultimate organizing tool.
And while that perfect tool may be different for each person, depending on your needs, the following list should have something perfect for just about anyone.
Last week I shared some of the best organizing tips from you, the readers, and it was a hit. So this week, I’d like to share some of the best reader-submitted organizing tools. Note: This time, I rewrote the entries, so any references to the word “I” are referring to me, not to the reader who submitted them.
Let me please say that you should not try to adopt too many of these tools, and you certainly shouldn’t waste too much time trying them all out. Pick one or two that appeal to you, and go with them. If they don’t work, you can always choose another, but it’s important that you focus on the doing, not the tools.
- Google Calendar. Along with Gmail and Google Reader, Gcal is my favorite Google application — allows you to keep your life organized easily, intuitively, with no hassle or slow interface.
- Backpack. Great list-maker, perfect for to-do lists and other types of lists, simple and clean and nice interface. Can be accessed from anywhere: home, work, Mac, PC, mobile.
- Filofax-like organizer. Keeps all your info in a central spot: calendar, to do list, project list, watch-list, later-list, notebook and inbox, important addresses and phone numbers, important information to have on hand, tickler, diary.
- TiddlyWiki. A GTD-style wiki, with your contexts on the left side (e.g. @desk, @home, @writing, @inbox, project list) and each one of these opens a list of next actions for each location. In the list you can highlight items and link to other items, wiki style. The system is made of a single html file so it’s very portable, either on the Internet, through email, or on a flash drive.
- A stack of 3×5 index cards. It can be a ubiquitous capture device; keep context-based to-do lists; you project list, notes. Very modifiable, portable, fast, easy to use. (See Hipster PDA.)
- PocketMod. Ultra-portable planning and capturing, it’s a sheet of paper, which makes it cheap and easy. You can choose the mods you want, such as a calendar, notes, to-do lists, reference sheets, daily planner, and more.
- Behance Action Pad. This nice-looking organizational tool uses the Behance Action Method for creative types.
- do.Oh. It’s a nice to-do list web app, with a twist: it adds a zany poll. Perhaps the oddest combination of any organizer, this nevertheless makes the to-do list app fun to use, and that’s a huge selling point.
- The garbage can. Reduce before organizing. Toss anything that’s not absolutely needed, and you won’t have a need to organize. It’s liberating, too!
- Landing strip near your front door. It’s for unloading your stuff as you come in, so it stays organized, and so you don’t forget it as you leave the house. You can make your landing strip any way you like, but one reader’s setup consists of a set of hooks for backpacks, lunch kits, etc.; a box which holds keys, sunglasses, cell phones, etc.; and a basket for shoes as they come off by the front door. The reader also keeps alibrary books in a bag that hangs off one of the hooks. Simple and perfect.
- PalmPilot. Actually, any PDA works, but one reader swears by the Palm OS. Like the Filofax organizer above, the PDA has calendar, address book, to-do lists, documents/applications (Word & Excel, or others), clock (including alarm), calc, and more. It also syncs with work calendar. PDAs are also good for instant capture.
- Stickies on your desktop (computer or physical). The Stickies program is a popular one for the Mac, and one reader keeps a running to-do list using stickies for each task. The most important things go at the top, and stickies are deleted as tasks are done. Others use actual Post-It notes, on their physical desktop, in the same manner. Analog or digital, it works well.
- A notepad and a pen. Classic, and perfect. The Moleskine is a popular pocket notebook (I use it, because of its aesthetic appeal), but any cheap notebook works.
- OneNote 2007 (and one index card/day). For use with GTD.
- Vitalist.com. A popular online GTD oriented list application that is straightforward, easy, and free. I’ve actually tried this one and it works very well, and surprisingly the free version does everything you need.
- A habit list. In addition to your to-do list, your habit list keeps your action list from becoming overwhelmed by the every-day things.
- Remember the Milk. Does lists and tasks very well, including repetitive tasks. It has a plug-in for Google Calendar for one-stop organizing.
- Task Toy. Simple web-based to-do list manager, populr with GTD-types.
- iGTD. One of the most popular GTD apps for the Mac, and it’s free to boot.
- Journler. Another Mac tool, this diary/journal app helps you keep track of your life. Entries can be for anything that goes on in your day, thoughts, tasks, etc., and can be organized into folders and store files.
If you liked this article, please bookmark it in del.icio.us or vote for it on Digg. Thanks!
See also:
- A 3-Step Cure for Digital Packrats, and How to Know if You’re One of Them
- How to Simplify Your Filing System
- How to Actually Execute Your To-do List
- Eliminate All But the Absolute Essential Tasks
- Handbook for Life: 52 Tips for Happiness and Productivity
- The Getting Things Done (GTD) FAQ
- Massive GTD Resource List
- Zen To Done (ZTD): The Ultimate Simple Productivity System
- ZTD Minimalist System
- Spewed into the world on 20 August 2007 in Productivity & Organization |
- Print |
- Awesome Archives
Brilliant comments (47)
junkfoodmonkey Says:
August 20th, 2007, 5:56 am
Well, I’d use Google calendar, if it synched with my Palm. And I mean easily, not via third party software or exporting or anything like that. Until then it’s no use to me.
My Palm PDA never leaves my side! :D Heck, when the fire alarm went off in my building it was the first thing I picked up before I left. ;-) For organsing time and tasks and for the Documents. I find it very good for editing.
One Note I’m a fan of too and organise all my writing projects with it. Great for having research, outlines, notes, to do lists etc all in the same place, rather than in loads of different documents.
I’m going to check out a few more of the ones on your list.
Van Says:
August 20th, 2007, 6:56 am
Nice article today.. well since i was at school I tend to note and write down phrases and kind of lists that remind me things.. my short time memory is a disaster.. (not so.. but sometimes can turn out to be, specially for scheduled things).. if i don’t write down things.. i always have physical notebooks and a pen anywhere near.. Now that i work in Web Design and working from home lately.. i have my desktop full of them, keeping them organized in my desktop.. but as the 85% of the time my eyes are in the desktop of my pc.. i have QuickNotes Plus as ESSENTIAL tool… easy to use.. and even i wake up with it.. because has as well an alarm that you can set up for anything you want. The sticky notes you can change colors, sizes, fonts font size, alignments, etc.. and also has a memo/white board where you can store them…
talking about White board.. was of the things I bought recently, always wanted one of those.. so I got a small one and placed it right above my pc.. so my eyes when drifting away the screen.. goes directly there.. In the white board, I divided in 2 halfs, in the left side I made a chart with the medium term projects I have scheduled, and the other half has a todo list for my daily routine.. a trick for myself to anchor the thought, idea and scheduled program for the basic points of my daily routine (as this change of work is new for me, i’m still adapting to the change of routine I imposed to myself for a better living, also thanks to Leo for the advices in this field)..
as other ‘tools’ or tricks, i have a cork board right beside my bed where i have photos of my beloved ones, and other tasks or reminders with colorful pins, all in order.. that’s a basic principle in my life, order in the composition of visual elements whatever they are. And beside also made in a black light carton, with white marker, a resume of the 5 todo list for a healthier living (as a matter of nutrition). Quite easy to remind.
Finishing.. Love Google Reader, I use IGoogle and the gadgets are Reader, Calendar, Horoscope, and a clock. Using the Gmail skins extension for Firefox.. though has problems i still can see the IGoogle gadgets in my gmail. Which help me to remind tasks in Google Calendar. There i also have a sticky note there.
But I guess, after all and all these tools, the idea is to set a mental map to keep ourselves organized AND keep in mind that we’ll always break the routine (that’s the healthier thing in life IMO), so we won’t go crazy or mad in desperation because of it ;)… Let’s not turn ourselves into scheduled time and tasks slaves ;)
Greetings…
Van Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:00 am
oupst! Leo, can you please edit my previous comment and change my website for the one in this comment?.. Thank you very much !.. BTW, i know you’re in the Caribbean.. is the Hurricane affecting you?.. hope not.. I’m in the Caribbean too.. and we got some strong rains here.. but thanks God nothing more… (though every year hurricanes seem to be forming more and more to the south which makes it more dangerous for us down here).. Take good care !
Leo Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:17 am
@Van: Edited! And thanks for the comments … I’m actually not in the Caribbean, I’m in the Pacific (Guam) … but I definitely know what a hurricane is like! (We call them typhoons, but same difference.)
Van Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:21 am
ou.. thought i read somewhere you were in the Caribbean! .. hehe well take care the same.. Typhoons are heavier lately too ..
Sam Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:28 am
Thanks for the great list! I’m a fan of the Stickies myself, when it comes to the mac. I also just started using GCal and being able to color code different calendars and display them at the same time is a great feature.
Lu Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:58 am
Great list!
I’m gonna try one of the tools right now.
Thank you for the wonderful tips!
take care
Prakash Rangarajan Says:
August 20th, 2007, 7:59 am
Awesome list. Just chanced upon this blog.. Interesting and useful read really.
Andrew Flusche Says:
August 20th, 2007, 8:36 am
Leo - Great list. A tiny correction is needed, though. Vitalist has changed their pricing, so the free version is a bit limited: Update and Revisions to Pricing Plans
Fr33d0m Says:
August 20th, 2007, 9:19 am
I know this question will remove some geek cred, but what is GTD?
Ken Says:
August 20th, 2007, 9:56 am
For a ToDo list, I’m fond of http:/hiveminder.com. With its tagging system, it’s sort of like using Flickr. And it publishes an RSS feed which I can read in Google’s RSS Reader, which I visit compulsively throughout the day
Steve Says:
August 20th, 2007, 10:02 am
Hey Leo,
I love the garbage can! I love the recycle bin too!
My wife and I just recently moved into our new home and donated a load of old clothes, dishes, and electronics that was no longer useful to us. Not only did we make more room in our own new home, but we also provided valuables to others.
Cleaing up is also a great way to make more room for new material possessions. Law of Attraction do your work!
Cheers,
Stephen Martile
Personal Development with NLP
http://www.stephenmartile.com
Phillip Says:
August 20th, 2007, 10:52 am
Great list Leo (again)! One thing I would like to remind everyone about is to be careful getting too involved with a particular web based service. I had been using Vitalist until last week when they announced they were reducing the features of their free accounts. I still like Vitalist, and will recommend them (but be prepared to pay $5 a month). I can’t justify $60/year for list software.
I have an account with Dreamhost that I am now using to host Tracks for my GTD implementation. I also use Dreamhost for my email (although I have GMail pull everything in via POP3). The nice thing about hosting these things myself is that my data can’t be held hostage or accidentally lost.
-Phillip
Steve Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:06 am
I recently launched a brand-new list making and organization site that some of you may find useful: ZingLists. It’s free, supports all the to-do list features you expect and also lets you share lists.
Half of the problem I have when I know I need to get organized about something is figuring out where to start. My hope is that, over time, people will publish their great lists and give everyone else a head start. (Thinking vacation packing lists, home maintenance tasks, what goes in a disaster kit, etc.)
The site is pretty new, so as always, any and all feedback is hugely appreciated!
Steve <steve@lightyearsoftware.com>
Danny Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:12 am
Invaluable list. This one is going to my del.icio.us.
I like the garbage can tip. I need to use that one more!
I have an old m130 Palm and it is invaluable for keeping me organized. Although, I often find myself falling back on a paper notepad. Nothing is faster and more easily accessible for quick errand runs or planning my weekend.
I also sync my iPod with my calendar and notes. I can’t edit it from the iPod, but it’s great to reference when I don’t have my Palm with me. I don’t go anywhere without my iPod.
Laura Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:18 am
It’s all about backpack for me. The way the pages are organized could look a lot nicer but I haven’t found a better way to organize different types of information all in one place.
Heather Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:40 am
May I also suggest ThinkingRock. I love it because:
- cross-platform (mac at home, PC at work
- saves data as xml file for easily moving it between computers
- allows for colour coding
- prints to pocket-mod. I print it and carry it around in my Mole Skin 18-month calendar (along with a few blank index cards.
Omar Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:43 am
Thats a great list. I would also like to point out another tool that our team has developed called comapping.com - a collaborative web-based mind mapping tool.
When we developed the tool we really took into careful consideration on how people interact with the computer when it comes to organising, structuring and documenting ones thought. What we have developed is a tool based on the mind mapping principle with an added twist. The design has been changed so that people map left to right (rather than around a central topic). The result of that is that users can see infomation with less eye spans. This is coupled with an auto-layout system based on a complex algorithm that displays max infomation on a given computer screen. In other words users can simply focus on those topics that are relevant and the application will automatically re layout infomation that is relevant for the user. This actually saves considerable time in that users don’t have to scroll up and down, left and right.
An added benefit of this tool is the collaborative nature which allows multiple users to work on the same map at the same time. This means that the tool is not only being used for note taking but also for brainstorming sessions, project management etc.
Anyway, I though it would be worth mentioning comapping.com as one of “the ultimate organizing tool” available on the net :-)
Keith Says:
August 20th, 2007, 11:44 am
Leo,
Nice little list today. Really like PocketMod and habitlist. Often I am not at a computer, my basic phone is for calls, no PDA or crackberry. Anything I can print out and carry is best. I use Sunbird for schedules and print out a new page daily (the back usually gets recycled for subsequent MIT lists). Guess I’ll have to get a Moleskin or Hipster PDA next. KISS is best.
KD
Eric Blue Says:
August 20th, 2007, 14:28 pm
Hi Leo,
Great list! Have you ever tried out My Life Organized?
Leo Says:
August 20th, 2007, 15:06 pm
Wow, thanks for all the great comments, everyone! I can’t respond to every one, but a couple of quick things:
* What’s GTD? Try the GTD FAQ:
http://zenhabits.net/2007/06/the-getting-things-done-gtd-faq/
* I’ve seen My Life Organized, but I’ve never actually given it a test run, as it didn’t fit my needs. But it looks cool!
* The photo for this article isn’t mine — click on the photo for the link to the photo on Flickr. Actually, almost none of the photos on this site are mine (unless it’s of me or my family). :)
Todd Says:
August 20th, 2007, 15:27 pm
I think the Neatreceipts is pretty cool to get all of my paper organized. Scans and reads all my receipts, I seriously cleaned off my desk and will never go back to living with all that clutter again. Oh, its at http://www.neatreceipts.com
Michel Says:
August 20th, 2007, 16:28 pm
Great post.
I use a moleskine now, but I am moving to Lavenger pocket briefcase: http://www.levenger.com/Pagetemplates/Product/Product.asp?Params=Category=11-76|Level=2-3|pageid=2398|Link=Img|tab=Description#Content
and index cards for everything: todos, phone numbers, shopping lists, habits list, someday/maybe, etc.
Michel Says:
August 20th, 2007, 16:31 pm
Sorry for the broken link. The pocket briefcase is here:http://tinyurl.com/2c47ys
delpino Says:
August 20th, 2007, 17:02 pm
Also check out the Blue Smiley Organizer. I use it for years.
Caleb Says:
August 20th, 2007, 17:39 pm
We just launched spendapp, a simple way to track what you spend. We have found it really helpful in bringing to light all the little expenses, the starbucks coffee, the candybar at the vending maching, that really add up.
JLR Says:
August 20th, 2007, 17:47 pm
My most indispensable tool is Life Balance. It’s a combination of a ToDo and calendar, but it’s so much more than that. You can subdivide your tasks into “Life” priorities and assign importance to each and the program will automatically nudge tasks higher when it looks you’re neglecting an aspect of your life. Of course, you control how much and how important each aspect of your life is. There’s also the possibility of associating places with specific sets of actions so everytime you are in a given place you can see what you can accomplish there. I would not be able to live without it. It works with pda, mac and pc.
You can find it at http://www.llamagraphics.com
Rob Says:
August 20th, 2007, 18:11 pm
BT Workspace does many of these things in one app plus it has IM. (I do work for the company.)
Leo Says:
August 20th, 2007, 19:02 pm
@Michael: This was a reader-generated list of tools, so if it wasn’t one of the responses by the readers, I didn’t include it on the list. I wasn’t trying to slight anyone. :)
Rachel R. Says:
August 20th, 2007, 21:41 pm
Another great notetaking app (probably better than OneNote, although I haven’t tried that one) is EverNote (www.evernote.com). It’s superb for allowing the user to easily find notes later.
SpiKe Says:
August 21st, 2007, 11:01 am
Very nice article. I especially agree on the landing strip idea. I’ve discussed it before over at Organize IT. Just make sure it’s not too near to the door, and especially nowhere near the letter box for security reasons.
Casey Watson Says:
August 22nd, 2007, 3:24 am
Thanks for the excellent review. I am trying out the tiddlywiki. I must say it is pretty impressive. It is just what I have been looking for!
Pan_theFrog Says:
August 22nd, 2007, 15:42 pm
Nice article, several things I’ve not seen before.
Wanted to point out that the TiddlyWiki you suggested is a very old version. The two current major ones are: d3 (http://www.dcubed.ca/) & MonkeyGTD (http://monkeygtd.tiddlyspot.com/).
Both are also avalible as options at the free TiddlyWiki hosting site TiddlySpot (http://tiddlyspot.com) so you can keep your backup file online.
Fairly Useless Says:
August 22nd, 2007, 21:34 pm
The answer is 42!!!! Which is you transpose you get 24 and is the sum of…
1 = Google Calendar
6 = PocketMod
17 = Remember the Milk
1 + 6 + 17 = http://www.fairlyuseless.com/category/gtd/
New PocketMod add-ons that work with Google Calendar and Remember the Milk
Ben Says:
August 23rd, 2007, 5:02 am
Hi, I tried almost all GTD apps for the mac and didn’t like any of them. Check out a full list here. One app I’m really looking forward to is Things. It’s not done yet, but this might actually be the one…
Nxqd3051990 Says:
August 26th, 2007, 21:01 pm
Thanks for great writing :)
I use Google Calendar + RTM. Google Calendar for scheduled tanks , RTM for GTDed tanks :p
nXqd
Michaeld Says:
September 6th, 2007, 4:56 am
Excellent list…..I’ve started to use Tiddlyspot.com and can see it as a good way of keeping a To Do plus a simple way of doing websites.
Valeria | TimelessLessons Says:
November 10th, 2008, 12:13 pm
It’s all about backpack for me. The way the pages are organized could look a lot nicer but I haven’t found a better way to organize different types of information all in one place.
Ronald Says:
February 9th, 2009, 2:59 am
I manage my bookmarks with Advanced URL Catalog a bookmark manager that can integrate with all browsers.
Hani Mourra Says:
March 5th, 2009, 23:35 pm
I am a huge fan of Google Calendar, especially the option to share calendar with others. I’ve put together a short video tutorial on how to get things done with Google Calendar:
http://www.eztechtips.com/get-things-done-with-google-calendar/
Enjoy!
Hani
Liloo Says:
March 24th, 2009, 11:33 am
GTD is my favorite app either.
To keep my favorites organized, I use TidyFavorites - http://www.tidyfavorites.com/favorites/Organize%20favorites.html
Incoming (35)
- Getting organized « Later On
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- Keith Chiu » Blog Archive » 20 Great Tools to Keep Your Life Organized
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- Steve Voyles’s Personal Website | 20 Tools To Help You Get Organized
- HerbaZ - حرباز » أرشيف المدونة » links for 2007-08-21
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