Organizing for Tax Season

            
Happy Valentine's Day! Last night I made heart-shaped pumpkin muffins for the girls for breakfast this morning. I'm trying to figure out how to carry the theme through dinner. In the meantime, here's our post for today ...

It's time to think about taxes again! I'm going to try something new this year - expandable files just for my taxes. I found these DiVoga files at Office Max for $9.99 - one for this year's taxes and one for next year.

They are 13-pocket files with snap fronts with two snap options: the one shown for fewer documents and another snap higher up if you have more documents making the file thicker. I got them in different colors so I could distinguish between tax years. I couldn't find this exact file online, so I don't have a link for you. 

I did find similar ones from Smead. The All-in-One Tax Organizer also has 13 pockets with an elastic closure. It has pre-printed and blank labels for your convenience.  





If your taxes aren't very complicated, you could use Smead's 6-Pocket Tax Organizer. 

For that matter, you could use any expandable file. I saw several that were different colors and textures for around $12-18.

I'm going to set my open file near where I sort our mail, so I can just drop various papers into their slots without having to open a file folder or file cabinet! I'll do the same with receipts. When tax time comes, everything will already be categorized. 

How do you organize your tax documents?


More on taxes:

Taxes - Knowing Which Papers to Keep/Toss

Saving Money by Being Organized

Three Steps to Organizing Your Office

Kick Your Clutter to the Wall

      

Here's a clever idea from Apartment Therapy - clipboards on the wall that hold your clutter!

 

  
"You know all of those papers that pile up on your desk and make it difficult to get any work done? They often get tossed there in haste, but here's a solution that takes barely any more time yet keeps your desktop pile-free:

Hang a few clip boards on the wall and clip papers into them anytime you need to keep them. You don't even have to sort and organize the papers right away: just clip them up and sort once every week or two. Or, if you're a tad more organized, assign a category to each clip board ("inbox", "outbox", "bills to pay", etc.) to keep your papers sorted from the get-go."

Image: Cheyenne Millwork and Custom Cabinets

More on using your wall space:

Magnetic Paint - An Innovative Space Saver!

Shadow Boarding Your Tools

 This is What I Call Using Wall Space!

Linear Storage 

Shoe Storage Options

          
I'm ready to reorganize my shoes. My current system is not working. So I did some research on shoe storage options to see what might be out there that I'm not aware of. 

I figured you might like to know what I've found, so I'm listing what I thought were the most reliable options, based on reviews. I divided the options into over-the-door storage, hanging storage in the closet, and stand alone storage. Each one is linked to product and purchasing information for your convenience.
   
Over-the-door shoe storage:

Hanging shoe storage in the closet:

                 

Stand alone shoe storage:

I haven't decided on which storage option I'll choose. Which one would you choose?

More on shoes:

Get Organized Month - Organize Your Shoes

Organizing Your Shoes

Organizing Your Mud Room

Recycle Stuffed Animals for a Cause

    
What kid doesn't have an abundance of stuffed animals? I know ours always did.  

If your child has too many, she might be willing to give up some to children in war-torn areas and war zones. Beanies for Baghdad will send Beanie Babies, stuffed animals, and other items to service units in Iraq and Afghanistan who will distribute them to local children.

Loving Hugs sends stuffed animals to children in war zones, refugee camps, orphanages, medical facilities and elsewhere. 

In both cases, postage is on you.

Check with your local animal shelter as many will accept stuffed animals to comfort puppies. 

More on recycling:

Recycling Electronics and Appliances

A Refresher on Recycling Plastics

More Eco-Friendly Recycling

Want to Sell Your House? Get Organized Now!

       

Kathy Jumper's article contains helpful pointers for getting your house ready to sell, and sell quickly. Here's an excerpt:

""Do you want to put a sign in your yard, or do you want to sell your house?' That's the first question Marcile Sims of Oracle Real Estate in Mobile [Alabama] asks her sellers.

'It's so competitive now, and price is everything,' she said. 'We're having to turn down listings because some sellers are asking crazy prices. They would be wasting their time and everyone else's.'

In today's buyer's market, it's up to the sellers to bring out the best in their homes in order to stand out amidst the glut of inventory, agents said. Translation: Refresh or revive a house before it goes on the market.

The house may not be old, but often it can look worn. Local home inspectors, house stagers and Realtors offer tips for updates that help attract buyers with some curb appeal.

Walk around the house and look at the condition of the all the wood structures, seeking any minor damage that could be repaired prior to the house being put on the market, said James Elder of Elder Home Inspections in Mobile.

'A Realtor will say stand out on the street and look at the house, see what it looks like when somebody pulls up to the house,' he said. 'Are there cosmetic repairs or touchup things that can be done to give the house curb appeal?'

Heating and cooling system should also be maintained on a regular basis. Home inspector Bob Grafe of Daphne said that during a recent inspection, neither of the house's two air conditioners had filters.

'Putting in clean AC filters doesn't cost much money,' he said. 'When I see that they are clean, I know the owners care enough to do the maintenance.'

A big problem ... is water intrusion, Grafe said. When water leaks in, it decays and rots the wood.

'Homeowners should clean out the gutters. They are there to drain water, but when they get full of trash and have trees growing in them, it will start to rot out the wood.'

Leaky faucets, running toilets and those type of interior things are easy to fix, he said. 'The messier the house, the more difficult it is to inspect,' Grafe said. 'Pick up and clean up the house and have it ready to go.'

A house that isn't clean and looks worn out automatically make a potential buyer think upkeep has gone lacking, Sims said. 'Get the carpet cleaned, get rid of the smells and get your air conditioner serviced. If you have a septic tank, get it cleaned and inspected. Any blinds that don't close properly or burned out light bulbs need to be replaced.

'Take all of your pictures down and store them. Get rid of anything that makes the house yours -- they don't want to think of it as yours.' ...

If the house has furniture in it, make sure you declutter, said Angela Blankinchip of Showhomes Mobile/Baldwin. Often it's just a matter of updating the accessories and rearranging the furniture to make the rooms look bigger, she said. ...

'Staging works,' said Blankinchip. ... 'In today's market, everyone wants a model home, and that's usually the one people want to buy.'"

More on getting organized to sell your home:

Realtor: Key to Selling Your Home

Tips for Staging Your Home for Sale

Declutter Any Room in 3 Weeks

Survey: Disorganization at Work is Costing the Economy Billions

     
Rieva Lesonsky reveals a new survey that shows how much our disorganization at work is costing us. Here's an excerpt:

"Turns out your messy desk just might be hurting the U.S. economy....

January was "Get Organized" month. So how did you do? Are you and your employees now ship-shape and clutter-free? Chances are, not so much. 

According to Brother International's "P-touch Means Business" survey, each one of us loses an estimated 76 working hours each year due to disorganization in the workplace. That adds up to more than $177 billion annually in lost productivity.

Does this sound painfully familiar? Most of us (66 percent) spend up to 30 minutes a week looking for misplaced items. Office supplies, file folders, computer files and mobile phones are among the most commonly misplaced items in the workplace, according to survey respondents."

More on the cost of disorganization:

Three Steps to Organizing Your Office

Get Organized Month - How to Save Money by Being Organized

The Effects of Disorganization at the Office

Clutter in Your House or Office Means Clutter in Your Mind

Zero Trash in a Year - Could You Do It?

       

USA Today's Wendy Koch reports on family that lives with almost no trash each year. Here's how they do it, could you?

Bea Johnson cooks every day, but their kitchen in Mill Valley, Calif., looks uncluttered. She keeps only utensils and equipment she uses frequently.

By Thomas J. Story/Sunset

"How much could you live without? In upscale Mill Valley, Calif., a family of four lives in a stylish home with modern amenities but with only a tiny bit of something else: trash. It throws away only a few HANDFULS of non-recyclable waste each year.The Johnson family doesn't buy and keep unnecessary stuff, and most of what it purchases has either recyclable wrapping or no packaging at all. They take their own jars and containers as well as canvas totes to grocery stores and farmers' markets.

'The less I have, the richer I feel. Stuff weighs you down,' Bea Johnson tells Sunset magazine in its January edition. 'When we started getting rid of things, it was kind of addictive,' she continues. 'In a recession, people are inclined to keep things, but I feel the opposite.'

Bea and Scott Johnson are among a growing number of Americans trying to lighten their landfill load in a country where the average person generates 4.5 pounds of trash each day. Another example is Amy and Adam Korst, a young married Oregon couple that lived almost entirely trash-free for a year. "It was actually a lot easier than we expected," Amy Korst told Green House.






By Thomas J. Story/Sunset


The Johnsons started their quest three years ago when they downsized from a 3,000-square-foot home to their current 1,400 square feet, reports Sunset. Béa Johnson said a neighbor called their uncluttered home "futuristic and alien-like" and, peering into closets, asked: 'Where's all your stuff?' She offers tips for living simply on her blog, and here are a few as excerpted from Sunset:

• The Johnsons go to the grocery store with their own jars and buy bulk snacks and other pantry supplies. 'Some of the kids' friends came over recently and said, "You have no food here,"' says Béa. 'They didn't recognize this as food since there weren't any boxes.'
• The family shops with glass jars, fabric bags, and canvas totes, and returns containers for a deposit. Even cheese and meat go in jars. Cheese is purchased when it is cut, to avoid plastic wrap.
• Clean up is done with microfiber cloths. 'People are really attached to paper towels,' Béa says. 'But they're the easiest thing to give up.'
• In the playroom there are four bins of toys. The rule is simple: If the boys want something new to them, it needs to fit in the bins.
• One medicine cabinet in the bathroom holds toiletries for the entire family... Béa uses only four beauty products: face powder, eye cream, mascara, and eyeliner....The family uses no Q-tips, cotton balls, or tissue (handkerchiefs sub in here). Toilet paper rolls come wrapped in paper, not plastic.
• The house closets are enviable for their lack of clutter. Shopping is done only twice a year at a thrift store and replaces items that are stained, worn, or outgrown.... Everyone has a set number of items. For example, Béa caps out at 6 pairs of shoes, 7 tops, 7 pants, and 2 skirts (1 also wearable as a top)."                                                                                                                                                      More on living green:

  Decluttering Any Room in 3 Weeks

  Declutter by Becoming Package-Free

  Recycling Electronics and Appliances

  
  

Peter Walsh's Advice for Secret Hoarders

       

Heidi Stevens' Chicago Tribune article entitled "The Faker: If it's Hidden, You're not Quite a Hoarder" has some great advice for those who may not want to admit to being hoarders:

"How to pull it off: It's not quite the stuff of "Hoarders," but your collection of old Vogues is teetering - metaphorically and physically - in that direction.

And honestly, if it were just the Vogues, you could pass it off as a sign of your discerning taste in fashion editorials. But you've got that closet full of sweaters that are older than Justin Bieber. And the drawer - OK, drawers - full of old postcards. And then there are the ceramic bunnies.

The Faker knows better than to suggest you get rid of it all. That would be futile. (Not to mention hypocritical, coming from the gal who has surrendered three kitchen drawers to mystery gadgets.)

But unless you're looking to land on an A&E reality show, it's time to get the stuff in check. We turned to author and organizational guru Peter Walsh, host of the new show "Enough Already!" on the Oprah Winfrey Network, for advice on appearing to be one of those organized, detached types, even if you're actually one of those Beanie Baby types.

1. Strategically declutter. Two areas will give away your hoarding tendency faster than you can say porcelain figurine. The first is your entryway. 'The moment you open the front door of your house, the first impression sticks with visitors,' Walsh says. 'If there's a sense that this isn't an orderly house, you're doomed from the start.' The second is any large, accessible flat surface. 'Kitchen table, counters, coffee table. The moment you can't see your flat surfaces, you've lost the battle with clutter.' Keep those areas relatively neat, on the other hand, and you're halfway home.

2. Surrender a space. Lasso your clutter into a bounded space so it doesn't take over your whole home. When Walsh speaks to groups, he often poses the same question: 'Does anyone have that spare bedroom that as soon as the doorbell rings you yell, "Close the door to the spare bedroom! Quick!"' And? 'Eighty percent of people always have that room.' For others, it's the hall closet. One home Walsh recalls visiting had a dining room table with a very generous tablecloth that touched the floor. Under the table cloth? Yep. Stuff.

3. Artfully display. 'The line between a collection and clutter is razor thin,' says Walsh. 'Just because you have a whole lot of things the same doesn't mean you have a collection.' If you truly appreciate an item and want to surround yourself with multiple variations of it, do yourself - and the items - a favor. 'Display them in a way that brings you pleasure, that doesn't cause stress and that says, "I honor and respect these items,"' Walsh says. 'Anything can look great displayed well.'

4. Edit your clutter. Assign homes for your items - Tupperware, books, kids' toys - and don't let the items outgrow their home. If the container designated for magazines fills up, don't add a new one until you get rid of an old one. 'I'm not about telling people to get rid of all their stuff,' Walsh says. 'My thing is, does the stuff you have create the life you want?'

5. Reality check your collections. If you're holding on to stuff because you think it will appreciate in value, make sure it actually will. 'A good reality check is eBay,' Walsh says. 'If you think your Madame Alexander dolls are worth $1,000 and you go on eBay and realize they're worth $4.99, then you can decide: Is this investment in the future (messing) up your ability to enjoy and live in your home today?'" 

More on hoarding:

The Psychology Behind Hoarding

Hoarder or Collector?

Self-Help Books for Hoarders and Their Families

   

Experts Give Advice for ADHD Adults

         
Margarita Tartakovsky's article 12 Tips for Getting Organized for Adults with ADHD cites advice given by ADHD coach Laura Rolands and ADHD expert Ari Tuckman:

"Organizing is a challenge and a chore for most people. But when you have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), symptoms like distractibility, forgetfulness and difficulty concentrating can make getting organized seem impossible.

But there are small steps you can take to organize your space and your life. Below, attention and ADHD coach Laura Rolands and clinical psychologist and ADHD expert Ari Tuckman share their strategies for getting a handle on clutter and creating a clean space. 

1. Start small. When it comes to organizing, one of the mistakes people with ADHD make is to try to work on everything at once, said Rolands, who operates LSR Coaching and Consulting.

The second mistake, according to Tuckman, is letting your space become unbearably disorganized. So the disorganization becomes doubly overwhelming, and you give yourself more reasons to avoid it.
'Pick one area to clean for today and make it an area that is not too large,' such as 'one section of your kitchen counter or one corner of your living room,' Rolands said.

If this is still overwhelming, think of an amount of time that feels comfortable to you, such as 10 minutes, she said. Set your timer, and organize until you hear the ding. Timers also serve as great reminders that you need to move on to your next project. 

2. Work on one small area each day, Rolands said. Again, this helps you avoid getting overwhelmed and easily distracted. 

3. Organize on a regular basis. As Tuckman said, 'We don’t expect one shower to last all week, so it’s the same with organizing.'

Find yourself slipping? 'Remind yourself that although being organized takes some time, it also saves time when you’re able to find things quickly and with less stress,' he said. 

4. Shrink your stuff. 'The less you have, the easier it is to organize what’s left,' said Tuckman, who’s also the author of More Attention, Less Deficit: Success Strategies for Adults with ADHD.

Some items will be easier to part with than others, he noted, while you might hold onto items just in case you need them later. But he reminded readers that 'If you can’t find it when you need it, you may as well not own it.' 

5. Downsize regularly. In addition to getting rid of the things you own, be strict about buying more things and letting clutter in your life in general. 'The less stuff that comes into your life, the less you need to manage, so get yourself off of mailing lists and resist the temptation to buy those unnecessary little items,' Tuckman suggested. 

6. Keep your system as simple as possible. Having an easy organization system 'makes it more likely that [you] will stick with it, which is the ultimate goal,' Tuckman said. For example, use file folders with brightly colored labels, Rolands said. Using different colors makes them easier to find, Tuckman said.

Too distracting? 'Use one folder for all bills related to the house, rather than creating separate folders for each bill,' he said. 

7. Color-code email based on the sender. 'This way, you can see emails from your priority customers, family members and bosses first,' Rolands said. 

8. Create a simple system for your home and office mail. Mail is something that easily piles up and creates tons of clutter. So organize mail every day. 'Give yourself a few options such as File, Toss, Do and Delegate,' she said. 

9. Carve out time to clean the clutter. Rolands suggested that readers 'Make an appointment with yourself to organize.' 

10. Limit distractions, Rolands said. If you don’t want to be organizing in the first place, there are tons of things that can pull for your attention. So turn off the TV and computer, and let your phone go to voicemail. Also, consider other common distractions that stop you from accomplishing your tasks and avoid those. 

11. Ask for help. You don’t have to organize alone. For starters, you can ask someone to simply be in the room as you organize. 'Having someone else present tends to keep us working longer and [with] fewer distractions,' Tuckman pointed out.

If you’re having particular trouble creating a simple organizing system, ask a friend to help or hire a coach, Rolands said. 

12. Check out helpful resources. Rolands likes the National Resource Center on AD/HD for anything ADHD-related and Families with Purpose, 'an organization dedicated to helping busy parents create a meaningful family life for themselves and their children.'

Also, ADDitude magazine offers a variety of free downloads on organizing and other ADHD information.

Ultimately, do what works best for you. 'There is not a one-size-fits-all [system] with regard to anyone, especially adults with ADHD,' Rolands said. Tuckman added, 'Don’t expect yourself to enjoy [organizing], just do it anyway.'

More on ADD/ADHD:

ADHD Organization - Decision-Making

ADHD Organization - Time and Energy

Organizing the ADD Household

 

Laundry Tips from Professional Organizers, Part 3

                    

Here are some more laundry tips from professional organizers. I've included some pics of laundry organizing products, too.

"First each child should have one of those rectangular or round pop open laundry baskets in their own room.  Each child should be responsible for bringing the basket down or at least to the top of the stairs to go down if they are in need of clean clothes.  

I do one load per child and I don’t bother to sort colors because I am not that picky and their clothes are outgrown or put threw the ringer quickly enough it’s not worth the effort on my part- that’s just me though!  Anyhow, these laundry baskets can be found at target and they are great because once the load is in the washer you can fold it up and slide it between the washer and dryer or wall.  LOVE that!  

When the laundry is ready to come out of the dryer, the owner of those clothes or the person whose chore it should be (not MOM’s) should remove the clothes from the dryer and set by the stairs to go up when that person goes back up.  I do fold the younger children’s clothes and put away but the 10 year old puts his own away- his way.

Hope that helps." Maria White

Some laundry basket ideas: 

"I do laundry all in one day. It gets it done and then I don't have to think about it for a week or so (except for emergencies).
 

So when I sort, it is all over the floor in the adjoining family room, but only for a day. The clean laundry gets brought up to my bed, where I fold it into a basket designated for each kid and just put my laundry and my husband's away as I fold. It makes for a long day, but usually it is one where I am puttering around with projects/computer work anyway.

Shout Color Catchers ... really do work! They do a great job of a mixed colors load.  One of my ADD clients told me about them." Kate Varness
 

Some laundry room space savers:

"I do one load per kid, as well. I don't bother to sort by color for the kids. It creates lots of little piles, which means I am spending way too much time doing laundry. We sort in the bedrooms. I use the floor to sort.

Here are some of my "tried and true" laundry streamlining tips:

• Stain treat as the kids take the clothes off at night (with a stain removal product like Stain stick or the like). Prevents a lot of remembering which clothes to treat and standing by the washer stain treating.
• Older kids can fold and put their own clothes away. Or even do their own laundry. The bottom line is get the whole family involved so it doesn't fall to one person to do all the laundry. Even my 2 year old can help load and unload the washer and dryer.
• Get in a laundry routine: In the morning, throw a load of laundry in. At lunch or after work, put them in the dryer. After dinner or when the kids go to bed, fold. Put away the next morning/day.
• Have a basket per person so that the baskets can go to the appropriate room. My husband and I share a laundry basket since the laundry is going to the same room - his stuff is on one side and mine is on the other side of the basket.
• Do full loads, when possible." Robin Harisis

Laundry tools:

"We all do our own laundry in my household, except that I've been paying my 14-year-old $5 a load to do my laundry for two years now--I like it fluffed in the dryer and hung up warm and damp.  On color-coded hangers, which speeds the agonizing task of putting together outfits for me. Jane Cambell

More clever laundry options:

     

More on laundry:

Organizing Laundry

Laundry Tips from Professional Organizers, Part 1

Laundry Tips from Professional Organizers, Part 2

Disorganized Brain Activity May Lead to Teens' Illogical Decisison-Making

   

The following article, "Teen brains over-process rewards, suggesting root of risky behavior, mental ills" citing the work of B. Moghaddam of the University of Pittsburgh, is quite interesting. It answers the question, "What were you thinking?" we ask of our teenagers.   

 

"University of Pittsburgh researchers have recorded neuron activity in adolescent rat brains that could reveal the biological root of the teenage propensity to consider rewards over consequences and explain why adolescents are more vulnerable to drug addiction, behavioral disorders, and other psychological ills. 

 

The team reports in the Journal of Neuroscience that electrode recordings of adult and adolescent brain-cell activity during the performance of a reward-driven task show that adolescent brains react to rewards with far greater excitement than adult brains. This frenzy of stimulation occurred with varying intensity throughout the study along with a greater degree of disorganization in adolescent brains. The brains of adult rats, on the other hand, processed their prizes with a consistent balance of excitation and inhibition.

The extreme difference in brain activity provides a possible physiological explanation as to why teenagers are more prone than adults to rash behavior, addiction, and mental diseases, said lead researcher Bita Moghaddam, a professor of neuroscience in Pitt's School of Arts and Sciences. She and coauthor David Sturman, a Pitt neuroscience doctoral student, observed the disparate reactions to reward in individual neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex, a brain region that weighs payoff and punishment to plan and make decisions.

'The disorganized and excess excitatory activity we saw in this part of the brain means that reward and other stimuli are processed differently by adolescents,' Moghaddam said. 'This could intensify the effect of reward on decision making and answer several questions regarding adolescent behavior, from their greater susceptibility to substance abuse to their more extreme reactions to pleasurable and upsetting experiences.'

In addition, malfunctions in the orbitofrontal cortex have been observed in cases of schizophrenia, mood disorders, and other psychological disturbances, Moghaddam said. The type of erratic activity in the cortex that she and Sturman observed could aggravate these conditions at a time when the maturing brain is vulnerable. 

'The symptoms of these illnesses generally begin to appear during adolescence,' Moghaddam said. 'Adolescence is a period of behavioral and psychiatric vulnerabilities, so the disorganized brain activity and excess excitation could push a brain already predisposed to mental disorders too far, triggering the onset of symptoms.'" 

More on the brain and disorganization:

Disorganized Teens - Symptons of ADHD

Clutter and the Brain - Dr. Peter Whybrow

How Sleep Helps Keep Your Brain Organized

 

Realtor: Key to Selling Your Home

          
Looking to sell your home in the near future? Here's some advice from Houston realtor and broker Marchel Peterson:

"Yesterday I showed the nicest staged home; it was such a pleasure to show.  It was not a big home at 1800 square feet but every room was staged to perfection.  

Staging is becoming more popular all the time and is a wonderful way to show your home off to its best advantage.  I do realize that not all sellers are going to want to have their home staged but even if you don’t pay a professional stager there are many things you can do yourself.   

As I was looking around this home one of the things that dawned on me was that the clutter was missing.  It looked like a model home.  Now when we opened the garage we found a number of boxes already packed.  Having boxes in the garage is no big deal as the buyer can see that the seller is preparing to move from their house.
 
I thought the cut lemon on the counter was a nice touch.  The bowl of lemons has fake lemons in it but there was one half of a lemon cut up and the rest of the lemon was in a pitcher of water.  Lemons have such a nice clean smell and it is a natural smell.  I have often went in to homes where the candle smell was so strong it made the buyers think the seller was trying to mask some kind of odor.

You can tell from the lemon picture that the counters were relatively clean of clutter.  If you notice that I keep talking about clutter I just think that is one of the keys to getting a home sold.  When there’s a lot of clutter in a home it is hard to look at the home.  Sometimes it is also very nice clutter but the buyer gets so caught up in looking at the stuff they miss the home.

So long story short if you are even thinking about putting your home on the market start thinking about de-cluttering."


More on Decluttering:

Declutter Any Room in 3 Weeks

Tips for Staging Your Home for Sale

Prioritizing Fall Projects

 

Digital Course Planner for Students of All Ages

          
 Disorganized student? Get Organized may help - and it's free! It's in beta mode, so be sure to look at its known issues first. Here's a review of this versatile product:  

"Get Organized is a digital course planner for students of all ages that offers a lot more than just the standard course planning that physical planners offer. 

It is naturally possible to add terms and courses to the planner. That’s easily done at anytime. Difference becomes visible straight away. 

A course is defined by its title, term, start and end date, class days, room number and credits. Get Organized furthermore can keep track of instructors (name, email, phone, Office location and hours), the grading scale and required textbooks.

In addition, courses can be displayed with their own color to make the identification easier. The digital course planner supports events and assignments that can be tracked as well. Assignments are directly linked to a course, while events are not. Assignments are homework and other activities directly related to courses, events are summer parties for instance.



The application can display information about events, assignments, grades and courses in different ways in the interface. A list view and calendar view are available. They appear to only display information about events and assignments at this point in development. It would make sense to add information about courses at least to the calendar view as well.

Filters are available at the top, for instance to only display overdue assignments in the calendar.

The application can keep track of grades which are added by completing assignments.

Another interesting option is the ask the instructor button. This button can be used to directly email the course instructor if an email address has been added to the data set.

Feature Overview

• Keep track of terms, courses, and assignments
• Add instructors, textbooks, and weighted grading to assignments
• Keep track of grades for each assignment once it’s completed
• Keep track of overall grades throughout terms in the Grade Book
• Organized your social life with events as well
• Color code any view by course (or event category), due date, or priority
• Need help with an assignment? Click “Ask” to start an email to the instructor
• View assignments and events in two views: List View – Sortable, colorful, scrollable, Calendar View – See the month laid out for you and never forget when things are due
• The Mini Calendar in the lower-left corner helps you quickly see if something is due on a particular day (the day is marked red), or if things are due by you’ve already completed them and need to turn them in still (the day is marked blue)

Get Organized is compatible with Windows, Linux and Macintosh systems. The program requires Javabeta (Java Runtime Environment) 1.6 or higher to be installed on the system. The program is available as a version that can check and install updates automatically."


More on organizing students:
Three Steps to Time Management for the College Student

Guest Post - Leveraging Technology to Get Organized: 4 Clever Tips

Time Management App for iPhone - Lucid Lists Free

     

Got Cabin Fever? Organize Something!

          
Seems like this winter is especially cold and snowy, doesn't it? Why not use the time indoors to declutter or organize something?

My husband and I have had a few days off. We usually watch a few episodes we've taped of Masterpiece Theatre and the Mentalist. We've also been wanting to go through some of our files and keepsakes to purge and consolidate.

So we decided to combine the two. It only took us a few minutes to go through a container each while watching one of the episodes. I ended up keeping only a third of what was in my box, and my husband found some important papers as he was sorting through some of his parents' stuff.

When the weather get nice, we'll not want to be cooped up indoors sorting through our treasures. And it feels so good to simplify!

While I was putting away Christmas decorations earlier this month, I purged again, just like last year. We reduced our Christmas paraphernalia by a couple of boxes, I'm pleased to say.

So if you're having a snow day, clean out a drawer or a box or a closet or a file drawer. Doesn't take much time and you'll feel so successful!


More on winter organizing:

Declutter Any Room in 3 Weeks

Snow Day

Get Organized Month - Organize Your Receits

Get Oranized Month 2009 - Update Your Addresses

         

Organizing Your To-Do Lists Online - 12 Great Choices

    
When researching online to-do lists, I came across the following article by Alyssa Gregory from Web Pro Business reviewing online task management tools. She gives a descriptive explanation of 12 different sites. If you would like to see more tools, take a look at the comments following the article. Here's an excerpt:

"If you don’t have a need for a comprehensive project management tool or overall information management system, a simplified to-do list tool may be a perfect fit for you. Here is a list of 12 online to-do list tools to check out.

Bla-bla List: Bla-bla List is a simple and shareable list tool that lets you publish your lists with RSS, privately share your lists with anyone and e-mail yourself a copy of your list.



e2doList.com: This tool lets you manage tasks in separate lists, add notes and reminders, and share your lists with others.



Google To Do List: A simplified way to track tasks and enhance productivity, especially if you are already a Google product user.



The Online CEO: The Online CEO provides a creative approach to tasks as it lets you assign points to each item and has a running points total so you can measure priority and productivity. You can also use a timer to keep track of how long you spend on each task.





OrchestrateHQ: A quick and simple tool for creating and managing multiple to-do lists. You can navigate through your lists, maximizing one at a time.



Remember The Milk: Remember The Milk is one of the most feature-rich task management tools I’ve seen. You can create, manage and organize tasks quickly and easily with extensive keyboard shortcuts. You can receive reminders via email, SMS, and instant messenger; tag your tasks; and locate your location-based tasks on a map. There is also a Pro version that provides an app for iPhone and iPod touch, and MilkSync for BlackBerry and Windows Mobile.



Ta-da List: Ta-da List is a 37signals product that lets you create multiple lists and add, edit, re-order, and remove tasks from each list. You also have the ability to share and create RSS feeds for your lists.



TaskToy: With TaskToy you can create individual tasks with multiple lists, recurring tasks, and use simplified project management actions. You can also print and share your lists, and access your data from your mobile device.



Toodledo: Toodledo allows you to organize and prioritize your tasks in a sortable online to-do list. You can setup e-mail and SMS reminders, and access your lists on your mobile phone, in your e-mail, on your calendar, in your RSS reader, via IM, and integrated directly into your web browser. 



Tudu Lists: Tudu Lists is a very simple open source application that lets you create and share lists, access your lists via an RSS feed, and modify it for your individual needs.



voo2do: This tool lets you organize tasks by project, add tasks by e-mail and track time spent on each task. You can also do some basic task sharing with the tool.



WorkHack: A whiteboard-based to-do list tool that is easy-to-use, supports multiple lists and RSS feeds. You can start using it right away, without signing up."



More on to do lists:

Organizing Your To-Do List

Time Management App for iPhone - Lucid Lists Free

Reduce Your Stress - Say No