<p>^ that's what I did. lol It really is great, but you can pretty much get the same organization functions out of windows calendar.</p>
<p>Organization is inate in many people. For others its the opposite. But it can be a learned skill. It requires discipline and your desire to fix it. One of the best ways is to write down a routine....a daily schedule and stick to it. Before long it will be habit and just "your schedule" and people will know that around you. Its an important skill to develop, because being disorganized at work is a career killer. Big time.</p>
<p>You are very young, so dont fret about it. Just resolve to fix it and learn this important skill. Hint: its starts with healthy lifestyles, getting to bed on time, eating properly. (Believe it or not what you eat affects how you feel and how you think.) Get up at the same time (within reason) each day and MAKE YOUR BED. Put dirty clothes in the hamper, keep your desk clean in your dorm room. Just MAKE yourself do it. Hang out with ORGANIZED people who are disciplined study types. Avoid disorganized, party animals and slobs. Like the advertisement says, "JUST DO IT!" </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>haha dlesk, great idea :]</p>
<p>to the OP, if you don't want to bother getting a whiteboard like someone else suggested, you can just get dry-erase markers and write on your mirror! I do it all the time and it's been the one big thing that's helped me get organized. Just write the stuff you need to do, or remember to bring, on it.</p>
<p>Also, I don't know if you type or handwrite your notes, but if handwritten, you should number then in the upper right-hand corner, so you can keep them in order and stay on track. That way, even if they get jumbled up and you feel inclined to just stuff them in one place, you'll still have the numbers so you know what order everything goes in.</p>
<p>You could even try [if you handwrite your notes] writing in a different color ink for each subject. That way, if you don't have time to skim through and figure out what class it's for, or if you just don't WANT to take the time, you can just see what color it is, and therefore what class it is :]</p>
<p>you can just get dry-erase markers and write on your mirror!
They make markers that are made for mirrors. The are kinda like paint markers, so they show up much better and they don't come off as easily (don't worry, they come off if you want them to!).</p>
<p>haha, OKgirl, good idea there too. I've just never bothered going and buying any like "specialty" markers for it, because my dry-erase markers serve me well. But for the hardcore mirror-writing-enthusiasts, those might be a better idea :]</p>
<p>^I used dry erase markers once and they came off after my shower. I also had a hard time seeing what they said. Those markers are also good for if you want to leave a little note or something on someone's car window.</p>
<p>muffin bags...brilliant</p>
<p>Well, what i do is i have a binder for each class. i do NOT take the binders to class. smoe of the binders are bigger than others, depending on the amount of work for the class. i seperate each section using tabs. that makes it super easy for studying for finals. when i go to class, i use just one 5 subject notebook that has the little folders to divide the sections. in my notebook i keep only the things were working on in class. homework, worksheets etc. once we take the unit test (or a quiz and you know you won't need the stuff for a while) i move the sheets from the notebook into the binder. write the date on everything! if soemthing gets mixed up, you can easily put it back into place. well, im gonna be a soph this year too and that system worked really well for me last year. it was sooo easy to study for finals and find everything and i didnt have to carry tons of stuff back and forth. granted, i do go to a laptop school, so i also have tons of stuff on my laptop that i take back and forth. alright, hope i helped</p>
<p>I have a binder for each subject and another binder with th divider tabs in it(enough for ever class im taking) and keep all my current work in that binder and when we get a new subjec I take it out my "all-class" binder and into its appropriate binder.</p>
<p>I also colr code my pages by wrtitting in a certain color for eac class AND coloring the corner of my looseleaf notes a dif. Color for each ch. So if they DO get messed up I can quicly org. Them into class AND ch. =D</p>
<p>Yea yea I know im an uptightly organized geek/dork lmao...</p>
<p>Here's something that I started doing last semester, which really helped me. Start a document, and then look at each of your syllabi. Find every assignment, put it on the document, including when it's due, and what percentage of your grade it is. This isn't things like readings (I just keep my syllabi on my desk and look at them for those), but for papers, group projects, etc. </p>
<p>So it would look like:</p>
<p>"HIST 375:
Response Papers (40%)
Due February 10
Due February 17" Etc etc.</p>
<p>And then put strike marks through each assignment as they were completed, and put grades on there. Basically, a master syllabus.</p>
<p>I put everything into a couple folders and then sort everything into an expandable file when I got home. You can keep things in chronological order just by putting new items after older ones. </p>
<p>I carry around a legal pad to all of my classes to create to-do lists and dump all of my thoughts. I use it as a checklist for my day, and at the end of the day I throw out the page. I also recycle unnecessary papers quite liberally, and this has made staying organized more manageable. You can stick post-it notes on your desk for long-term notes.</p>
<p>This summer I began experimenting with Microsoft Office One Note at work. I never organized on my laptop before, so I was not sure how useful this would be. It has been surprisingly convenient for quickly jotting down reminders and ideas. It's set up such that you can maintain multiple tabs, each with multiple pages of notes. It's really fast and easy. I plan to continue with this into next semester, and would recommend it to anyone who needs an easy way to stay organized. Even if you don't normally carry around your laptop, this is a powerful tool worth checking out if you haven't already. (I'm sure one could find open-source productivity software with some similarity.)</p>
<p>@cbeley </p>
<p>The wiki sounds interesting...something I would do, since I love having everything on my computer. But I noticed you have to run it on your own website...which I do have, but seems a little more complicated than said?</p>
<p>Dokuwiki is a snap to set up. You'll just need PHP support and you are set. However, I plan on writing some BASH shell scripts to do backups between my local computers and online, so I can always access it and write to it.</p>
<p>The actual software is also very simple to use and if you know PHP, the plugin system dosen't seem too bad either.</p>
<p>I just throw stuff down and remember where I threw it.</p>
<p>I'm so disorganized. Papers everywhere, yet somehow I pull it all together when it counts. I do keep certain notebooks for certain classes, and sometimes stuff papers in the front of them. I somehow remember what I have due the next day too, and if I'm afraid I'll forget I write it on my hand.</p>
<p>Same way when I serve too, I just jam all my receipts in one book and sort them out as needed.</p>
<p>i dont organize. i just remember it and call up classmates.</p>
<p>I do something similar to Fanatic517's idea but with Excel.</p>
<p>I have never been able to stay organized, but I finally found a way to let myself stay disorganized on a daily basis but be organized in the long run, if that makes sense. I buy a 5 subject spiral notebook at the beginning of the semester. It's the only one I use, so as long as I bring that one notebook everywhere I won't forget it. I include notes, homework, etc, for every class in it, and when I'm starting a new assignment or work for a different class, I make sure I start on a new sheet. That way everything stays in chronological order and all my notes are in one place. To keep it organized I begin each new page with the class name (Biology 101), what I'm doing (Lecture notes), and the date (if I forget this I can figure it out using the pages before/after). Then when an exam is coming up I just look for the pages relevant to that particular class and trust that they're already chronological order. This way I don't have to worry about stuff ending up in the wrong place or losing notes because everything is right there. Handouts/printouts are a problem area so I usually just keep one huge, ripping folder in my bag and put everything in there.</p>
<p>Side note - I love ending the semester by scanning through my notebook and realizing that everything I just learned in the past 5 months is contained right there. It's like, I can wave it around and say "this is what I learned." Ok, maybe that's just me.</p>
<p>When I study for exams I type all my notes up (and take notes on handouts/printouts) so everything is in one Word document. Then I print it out and study it whenever I can. Then I keep deleting stuff until the last day and then I fit everything on one page (typically size 8/Arial Narrow/two columns/.2" margins/double sided) and there's my last minute cheat sheet.</p>
<p>Personally, I adhere to the KISS principle religiously, as I abhor losing time while implementing a convoluted organization strategy. I just do what feels right and is easy to maintain. For example, I don't use Cornell style notetaking (though, if you can do it, it is really good), I just jot down what I think is important. I carry around one binder, and not even a very big one for my six classes. I use my textbooks as folders for homework, etc.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I also used 4 1-subject notebooks for all my courses plus corresponding folders, but then they would get all messy and mixed up--Calc worksheets in my Econ folder and such.
[/quote]
It sounds like you were trying to organize yourself constantly throughout the day. Maybe you would have better luck by taking notes on looseleaf paper during class and then when you get home for the day, put the daily notes into little 1 inch binders for each class. This also has the advantage of allowing you to put any handouts in with the notes that pertain to them. And while you are at it, put the syllabus for each class in the front of each binder.</p>
<p>For long range planning, you can use something as simple as a wall calendar hung above your desk to provide constant visual reminders. And for the truly compulsive, you can write down a weekly plan of action which would include what work you plan to do each day of the week.</p>
<p>I think you really just have to find what works for you and stick to it. My son uses the above method and he is extremely organized. I used your spiral notebook and folder method which worked great for me. The best method is the one that you can keep up with!</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
When I study for exams I type all my notes up (and take notes on handouts/printouts) so everything is in one Word document. Then I print it out and study it whenever I can. Then I keep deleting stuff until the last day and then I fit everything on one page (typically size 8/Arial Narrow/two columns/.2" margins/double sided) and there's my last minute cheat sheet.
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>Wow, I never thought of doing this! It seems like an great idea, I'll try it out when it comes down to finals! Do you only type notes when it's like the week or two before finals? Or do you start prepping all semester and then JUST condense them during finals? Aren't you worried you are accidentally leaving important information out though, and when you go check your cheat sheet right before the exam, it won't be there? :( I love making HUGE study guides, but somehow I don't find much use in them because they are so massive and looking at them makes me tired =.= </p>
<p>The Dokuwiki concept is interesting, but I'm not all too familiar with PHP. I do know HTML/Dreamweaver pretty well, is there a way to manage a wiki with that?</p>
<p>I will look into dry-erase markers for my mirror. This sounds good as I am constantly in front of my mirror and one of the first places I look in the morning, lol. And I bought binders for all my courses w/ folders AS WELL as notebooks this semester. I'll try just using the notebook to bring to my courses (as well as using color coordinated pens for my actual notes... maybe o_o) and dump the notes in my binders when I get to my room... hopefully I can keep track of all of this... thanks!</p>