How to Organize to Make Room for Spontaneity

Going back to school after more than a year of vagabonding can be overwhelming. From being mostly carefree and going with the flow, I now have commitments and deadlines to meet. With all the requirements from school and with all the logistical necessities that comes along with living in a new city, keeping track of the things I need to accomplish can be daunting and confusing. Most times I forget the things I need to do. 

                                                                               

Having been in the work force for almost 8 years, the past 4 of which was very demanding, I became proficient with managing projects and tasks (this is not to say that I’ve mastered it, because I still fail). In addition, working closely with seasoned leaders who became my mentors familiarized me with how they effectively carried out their day to days.

Here are a few helpful tips I’ve learned that lead me to a more organized life that gives space for some spontaneity and adventure without the guilty feeling.

1.                Have an overall view of what you want to achieve. I call this the feel-good, life goals part, but also the frightening part if you don’t do point 2. But before I get to that, this life goals part is what you write in your vision board or bucket list. What works for me is I try to be specific and time-bound when I write this. For instance, I wrote, “Peru 2017.” There’s something about putting a deadline to things that makes me magically turns them into life. Here are some of my current life goals:

-          Get A’s in all subjects

-          2018 Christmas Surf holiday in Puerto Rico

-          Get an internship as a business analyst in a clean energy company

Machu Picchu, 2018

2.               Break down the life goals into smaller chunks, then break it down further and further, until you get to a daily task kind of checklist. This strategy has helped me a lot as a professional, this is the strategy that my former boss, Joeben, liked to emphasize when I panic with what seemed to be impossible business goals. Once we break down a goal into monthly, weekly even daily tasks, the goal becomes approachable, giving me the confidence to actually achieve them.

For the mentioned life goals above, here are some of the tasks under them

-          Get A’s in all subjects

o   Complete assignments and courseworks

o   Spend 5 hours a week studying one subject

o   Do online courses

-          2018 Christmas Surf holiday in Puerto Rico

o   Look for ticket deals

o   Look for a surfboard

-          Get an internship as a business analyst in a clean energy company

o   Get resume score to 90

o   Join clubs

o   Go to networking events

o   Utilize CDC resources

What an inside of a Meister Task Project looks like

My To Do list

3.               Use old and new technology because you’re brain cannot handle everything. I use pen and paper, paper calendar, virtual calendar and productivity tools, my favorite being Meister Task.

I have a daily to do list that I actually write in my notebook, the list includes the same tasks I have in Meister Task. I like writing down the most pressing matters in my notebook so that I know which ones I need to prioritize. I also like actually crossing things out on my list.

My calendars are all synched up, account-wise and gadget-wise. I see the same schedule in my phone, my tablet and my laptop. I put all the assignment and project deadlines in my calendar so that I can prepare suitably for them. I even have a physical calendar where I write the important events that I cannot miss, like the one-on-ones with RP, my Program Director.

My favorite task manager app is Meister Task. I like the interface, it has the right amount of details that I can play with. Unlike the other apps that I’ve used before, it has an intuitive and simple interface. I can also synch it with my other accounts and send notifications to my emails.

Meister Task, the list on the left are my major projects. I love how Meister Task looks clean and simple

What my calendar looks like, I still need to update it

4.               Start something, type that first few words few words for that paper or that cover letter. I noticed that I tend to finish more tasks when I take a tiny step towards actually doing it, even just saving a blank document or email draft.

I am known to my friends to be extremely spontaneous, as a surfer and a solo traveler, I’ve learned how to move at a moment’s notice. Wave suddenly picks up, within a few hours we pack our gears and head to some unknown location, not knowing where to stay. During my last trip to South America, I didn’t know which places I’d visit, I decide as each day comes.

First time we surfed this spot, best discovery so far. The boys got here one day earlier. I took the bus, then a van, to try to get to them. But I made some mistakes and ended up in a town 45-mins away. I thought I was going to stay the night at a stranger's house because signal was weak and couldn't get a hold of them. But eventually I reached them and they drove to pick me up. We saw a huge dorsal fin during this sesh.

Brought my GMAT stuff. Those fabric you see on top of me, those are my friends' hammocks. What our accommodation looks like.

Party lights

I met Dario, Sven and Mo in Arequipa during a walking tour. I asked Dario if I can crash his solo trek to the Colca Canyon. After lunch, we bumped into Sven and Mo, they said they wanted to join us. Right before we were going to start the trek, the guys met Alan who gain joined Dario's solo trek.

The couple who saved me. I took that small boat to chase the big boat back to main town of Copacabana. Had they not been on the other side of the Sun Island, I would've missed my ride back.

I love being free and unconstrained, that is why I put the structures I mentioned so that I’ll have more room to be so.