For about the last four years, I have been using Microsoft Outlook to manage my workflow. This process has gotten easier over the years both as I get to know the program better and with the addition of an Iphone to my life.
The process of staying organized has been getting easier as I have a better idea of what I need. For example, I started with an email folder titled important. This year, I changed that title to three different folders titled today, this week and someday. I have also gotten better at using the calander function as well. For example, I have figured out how to enter reaccuring appointments so that I can remember to meet with certain students on a weekly basis. I have also learned how to sync my calander with the school and district calanders in addition to giving my secretary read and write access to my calander. We still meet on Mondays to go through the week, but we are much more on the same page now than ever before. The last thing I learned to do was how to use the date due function on the Outlook calander. I can see the whole list each time I log in and it is prioritized in order of due date. Our school voicemail system is also set up through outlook. I get text copies of voicemails (they don't always work well,) but I am now able to sort and save voicemails just like emails.
This process has been very helpful. As we learned in one of the videos, it is stressful to try and manage all of this in one's head. It is also stressful to try and manage the work flow process in many different ways. While I still panic every now and then at the amount of work that needs to be done, at least I know that I am not missing anything, usually.
I am happy with the process I have been using. I hope to find a way to prioritize my to do list better than the due date system I am currently working using. Because I have been using essentially the same system for several years, I have a hard time imagining switching without finding something considerably better. I am open though, in case something better comes along.
I don’t know what I would do without my Outlook calendar (probably use my Google calendar). I have not used a voicemail system that records messages, as you mentioned, but I did receive an email with an audio recording of my message from the Wacom Company where we purchased our writing tablet. Amazing how far technology has advanced. Remember that you should test these new programs but don’t need to adopt them all unless they meet your needs.
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