In our personal our personal and professional lives, most of us have too much to do, and too little time. It’s difficult just to keep up with all of the details of what you want and need to do each day, much less actually get anything done. Secretly, a lot of us dream of hiring a large staff of assistants to help, but for most of us this is simply not a realistic possibility.

The key to keeping up with all of the details and deadlines and getting more things done in your NFP, and even your home life, is to get organised.

To get better organised, you need a daily system that allows you to quickly and easily capture all of the details of what you need to do and when you need to do it. You should then be able to save and collate this information so that you are automatically reminded of your deadlines and moved towards taking action.

The following five steps can help you organise the details of your life so that you can stop wasting time, reduce your stress and actually get more things accomplished each day. They are based on the work of David Allan - Getting Things Done.

1. Capture. Whether it’s an app on your smartphone, a spreadsheet on a computer, post-it notes and a pen, or even a simple spiral bound notebook, you need an easy way to collect the data and details for every task and every inspired thought that you have each day.

Pick a method that will work for you, and get into the habit of gathering all of the data and details and making notes each day, as the thoughts, tasks, and ideas come to you.

2. Clarify. On a daily basis, take the time to process and clarify the data and related details that you’ve gathered. Look back over your notes and ask yourself this question: Can I take action on this now, at this immediate moment in time?

If the answer is yes, and it’s something you can complete in a few minutes, go ahead and complete the task. If it’s not something you can do now, either delegate it to someone else, or put it on your “to do” list for later.

If your answer is no then you should: 1. Discard it, 2. File it away, or 3. Put it on your list of things you are thinking about, and come back to it later.

3. Organise. Now that you’ve got into the habit of gathering the data and details, you can increase your efficiency by creating various categories for your ideas and “to do” lists. When creating your categories, think about the processes that you follow to actually get things done.

Many organisational experts recommend creating daily, weekly and monthly to do lists, but you may want to break your lists down into further categories and create specialised lists for specific projects or to keep track of specific categories such as meetings and appointments. It’s also a good idea to organise your lists by priority, to ensure that you don’t miss any deadlines.

Your work lists should not only list the work that you complete, but should break the work down into specific steps of how to accomplish each part of the task. As with any task, don’t be afraid to ask for help or delegate specific tasks to those who may have a preference or talent for this type of work.

4. Reflect. Take the time to regularly review your lists to ensure that you are on track to get your work done. Make a point to clean up your lists each week, update the details and check off items that are completed or no longer relevant.

Reflect on the items of your list, as well as the actual categories for your lists as well to see if there are ways to improve your processes and increase your work flow. Don’t be surprised to find that you have breakthroughs or creative bursts of inspiration during this process, just be certain to capture the details of any innovative ideas that spring to mind during this part of the process!

5. Engage. Now that you have a system that captures everything that needs to be done, and breaks that work down into individual steps, you can face each day confident that you aren’t wasting your energy or resources and that you aren’t going to forget an important date.

By using this system you’ve created a plan that can guide your daily actions and help you get more done. So, just get to it and run with it and enjoy that rush of energy and confidence that comes from bringing order to the chaos!