Well, I’m finally in an office of my very own. I have a name plate outside the door and I can look out a pretty window and see cars below. I got myself some business cards and I’m now attending meetings.

But boy, did those high oil prices (and ever-changing technology) create a lot of confusion the last four years with all the hurry, hurry, hurry attitude everyone’s had.

Now that they’re back down, we’re still puttin’ away but I’m making it my mission to make some sense of it all :-D. And I’m up to my ears in ideas and projects and to-do’s.

And I’m also in a new world where there are loads of paper products again. Big offices are not tree-friendly, I’m quickly finding out. When tablet PCs are back out of the picture (since I can’t get anything but the normal laptop they provide everyone), little annoyances start creeping in that I’m not sure how to manage again. Like filing notes from meetings. Or even taking notes in meetings. Or what do I do when I need to go talk to someone about something I’ve been working on in my excel file?

I’m trying some different ideas with, such as a combo of paper and digital organizers, digital pen + paper items (surely something like that has to work! I’ve seen them at Target), and a bunch of sticky notes I’m using as a crutch in the mean time. But first I want to help clear my head in a way I tried briefly in college: “Getting Things Done.”

Oh yes, that magical system that, as 43 Folders describes, “probably takes a backseat only to the Atkins Diet in terms of the number of enthusiastic evangelists.” But I got half-way through the book last time and what I did get from it was very helpful in terms of just remembering to write stuff down and think about what is the true next action.

But now that I’m drowning in paper and projects and getting paid to do stuff (and wanting to get a good review in the spring), I really want to take a closer look at this. I’m on chapter 3 and hoping to find a way to make this all work better.

So now I’m spending this holiday with family, friends, and a book. It’s a nice thing to unwind for two weeks.

Anyway, yeah, sorry about the silence lately. Just getting use to life as it is now! It happens :-).

And if I don’t happen to write in the next few days, happy holidays and merry Christmas!

Other posts that may interest you:

1. Panic-Free Open Note Exams
2. Organizing Your Files, nay! Your Life
3. Looking for a solution somewhere between Word and OneNote
4. My Office Depot Run
5. Week #1 Paperless Challenge - Goals and Update