Staying Organised with Beck Wadworth
At Stellar we believe organisation is imperative to success. Whether you're a small business owner like our founder Isobel, employed by a global company or are a stay at home parent, making lists, setting reminders and even organising your thoughts are tasks that are guaranteed to improve your quality of life.
So, we sat down with the queen of organisation Beck Wadworth - founder and designer of An Organised Life, one of Stellar's many partners. To find out some of Beck's hacks for improving mental health, and creating a more fulfilling and freeing lifestyle read on.
1. What are three tools or strategies you implement to keep you organised on a day-to-day basis?
● Utilise a to-do list & diary: One of the most effective ways to organise your life is with a to-do list, using either your AOL diary, a notebook or notepad. Jot down every single thing you need to do then prioritise your workload, this immediately reduces stress and gives you a structured way to work through your day. I find identifying my 3 MITs (Most Important Tasks) really effective and also breaking down my to-do list with what I want to achieve in the morning and in the afternoon really helps to schedule my day.
● Use alarms & reminders: I check my schedule in my diary the night before and set alarms that act as little reminders to keep my day flowing (and to make sure I don’t forget anything important) This is super helpful not only for workflow but any personal things on your to-do list. For eg. alarm 30 minutes before an important call or meeting to prep, or as a reminder to leave for any appointments or lunch dates.
● Prep & plan ahead of time: I like to prep & plan on a Sunday as part of my Sunday routine. Plan outfits for the week based on the weather and any extra things you might have on - a dinner, or a gym class, plan meals for the week ahead, being aware of any meetings you may have that you need to wake up a little earlier for.
2. Where do you find your inspiration for new product designs? Do these transpire from your daily organisational requirements?
When designing I’m always trying to fix a problem or help others organise a certain area of their life, or hoping to inspire others. I don’t have a set rule on how many products I need to launch a year, I keep it pretty flexible so I can ensure they are the best of the best. Some products have been inspired from my own organisational requirements, like the Travel Journal, after spending so much time flying between Australia and New Zealand, and abroad for work. Our Volume 01 and 02 Collections were in response to the increase in demand from our customers over the past few years for an inspiring notebook to journal in and practice gratitude.
3. What are your top 3 tips for goal setting?
● Be Specific: Identify your goals across three key categories - professional, personal & financial. It’s also important that your goals are very specific but also realistic. What exactly are you hoping to achieve and when do you want to achieve it by.
● Identify Roadblocks: When you set a goal 99% of the time the path to achieving it won’t be smooth sailing, however it’s this process that can make us stronger and teach us so much. My tip is always knowing the best & worst case scenario, identifying these potential roadblocks early on will give you the tools to overcome them.
● Write an Action Plan: Once you have a clear understanding & vision for how you can achieve your goals, put an action plan in place with small milestones you can tick off weekly or monthly in your diary. A pin board is also great as a place to visualise and manifest.
4. It is believed that staying organised actually helps you be more spontaneous, is that something you’ve found being the organisational queen that you are?
Yes definitely. For me, being organised helps reduce my stress levels, and when my stress levels are reduced I have the mental capacity for more spontaneity.
5. We loved your journal on the science of writing a to-do list. Can you briefly tell us how you believe perfecting the to-do list helps with stress and anxiety?
Whether it’s for your personal or professional life, a good to-do list allows your day to flow with structure, increases your productivity and also ensures nothing is missed. Psychologists have noted that to-do lists help reduce anxiety & stress by giving us structure, plans and concrete evidence of our day-to-day achievements - there’s also something so satisfying in crossing a task off your to-do list and it gives you motivation to tackle the next task! Having a to-do list prepped the day before also allows you to be present during your down time, you don’t need to be constantly thinking about all the things you have to do the next day, or week because you’ve already set yourself up with a plan of action for those things - you can actually switch off and enjoy time doing things you love.
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