Sometimes people ask me how I’m able to manage and stay on top of so many projects at one time. My secret: I enlist the help of free web-based tools that keep me organized, on track, and managing my time effectively. Here is a list of a few of my go-tos:

Toggl – Do you ever ask yourself ‘Where did my day go?’. This time management tool tracks the amount of time that you spend on each project, and each specific task within that project. At the end of the day/week/month (or any other time period that you specify), you can see a breakdown of exactly how you spent your time. The reason that I love Toggl is because it helps me designate the right amount of time to each project I am working on, so that no project goes unaddressed. It provides a good reminder that if I am spending more time on a particular task than I had expected, I probably got lost in the details somewhere and need to resurface.

Doodle – Scheduling a meeting time for a group of busy people can be a challenge. Doodle is the simplest way that I have found to identify a meeting time that works for everyone. Doodle allows you to identify a number of dates and times that you are free to meet, and then send out a poll with those times to the group of people you are trying to coordinate. The reason that I love Doodle is because it makes coordinating meetings for multiple groups a very simple process. Doodle recommends the date and time that works for everyone involved, and then all I need to do is send out the meeting invite.

MailChimp – There are many online tools for building list serves and sending newsletters. I love MailChimp because it is very easy to use. MailChimp allows you to create different list serves and sub-groups within list serves for sending emails and newsletters. Being the organization freak that I am, I love making detailed lists categorizing everything to the max. MailChimp makes my life easier, as it allows me to link all of my email addresses to one account and organize email lists for each committee or sub-group of each organization, coalition or board that I work with.

Other free online tools that I love:

DropBox– DropBox works great for sharing files amongst boards, coalitions, or other groups of people

SurveyMonkey – A surveying tool that makes it easy to collect, aggregate, and analyze data

FreeConference – An easy way to set up free conference calls and invite attendees in one fell swoop

 

Interested in learning about other online tools that can help you get organized? Check out this top 100 list by DailyTekk.