{"id":185,"date":"2006-09-14T00:27:58","date_gmt":"2006-09-14T05:27:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/2006\/09\/14\/whats-your-system-bryan-villarin\/"},"modified":"2020-05-07T14:03:03","modified_gmt":"2020-05-07T19:03:03","slug":"whats-your-system-bryan-villarin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/2006\/09\/14\/whats-your-system-bryan-villarin\/","title":{"rendered":"What&#8217;s your system: Bryan Villarin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/images\/narfedup.JPG\" align=\"right\" \/>The following is the third entry in our <a title=\"What's Your System\" href=\"http:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/2006\/09\/02\/how-do-you-keep-your-life-together-whats-your-system\/\">What&#8217;s Your System<\/a><\/em><em>series by <\/em><a title=\"All Narfed Up\" href=\"http:\/\/blogged.btvillarin.com\/2006\/09\/12\/how-i-stay-productive\/\">Bryan Villarin<\/a><em>. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to be featured, send an email, link to your website, and a picture (If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like) to scblanda@gmail.com. I will be ending the series Friday so get those submissions in!<br \/>\n<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Digital tools<\/h3>\n<p>My organizer of choice is currently a Tungsten E. On it, I have <a href=\"http:\/\/www.pimlicosoftware.com\/datebk6.htm\">DateBk6<\/a> ($27.95), <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thequickster.com\/products\/index.htm#mycheckbook\">MyCheckbook<\/a> (free), and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ggaub.com\/hs\/\">HandyShopper<\/a> (free). I also use the integrated memos app.<\/p>\n<h3>DateBk6<\/h3>\n<p>Appointment categories:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>+Important (red text)<\/li>\n<li>+Hard (events that will get done that day)<\/li>\n<li>+Info (gray text; event that doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t require my interaction)<\/li>\n<li>M-Info (gray text; event relevant to my mom, and I want to track it)<\/li>\n<li>Task@Call (phone icon; when I need to call someone at a specific day and time, telephone icon in front of the text)<\/li>\n<li>+Birthday\/Anniv (bold green text with a cake icon)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>ToDo categories:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>@Waiting For<\/li>\n<li>@Computer<\/li>\n<li>@Home<\/li>\n<li>@Errands<\/li>\n<li>@Call<\/li>\n<li>@Office<\/li>\n<li>@Agendas (I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll put someone\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s name in here, then write some notes in the note section for when I meet with them)<\/li>\n<li>@School<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I have a couple custom views that help narrow down which ToDo categories are shown. No need to see tasks needed to be done at home when I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m at work or out, right?<\/p>\n<p>Any ToDos that aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t dated don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t show up on the calendar. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll occasionally look in tasks to see if I can get any of the lesser-important tasks done.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tip<\/strong>: Use the icons for categories sparingly, otherwise the week or month view will be cluttered.<\/p>\n<p>If you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to fork over the cash, you can use the built-in calendar. However, you won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have the luxury of hiding items that aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t in the context of what you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing. Visually, I feel it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s worth it.<\/p>\n<h3>Other Palm software<\/h3>\n<p>I use <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thequickster.com\/products\/index.htm#mycheckbook\">MyCheckbook<\/a> as my checkbook register. I reconcile weekly, so I keep up with my checking account really well. Plus, you can backup to memo(s). Simple and neat!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ggaub.com\/hs\/\">HandyShopper<\/a> currently isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t used too much, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cool nevertheless. I have two checklists: one for clean installing Windows XP at work, and another for my weekly review. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m pretty sure I should brainstorm for other list ideas. <em>Do you have any ideas?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I enter calendar items and tasks in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.palm.com\/us\/software\/desktop\/\">Palm Desktop<\/a>, both at home and at work. That way, I have two backups. In addition, I use <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bluenomad.com\/bbvfs\/prod_bbvfs_details.html\">BackupBuddyVFS<\/a> personal (keeping the SD card at home).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sidenote<\/strong>: I got a lot of insight from PDAaddict at <a href=\"http:\/\/organizedhome.com\/\">OrganizedHome.com<\/a>, who religiously uses Palm Desktop and her Palm PDA. She gets a ton of credit. I suggest that you read through <a href=\"http:\/\/organizedhome.com\/journalsearch-bywhataid-forwhatpdaaddict.html\">her journal entries<\/a> and create a system that fits you.<\/p>\n<h3>Built-in Palm software<\/h3>\n<p>I use Memos for reference. Andy gave me a a portable and foldable IR wireless keyboard, so if I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m away from a computer, I can type stuff in there quickly. I have the following categories for sorting:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>!Inbox (the exclamation point is to keep it at the top of the list)<\/li>\n<li>Clients (for the rare consulting jobs)<\/li>\n<li>File (reference)<\/li>\n<li>Ideas<\/li>\n<li>Maybe Get (books, CDs, software, gadgets)<\/li>\n<li>Projects<\/li>\n<li>SBC Dialup (for the rare occassion if I travel, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll have dialup phone numbers handy)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Within the <strong>File<\/strong> category, I prefix the title of the memo with a 1-2 word description contained in brackets []. (Example: [Car], [College], [Spiritual], [Work]) That makes it visually easier to sift through and find the memo I want. The Palm search function is really quick, too.<\/p>\n<p>For Projects, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll list the tasks I need to accomplish and the goal for that project. If I can tackle one of the tasks that day, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll copy it as a new ToDo, then \u00e2\u20ac\u0153cross it out\u00e2\u20ac\u009d when I complete it. (I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll put an \u00e2\u20ac\u0153x\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in front of the line.)<\/p>\n<h3>Analog<\/h3>\n<p>At home, my inbox is a single wire desk tray. When I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m out, I put loose papers, receipts, and index cards in a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.officedepot.com\/ddSKU.do?level=SK&#038;id=477088&#038;N=201604&#038;An=browse\">poly ultra wallet<\/a>. Then when I get home, I dump from the poly wallet into the desk tray.<\/p>\n<p>I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m really good with keeping up with voicemail. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll write the message down on an index card with the timestamp, and process that accordingly.<\/p>\n<p>I have a tickler file setup, but I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been using it with consistency. When I get back to a trusted system, where I get my inbox to zero and keep it that way, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll probably get better at it as a byproduct. Since my summer hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been intense, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been fine not using it. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sure when school starts, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll feel much more inclined to using it.<\/p>\n<p>If you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a handheld, look into the <a href=\"http:\/\/wiki.43folders.com\/index.php\/Hipster_PDA\">Hipster PDA<\/a>. Although Palm OS 5 includes Notepad, I currently use index cards because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easier to write on. I definitely don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like writing with the stylus too much. Plus, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easier to carry index cards in my pocket. So, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll write something down, toss the card in my inbox, then process it at a later time.<\/p>\n<h3>Filing system<\/h3>\n<p>I have a single letter-size hanging file drawer. I use manila folders to keep the papers in, as opposed to the hanging folders themselves, for easy transport. The majority are sorted by full name, except for purchases. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll file miscellaneous purchases in a generic A-to-Z filing system. However, for the major ones that I buy semi-regularly, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll create a dedicated folder for those. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll occasionally go through and purge to keep the drawer fairly light.<\/p>\n<h3>Without paper<\/h3>\n<p>When I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m without index cards, I use my cell phone. I either:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>email myself with a brief text message, or;<\/li>\n<li>call my <a href=\"http:\/\/k7.net\/\">K7<\/a> phone number with a more detailed voicemail.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The fewer the amount of inboxes, the easier. In this instance, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m getting stuff sent to email. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m happy to say my email inbox is at zero, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been there for a long time.<\/p>\n<h3>Calendaring Downsides<\/h3>\n<p>My calendar isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t public or shareable, like <a href=\"http:\/\/www.google.com\/calendar\/\">Google Calendar<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.backpackit.com\/\">Backpack<\/a>, or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.30boxes.com\/\">30 Boxes<\/a>. My system is currently like this because I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not by a computer all the time, and the Internet connection at work is slow.<\/p>\n<p><em>That was probably the most detailed post yet.\u00c2\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Remember if you would like to featured, send an email, link to your website, and a picture (If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like) to scblanda@gmail.com.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The following is the third entry in our What&#8217;s Your Systemseries by Bryan Villarin. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to be featured, send an email, link to your website, and a picture (If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like) to scblanda@gmail.com. I will be ending the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-whats-your-system"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=185"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":417,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185\/revisions\/417"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sevenseek.com\/collegev2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}