Getting Listed - Karen Bush

Tidy desk. Just to show it does sometimes happen.
If you, as I do, live your life by lists - things to do today, this week, this month... ornamented with highlighted bits, thick lines, multiple underlinings, stars and other hopefully eye and attention-catching devices to indicate urgent, really urgent and THIS MUST BE DONE NOW!!!!!! then you will know just how satisfying it is each time you can cross something off. A list gives you proof that you have achieved something ... often I even create lists for the book I am currently writing, so I can feel (especially in the early stages) that I am getting somewhere with it. If I have a deadline to meet, it also gives me a realistic grasp of how much work I still have to get done, and I can work out a sensible timetable to enable me to meet that deadline.
Deadlines. Quite important. Although not
as important as whippet mealtimes.
The problem with my lists is that they are on paper. Not a problem with the stuff that involves the usual daily grind - dropping off Mum's prescription, collecting shopping, that sort of thing. But not so good when it's book stuff as the piles of paper tend to get shuffled together, out of order and - horrors! - sometimes mislaid entirely. (No, I do not keep an orderly desk. It only gets decluttered when I've finished a project. Yes, I could perhaps keep it tidier but I have more interesting things to do than housework.)
     But no longer! I have discovered the joy of Sticky Notes - a kind of computer version of Post It notes. I have no idea whether the new Windows software still includes them - I'm still avoiding it - but my current one has it and it's a boon. No more mislaid bits of paper - everything is there, stuck on my opening screen, with different colours depending on what it relates to - books I'm planning to write, notes on them, solo projects or co-authored ...
There are probably bits of techno-geekery that do something similar only better, and which I don't know about. But I don't care - this is simple, and easy even for stupid people like me to master. If you haven't yet discovered it for yourself (and I realise that I am probably teaching most of you to suck eggs, but there might possibly be one or two of you out there that don't know about it), simply click on the Windows start icon, which will produce a menu of things - if you can't see Sticky Notes on it then click on 'All Programmes' and scroll through for it.
No, it's not your eyes. Yes, it is intentionally blurry.
Don't want anyone nicking my ideas ...
Click on it.
And away you go.
Use your mouse to make the notes bigger or smaller. Clicking on the + in the top left corner will produce another screen post-it. Clicking on the x in the opposite corner will delete it. Right click on the post-it and you can change its colour. See? Simples.
Although if you don't have Windows, very sorry but I can't help you. Other than to suggest that you buy some more paper and a new pen ...



Comments

Wendy H. Jones said…
I too love sticky notes. Fortunately you do he them on MaC OSX as well. Sticky users of the world unite
madwippitt said…
Yes, we must stick together! :-)
JO said…
I love lists - the paper and pen variety. Don't tell, but I have been known to write down things I've already done, just so I can cross them off and make the to-do list look less daunting!
I had no idea about this! Love them. (Use a lot of them in the real world as well.) Thanks for telling us, Karen.
Bill Kirton said…
Thanks, Karen. Sounds great. As soon as my Windows 10 starts working properly again, I'll check whether I have it and start using it. Grrrr.
Lee said…
Good tip. And Bill, it's under All Apps>Windows Accessories in Win 10.
madwippitt said…
Gosh. Feeling properly nerdy now ... :-)
Bill Kirton said…
Thanks, Lee. The initial problem was that I couldn't actually get into the apps list etc because my Win 10 sometimes decides not to work. I am, though, inordinately proud of myself for trying various ploys to get it going again and one of them worked. (No idea which one so when it next happens, I'll have to do them all again.) Even then, however, I didn't realise it was under Windows Accessories but I did a search and once again 'God's in His heaven, all's right with the world' (well, except for...)
Susan Price said…
But Karen, what do you do when you learn not to look at them? I really need something that will leap out at me - with various different noises and shapes - yelling, 'Check tyre pressures!' or 'Post blog on 25th!' Otherwise, after a week or so, I start to ignore it.
madwippitt said…
Easy Sue - I just do one giant bright white post-it that sits right in the middle of my screen over the top of the other ones. With the all-important message plonk in the middle. When I see a big one I know I have to take notice of it ...
glitter noir said…
Thanks, Karen. Well done, though I'm left to wonder what you do on those days when you feel suddenly...listless.

Lee, thanks for solving one of the maddening mysteries, for me, of Windows 10. Unable to find any notepad, I'd tried a couple of apps, also OneNote, that didn't quite work for me. Now, at last, I'm back on track.
Lee said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lee said…
Hi Reb, glad to be of help.

For most of you I'm probably stating the obvious, but when you can't find an app or file, do a Windows search in the lower left taskbar box, if you haven't moved it (I've set mine to only search Windows i.e. my pc, not the internet as well), then right click and click again on 'find the file location' to -- well, to find the file location.

;-)
Lynne Garner said…
Karen him-in-doors has been uses them for an age and says he'll never return to the 'old ways.' Me I like my notes in paper format. I like the action of crossing through a line. The only issue is I end up with three or four of them with various bits crossed off then have to merge them down to one, to start the process again.
Fran B said…
That is the mark of a true list-lover. It takes one to know one.

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