Changing my Workflow with Google Keep

Our focus question this week in CEP810 was, "How can I use technologies to make my life, as a teacher or educational professional, easier to manage, more efficient and productive?"

I am always looking for ways to help balance my life and sort through the tasks running through my brain. I am not a naturally organized person. I have had to learn strategies over the years to help manage my life. This year I had a baby and it seems like my to-do list is getting longer and harder to manage. When I return to school in the fall, I will appreciate having new tools and strategies for organizing my workflow.

For this assignment, I decided to explore Google Keep. I love making and crossing off to-do lists, so I knew this would be a way I could sort, organize, and streamline my current process. I like that Google Keep allows me to create many categories of lists. When I am at home, I do not have to look at my "School" list. I can keep my focus on my "Home" priorities, without having school tasks popping up and stressing me out. I can also create short term and long term lists.

*This is a screen shot from Google Keep. It shows my many different to-do lists.

One other feature I really like about Google Keep is that I can share lists with my husband. This will be a great way to organize and prioritize together. I can see when he has checked something off our joined lists and he can see when I've added something new. I have hope that this will help keep our family more organized.

The many tasks on my mental to-do lists can cause me a lot of anxiety, and even keep me up at night. I find it therapeutic to write my thoughts down on a to-do list, and even more healing to cross something off. Google Keep helps me sort my to-do lists, and even share those tasks with my partner.

I think it is important for school teachers to teach students how to organize their lives. Managing life is an important life skill and Google Keep is a great resource for teaching this skill.

I can see using Google Keep for a group project as well. As group members accomplish something, they can cross it off for all to see.

You can also write notes (like a digital post-it) to yourself. I think I will mostly use Google Keep to create lists, but I may put important reminders on individual notes. I'm so glad I found this resource!