Give your post-it notes a purpose
One of the best inventions of the 20th century is the post-it note. This is purely my opinion! Those tiny colorful pieces of paper with built-in adhesive have really been a significant tool for organizing. Now there are so many different sizes and colors to choose from. Can you tell me of a household without post-it notes? I have yet to find one!
Are post-it notes for everyone? This is a question I’ve been pondering with my clients who hire me as their Professional Organizer.
One of the things I’ve noticed is that people have their favorite color post-it note. Do you? This has been found to be true among my older clients with vision issues. The darker color post-it notes are completely useless to them. They like to use the very light colors and I do have one client that will only use the light yellow. If it isn’t functional for you, it’s clutter.
Something else I’ve noticed within my clients suffering from Chronic Disorganization along with memory loss is their use of post its to take notes on. These little pieces of paper multiply as they go about their day jotting down all of the things they don’t want to forget. Well, you can imagine how many little sticky pieces of paper are floating around their homes. With no real system for storing or retrieving this can be a real problem!
For the post-it note to be an effective organizing tool it must meet certain criteria for me.
- Have a specific purpose
Is it a reminder? Am I just using to jot down a few things I need from the store? Am I taking a message? Did I want to leave someone a short note? Was I using it to label something?
- It must be well secured.
It seems strange to say because it is sticky. However, I’ve seen them blow off desks and other surfaces. A little piece of tape on the end without the sticky should do the trick. I am also convinced that depending on the age of the post it, the sticky might be less effective.
- The color should reflect its purpose.
Since I am without vision issues the most effective use is in choosing the right color. Bright colors work best if I want to get someone’s attention or my own. The light colors are good for leaving notes. For this reason, I like to keep both on hand.
I assure you I am not paid to promote post-it notes, though I wouldn’t mind if they offered me that job! Honestly, I know how expensive they are and really just want to help people use them more effectively. This information comes from real life situations.
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