How this all started
I have fewer projects than I used to.
That being said, I still have many and many more projects in my Work-In-Progress (WIP) pile. OK, it isn’t really a single pile. It is a virtual pile that sits atop my mental To-Do list. In real life, it is a couple of actual piles. Many totes and boxes have been stashed here and there. If I can’t see these unfinished projects with my naked eyeballs then they really don’t exist as Unfinished-Objects (UFO’s), right?
Last week, I rushed to finish the alterations on the wedding dress for DIL’s friend. I was also making the wedding veil for a friend in South Carolina. I looked around and realized I also need to finish a birthday gift before the second week in September. And these were just the projects with time constraints attached to them!
I decided that I needed a way to keep track of the projects I have started. I also wanted to track those I committed to starting. That way, if they get set down or pushed to the side I don’t forget about them. I decided the best way FOR ME to do that is with a notebook. I went online and Google’d something (I don’t remember the exact words) that brought up loads of choices. After looking at soooooo very many different options, I decided on some from Scattered Squirrel. They met my needs and weren’t overly complicated. This makes it more likely that I will continue to use them going forward.
Project Notebook
Project Index Page
When I started looking, this is the form that I imagined that I wanted and needed. This is the only form that I had in my mind. On this form, I could list the projects as I start them. I could also list them as I find them again (from wherever I may have stashed them). I can add a start date. When I finish them (Oh joyous and beautiful day that will be), I can add an ending date.
But I wanted to track more information on some projects. This is especially important for projects that have several steps. These projects take a longer time to finish. They might also have several purchases that need to be made on the way to completion.
Individual Project Planner page
Enter this “Project Planner” form, also from Scattered Squirrel. On this page, I can write the start date and the project name. I can also outline the steps of the project and list the items purchased for it. Additionally, I can make notes about the project. What kind of notes do you ask? If it is a knitting project, I could list the pattern and size. I mention the type of yarn and the size of needles. I would share what I thought about each of those choices, etc. At the right size of the top of the form is a line that I LOVE! “Estimated time needed” If I have a deadline on the project, that is what I enter on this line. I would only track one project on each of these forms. But sometimes a “project” might be something super small/fast/simple like a mending. I wouldn’t necessarily want to fill out an individual form for each of those types of projects. I would still list them on the “Index” form. Still, there is another form that I want to use. This form will help me track smaller projects within the context of all of my projects…
Monthly & Weekly Planning Page
On this form I have a fill-in-the-blank monthly part and a week 1-5 part. I can enter other activities that may conflict with project work. These include taking care of grand babies, visiting with friends, and knitting night. They also include dates, vacations, and teaching motorcycle safety. When I have time to work on projects, I can plan which project I will work on. I can also write in if I worked on a project in my spare time, like on break at work. It is good to note the time spent on any given project. I do this for any day I work on a project. In the weekly area I write the projects that I plan to work on that week or have worked on. At the end of each week, I add up the time I worked on each project. Then I write it down in the “week” block. I haven’t been good at tracking how much time I devote to my projects. I have always wanted to improve in this aspect. This seems simple enough, so I feel I can do so sustainably.
Section Tabs
First tab: Project Index page
Second tab: General Project planning – this is where the calendar looking page is. Behind the calendar page, there are smaller projects. These were big enough to justify filling out a Project Planner page for each.
Third tab: Right now, it is for a quilt project. This is a many step project. It has extra pages of additional information that I have added to the notebook for quick reference.
Fourth tab: Completed projects. When I finish a project that has its own Project Planning sheet, I will move the sheet. I will place it behind this tab. Some day, I will look at the sheets of completed projects. I will bask in the glory…
Fifth tab: Blank Project planning sheets. All ready and waiting for me to start new projects, or find the old ones that are stashed away.
What do you think?
How do you keep track of all your WIP’s, UFO’s and PHD’s (projects half done)?
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