Staying Organized in a Fast-Paced Environment

Over the past few months I have taken on a new role within a new company, which as you can imagine will test how you absorb information and best fit into your role while maintaining the confidence of those around you.

As my workload has grown, I’ve found it crucial to develop a structured approach to scheduling, prioritizing, and managing tasks. Whether it’s handling meetings, learning new tools, or ensuring deadlines are met, having a clear system makes all the difference. Here’s a high-level overview of the process I’ve developed using tools like PLAUD, Teams, Trello, and Outlook to stay focused and organized:

1. Capturing and Sorting Tasks

I start by gathering everything—whether it's meeting notes, emails, or ideas—and sorting them into categories: immediate, upcoming, later, or recurring. I do that by using my Trello board to structure any tasks that I find in those notes. Additionally I will use AI to help with this process, particularly for meetings. Using the digital voice recorder PLAUD to record meetings and conversations has streamlined this process, converting audio into text that’s ready to organize. And I do mean READY TO ORGANIZE. Plaud has an AI component that will automatically generate meeting notes, identify people, and mine tasks out of those hour long meetings and conversations. From there, I put those tasks either in Outlook (usually as a task with an assigned deadline) or in Trello to manage big picture tasks that need to be tracked to completion. This process allows for keeping everything visible and trackable in a way that aligns with my own workflow as well as the workflow of my firm and department.

2. Scheduling with Outlook

I rely heavily on Outlook to manage my daily schedule. Tasks are color-coded in my calendar, ensuring I stay on top of immediate priorities while also setting aside time for long-term projects. Outlook helps me block focused time for deep work, breaks, and even learning sessions, creating a balanced day that’s both productive and flexible.

3. Actioning Meeting Outcomes

After each meeting, I add action items directly to Trello or to Outlook, often captured either from hand written meeting notes or from my PLAUD device. I then use Microsoft Teams to contact and keep my teams informed and aligned, especially since we are based in several dozen offices across the United States. My project-planner notebook also complements my digital tools, helping me reflect and plan. That notebook is literally paper and pen, it helps me to mentally retain information and organize my thoughts before placement into the digital resources. Those of course get actionable items and timeframes assigned in either Outlook or Trello. As an aside, Trello also keeps track of completed tasks, which makes quarterly and yearly progress reports and meetings easier to setup and the overall value to be quantified.

4. Building Time for Learning

Staying ahead requires ongoing development. I block out weekly time slots in Outlook for learning, whether it’s mastering new software or staying current with industry trends. Using our inhouse education system or Trello and other resources, I break learning into manageable chunks, making the process both engaging and effective. Of course, sometimes learning means asking others, so using a combination of Teams and Outlook becomes vital for tracking and having meetings.

5. Weekly Reflection

At the end of the week, I reflect on what went well and what needs adjustment. Trello helps me review tasks and reprioritize for the week ahead, while Outlook allows me to adjust my calendar as needed. I also use my project-planner notebook to jot down reflections and ideas, providing a structured yet flexible approach to task management that will be entered into my electronic organizing systems as it makes sense to do so.

Bonus: I’ve experimented with tools like Evernote, the iPad, the Remarkable tablet, and software platforms like Notion and Obsidian, but I found they didn’t fit my workflow, but that shouldn't be read as they may not fit in yours... because they can, dependent on a number of work and personal factors. For now, tools like PLAUD, Trello, Teams, and Outlook have been game-changers for me.

Time: Does all this take a lot of time? It's not as bad as it sounds, but yes, it takes time. But that's just part of the job when troubleshooting and managing multiple initiatives impacting potentially 1000 + employees, dozens of offices, and a long stream of projects.

Feel free to comment, ask questions, or share how you keep on top of it all. It could help me or others to understand and develop better workflows with complex schedules!

Until next time,

Brian