So whether you’re a mobile professional constantly on-the-go, or taking a few weeks off for vacation this month, stay tuned for tips and tricks for staying productive!  All July we’ll be sharing daily tips on our Facebook and Twitter, as well as helpful checklists and product/app recommendations on our Organized Thoughts blog.    

If you’re going to be on-the-go at all this month—by bike, bus, ferry, train, or plane—we’ll help you stay productive!

1.  Finances
Staying connected to your finances wherever you go can be challenging for many families.  Try a tool like Mint to help your family manage accounts and investments, as well as track spending and set up budgets.

2.  Photos
Online photo storage sites, such as SnapFish, can be a great way to let everyone view and access memories by using the sharing function.  You can also use these services to order prints or create cool photo products.  One of our favorite things to do is create photo books to preserve and show off memories at the same time!

3.  Calendars
Family calendars help to keep track of each family member’s schedule organized.  It is easy to create individual calendars and then share them as needed with other family members, or even a teacher, nanny, or carpool buddy.  One of our favorite options is Google Calendars since it works with just about any mobile device and is accessible online.

4.  Lists
Writing and sharing lists that the entire family can access is a must.  Using a tool like Cozi can help you keep track of shared grocery lists, to-do lists, and any other family priorities.

What are your thoughts?  How does your family use the cloud to stay organized?

We don’t know about you, but our team of Productivity Consultants at Innovatively Organized got into a conversation recently where we realized that we all have a hard time remembering complicated random passwords.  Plus, do you really want to type out G&6d4*V#f2z every day to check your email?

An easy trick to improve your passwords is to replace words with random characters like this: Ch@ract3r$.

But let’s do the math: that’s only 10 characters, it’s a common dictionary word, and since we can probably assume that hackers have heard of this trick, it’s possible they’ve written algorithms complex enough to eventually guess this password.  And, you’d still have to remember which “a” was substituted with “@.” 

Here’s what we suggest:
•  String random words together
•  Capital the first letter of each word
•  Add some numbers (beginning, middle, or end)
•  The longer the better, with a variety of numbers, letters, and symbols

Some examples to get you started:
•  MyDogEats42?Slugs
•  Chased!By86MaroonStaplers

Or try the multiple word method:
•  Use a longer phrase that is easy to remember (like a song, poem, or quote)
•  Use the first letter from each word to string into a password.

Example: Using the song “I’m A Little Tea Pot Short and Stout. Here Is My Handle, Here Is My Spout.” Creates: IALTPSASHIMHHIMS.

Hard to guess but easy to remember!

At Innovatively Organized, we explain the cloud as a place to access virtual servers that are shared by multiple people, where you can use software services, and store data and files from multiple devices.  Think of the cloud as a place up in the sky (with an internet connection) where you can save, store, and retrieve documents and data.  From any device or location, you and anyone else you allow can access your information.  The benefits of cloud computing are numerous: it saves energy, speed and money; data is scalable; security is enhanced; and there is ease of mobility for those working anywhere and everywhere.  

Join our team of productivity consultants daily this month on our blog, Twitter and Facebook for daily updates and tips for a better Cloud Computing experience!  

Here’s another tip: Get in early and register now for our Cloud Computing 101: Learning the Basics webinar on June 14. This session tends to fill up fast!

What you’ll need:

• 10-15 minutes
• Canned air
• Microfiber cloth
• Damp cloth

Steps:

1. Remove everything off of your desk that is not connected or attached.
2. Use the canned air to clean dust from your monitor, keyboard and desk surface.
3. Turn off your monitor so it’s easier to see marks and wipe it with a microfiber cloth.  Be careful not to press too hard to avoid damaging the monitor.
4. Use your damp cloth to wipe your phone and desktop clean.
5. As you are returning items to your desk:
1. Get rid of items you no longer need (non-working pens, broken staplers, old calendars and event flyers, etc.)
2. Put items away (paper clips, notepads, books, files, etc.)
3. For piles of paper that you cannot go through in the last few minutes of your desk clean-up, set them aside in piles to go through at another time.

Purses of Interest is a purse swap fundraiser to benefit Rise n’ Shine.  The event is next Thursday, October 6th at 6 pm at PNK Ultra Lounge in Pacific Place.  You can register online for $20 before October 1st or for $25 after.  

Upon arrival, you will be checked in and given a ticket in exchange for your gently used purse (cough- clutter).  For the purse swap portion, numbers will be drawn at random to invite guests to pick out their new purse.  And the best part- all purses include goodies, discounts, or gift certificates hidden inside!  Not only will you be getting rid of “extra baggage” in your home, you’ll be returning with an awesome new bag already filled with goodies!  

There will also be a small silent auction for wines, chocolates, a boat tour, a L’Occitane gift box, and gift certificates to local Seattle Restaurants!  All of the evening’s proceeds go in support of Rise n’ Shine, which supports children and teens affected by HIV/AIDS.  

Bring all of your friends- especially the ones with purses you envy!  You can also check out their Facebook event to learn more!

If you’re the CEO of your household, contact management is great for planning play dates (ie. make note of whose kids have what food allergies).  You can store information about all of your family’s doctors, favorite restaurants, and preferred stores.  Make a contact for each family member, including not just their phone numbers, but also their clothing sizes, favorite foods, and schedules.  Add the contact information of your children’s best friends and teachers, in case you ever need to get in touch with them.  

If you’re a student, start creating a comprehensive contact management system for everyone you meet, especially your professors, career mentors, and school alumni.  Adding someone on Facebook is not enough- you need to start storing contact information like where people work, new networking contacts, and important job references.  Make note of birthdays and addresses, so when you go to school, you won’t miss special occasions and you’ll know where to mail cards.  Start updating all of your contacts to include your friends’ Skype usernames, blog addresses, and Twitter handles.  Then sync your devises, so you can always contact people wherever you are.

And no matter who you are, what you do, or how old you are, start organizing all of your contacts better.  We all have different tiers of relationships- our family members, our close friends, our colleagues/associates, our acquaintances, and everyone else.  The sooner you start sorting these relationships into categories, and tracking these relationships (like the last time you connected), the more productive you will be.  Capture every type of information you can- their current employer, their LinkedIn profile, their food preference.  In the long run, this will help you network, expand your relationships, and stay connected.

Whether you are using your phone address book, your Gmail address book, or a simple Excel spreadsheet, it’s important that you’re managing your contacts.