1. Determine Your Genealogy Goals- without a goal and a path you will wander aimlessly, accomplishing very little. Setting goals and creating an action plan for a achieving your goals are imperative to staying the course. Don’t hesitate to revisit these goals throughout the year.
2. Create a Daily, Weekly and Monthly Routine- set time aside each week to work on your genealogy project.
3. Create a Schedule or To-Do-List – break down your goals into actions, schedule your actions into a calendar or to-do-list. If you have Microsoft Outlook you can create multiple calendars. Create a genealogy calendar and schedule your research time and genealogy activities.
4. Too Many Distractions- email, cell phones, twitter, facebook, all can distract you from the task. Shut them down and commit to only checking them at designated times throughout the day or evening. This eliminates the continuous onslaught of communication constantly infiltrating on your space and time.
5. Write It Down - Often when we are working on one branch or individual in our genealogy, other branches or individuals come to mind, and we are easily sided track. Keep a note pad, tape recorder or post-it notes nearby. Record your thoughts and come back to them later rather than have them distract you from your current task.
6. Enlist The Help of Others- many of us are control freaks, eager to do all the work ourselves. As a wife, mother, daughter, genealogists, writer, I have many pans in the fire. I learned years ago to lean on others to help me. I also learned to prioritized, and let things go that are not important.
At the end of the day, we need to continually remind ourselves to stay focused and organized it is imperative to being a more productive genealogist.
First Step to Writing Your Family History
Katrina at Kick-Ass Genealogy has a great post on organizing your genealogy using colour coding.