Staying motivated throughout the year is a challenge, not just for students. No matter what your career aspirations are, it's important to stay on top of your game and to maintain an organized lifestyle so you can better achieve your goals. Whether you're driven by filling out lists or breaking goals down into manageable chunks, with the right tools and strategies, staying organized does not have to feel like a chore or take up all your free time. Set yourself up for success by creating systems at home and in the office that will help you stay productive from week to week.

Time Management

When we say “time management”, many people automatically think of planning and scheduling. However, there is more to it than that. Time management also involves prioritization, so you make sure you are getting the most important tasks done first. How many times have you started a new year with the best of intentions only to find yourself not sticking to your goals?

You’re not alone. Research has shown that more than half of all people who make New Year’s resolutions end up failing within six months. There are two things that can help you beat this 50% failure rate and achieve your goals: time management and motivation.

Now, people say that paper calendars are dead. Well, don’t be too quick to agree. People still use paper calendars because they work. Here’s why you should start using one, too.

You don’t need to worry about losing your calendar if it’s offline, because it never is! If you have a paper calendar, you can take it with you wherever you go. There are online services that provide great printable calendar templates for all your needs, and the best thing about it – they are completely free of charge. You can head on and choose or even create your own calendar easily, in your own language and style.

Organization Tools

Productivity tools are tools that make your work more efficient, effective, and organized. These tools help you to stay on track and get things done. The most effective productivity hacks rely on process automation. Automation can be defined as a process that is triggered by an incoming event, saves time, and is relatively easy to set up and integrate into existing processes. Automation can also be described as an activity that is triggered by an incoming event or action and then triggers another activity or action based on a ruleset.

For a lot of people, it's very hard to stay motivated throughout the year. That's why I want to share with you some tools that I personally use and I find them very useful for staying on track with my goals.

1. Google Calendar - this is a very simple but useful tool for keeping yourself organized. There are lots of cool calendar applications out there, but I happen to use Google Calendar, and I recommend it because it's free and easy to use.

2. Trello - if you have tons of tasks for different projects, it becomes a bit difficult to manage them all in one place. Trello is a great tool for managing multiple projects and keeping track of what needs to be done.

3. MailChimp - I use this email marketing software to send out my newsletter, as well as manage my blog's email list. It's easy to use and free for up to 2,000 subscribers.

4. Grammarly - I'm not the best at grammar, so this tool is a lifesaver! Grammarly checks your writing for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. It's also a great tool for those who write content for their blogs or websites.

Setting Up Goals

Having a set of simple goals can be the difference between success and failure. Goals provide us with a clear direction, and motivation to reach those goals. Without them, we are lost. Setting goals is not enough to ensure that you are productive. You must make sure that you are also motivated to achieve your goals and persist in the long run. Here are some tips on setting goals and staying motivated:

• Make your goals specific, measurable, attainable, and realistic.

• Break down large tasks into smaller ones, and set deadlines for each step.

• Set up a reward system to incentivize yourself for meeting your goals. This can be as simple as rewarding yourself with something like a movie, a self-care day or dinner out.

• Learn from your past mistakes and don’t beat yourself up if you make a mistake.

Motivation comes and goes. We’ve all had days where we just can’t seem to get moving, and it often feels like there isn’t much that can be done to help you get motivated. The good news is that there are ways you can stay motivated throughout the year, even during those times when motivation seems scarce.