My method of organization has always been a bit haphazard and honestly not very organized. When I started my business I decided to get more serious about organization and keeping on task. My method involves a combination of paper, computer, and mobile tools.
Here is a list of a few applications for Android, PC, or Mac that I use throughout my day to assist in both my design and painting workflows.
1. Instagram
Instagram used to be a place to share photos of your lunch (and still is!) but it has become a much more valued tool over time. For artists it has become a place to connect with those who are interested in you art and story. I try to share at least one photo of a day on Instagram, it could be a work in progress, a sketch, a finished piece, a video, or just a photo of my dogs (I do try to keep them generally work related). This allows those who follow me a glimpse into my life and what I am working on, and the process of planning to post every day is helpful for staying on task.
2. Gmail
Using Gmail is not the most exciting thing, however it is essential in my workflow. I have two email accounts, a personal one and a separate work email set up for my business. The mobile application allows for both to be logged in at once so I can get all my email conveniently and allows for quick responses when needed.
3. Dropbox
Since I have a few different locations that I work, such as in the painting studio, the design studio and mobile laptop, dropbox is essential for my file storage. It allows for me to work on something at one station and then work on it again somewhere else, easily switching from and to the Mac or PC platforms. Often I will edit a reference photo in the design studio and then pop it into my dropbox folder and grab it out in the painting studio. This is also essential for delivering digital files to design, or digital painting clients.
4. Pocket
When browsing the internet I will often come across an article or blog post that I don’t have time to read at that moment. Pocket allows you to save these for reference later quickly with a button push in your browser. So later when I have the time – online or offline from whatever device - I can access what I stuck in Pocket. This is a huge timesaver when trying to stay on task.
5. Audible/Netflix
When working I always have to have some sort of noise, when designing I like to listen to Audio books, when painting I like having Netflix on (I don’t look at the screen too often). Both require a subscription, however I think they are well worth it. I stay focused with the noise and the breaks in episodes or chapters are good stretch break points.
6. Pushbullet
Pushbullet is great for creating a connection between devices – your phone, your tablet and PC – once installed on all. Pushbullet has a great copy/paste feature that you can use across all your devices, so if you have a blog post idea written on your phone you can use Pushbullet to copy and paste it to your master list on your computer. It also allows for text messages and calls to pop up on your computer screen so if you are deep into a project you don’t need to drop everything to reply to the SMS. Another great feature is the ability to “push” information – so if I wanted to show something on my phone to someone across the room I could just push it to them and not get up!
There are plenty more apps that I use, however these 6 are used daily and help me stay focused. Hopefully these apps can help you too!