Project management is crucial when embarking on any important task. Wikipedia defines project management as “the process of supervising the work of a team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints.” Even if you’re working independently, using project management skills ensures that you’ll accomplish what you need to. 

I have used a variety of Project Management Software, including Asana, Monday.com, and Basecamp. This week, I decided to try out a software that is well known but I haven’t used before, Trello. This software uses a style called kanban, which is the Japanese word for signboard. Kanban style makes it so you can clearly see what needs to be done as if you had post-it notes on a board in front of you.

Getting Organized Using Trello

The screenshot above shows how I set up my Trello, to get organized for my upcoming White Paper. Trello allows you to create boards and within each board, you can create lists and in each list, you can add cards. Each card is a task that needs to be completed. I like to keep my lists simple, so I have three titled “To Do,” “Doing,” and “Done.” There is a lot to do to complete my White Paper, so I figured it was best to make each task an individual section of the paper. I’ve been working on gathering my research, both from the book Stolen Focus by Johann Hari and other resources. Once I have all my research in an annotated bibliography, I can start working section by section. I like this list format because I can focus on the “Doing” section without getting overwhelmed by the “To Do” section. Once a task is complete, I’ll move it to “Done,” and then move whatever I’m going to work on next to “Doing.” This organization will allow me to stay on track when completing my White Paper.