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How I Organize My Entire Life Using Trello

I am an organization freak. I am constantly making lists, writing in my planner, jotting notes on post-it’s, and texting myself quick ideas. But then…just when I thought that my type-A self couldn’t be any more satisfied…the most glorious, magical, tool-of-all-organizational-tools was introduced into my life. It helps me organize my workday, bills, meal planning, Christmas spending, home chores, and so so so much more, you guys! So now that I’ve peaked your interest, let me introduce you to…*drumroll please*…TRELLO. So you’re probably wondering, “what the heck is a Trello?” I’m not sure whether to be excited or appalled by you asking that question, but either way, I’ll tell you! Trello is an online project management tool that allows you to organize projects into boards. It allows you to create various tasks within each board that can include checklists, deadlines, descriptions, comments, document attachments, and more! And did I mention it’s a collaborative system?! Meaning you can invite your husband to your Household Chore board to keep on top of what he is (or in my husband’s case…isn’t) getting done. Ready to learn how I utilize Trello for my daily life? Great! Cause if you couldn’t already tell, I’m pretty excited to share it with you.

Trello: The Ultimate Organization Tool

Besides being able to organize everything in your life, the greatest thing about Trello is its ease and functionality. So let’s go over the basics, shall we? Here’s some terminology you need to know: Boards: These are your overall projects and can be as big picture or as niche as you want them to be. Boards contain a series of lists and cards (we’ll get into all of that next) to organize your projects so think of them in a pretty broad sense. For example, you could create boards entitled ‘Housework’ or ‘Meal Planning’. Lists: Lists are how you organize/prioritize your board or project and are made of multiple cards/tasks (see below). For example, if I were setting up a ‘Work Tasks’ board, I might have lists such as ‘To-Do’, ‘In Progress’, ‘Done’. If I were setting up a ‘Housework’ board, I would break my lists into ‘Weekly Chores’, ‘Monthly Chores’, and ‘Annual Chores’. These can be as detailed or as broad as you need! While there isn’t much customization with Lists besides the naming convention, you can drag and drop them if you need to change up the order. It’s a pretty small, but handy feature! Cards: Think of a card as an individual task that needs to be completed. Cards are where you really get down to the nitty-gritty of a project and also can really have a lot of fun! To help get a better idea of what needs to be done for each task, each Card allows you to include the following:
  • Due dates – Trello will even will send you an email reminder when your due date is getting close AND it’s a checkable box, which gives you the satisfaction of marking the task complete!
  • Descriptions – Nothing fancy, just a description box that you can use for your own reference.
  • Checklists – Create interactive checklists that allow you to track progress.
  • Attachments – From documents to images, you can upload just about anything!
  • Comments – This is a great way to tag and collaborate with other board users!
  • Labels – Each board allows you to have a separate set of colorful labels that you can name and use as a visual reference for your board. You can also search by labels, so if you’re doing a ‘Housework’ board, you can create a tag for each room, and then search by tag name to only see your labels named ‘Living Room.’
You also are able to ASSIGN other board members to a card. Seriously guys, it’s a game-changer.

How I Use Trello To Organize My Life

Work

This is definitely Trello’s most common use and really, can you blame it? Trello is the ultimate work organization tool and is especially great when working with a team of people. As a full-time Marketing Manager, being able to utilize Trello boards with my teams is CRUCIAL to our success and efficiency. I’m able to schedule out and assign tasks to my employees, track what’s getting done on their checklists, communicate via the comments, and share documents on each card as well.

Meal Planning

As you can see, it’s a great way to plan out your meals for the week. I have a library of my favorite recipes in the first two columns and then have lists for each day of the week so that I can essentially create a meal calendar and just drag and drop the cards on to the different days. SO EASY. This is where it gets tricky. (You definitely don’t have to do it this way, but it really does come in handy!) For each card/recipe, I break it up into three different parts: Ingredients, Directions, and an Ingredients Checklist. This way, I can quickly access the recipe (versus scrolling through my Pinterest board to find it), and even have a shoppable grocery list for when I’m at the store! Here’s an example:

Monthly Bills

Being able to track which bills I have and haven’t paid each month is seriously such a life-saver! I organize my cards by due date and can get a really good visual of what’s been paid, what’s coming up, and what (heaven-forbid) has been missed.

Home Cleaning/Chore Checklist

Let me tell you – if you use Trello for nothing else, at least use it for this. It’s SO helpful! I’ve found it easiest to break up my board into Weekly, Monthly, Bi-Annual, and Annual lists. You can also assign people to certain tasks so you don’t get stuck cleaning out the fridge every month. Check it out:


Wedding Planning

This phase is long behind me at this point (#blessed, #thankful) but being able to lay out my wedding planning on a board was THE BEES KNEES. It was like a wedding planning binder, but in digital form. To create it, I literally just went to various websites such as The Knot and Wedding Wire, looked at their wedding planning timelines, and created cards and deadlines that made sense for my 12-month engagement. And because my mom was constantly bombarding me with questions (sorry, Mom!) about where I was at in the planning process, I made her download the app and added her to the board so she could follow along. Not only did I utilize these cards for a timeline, I also attached any contracts, proposals, inspiration photos, pricing, and any other information that I might need to be able to reference. Trust me — keeping Trello in your back pocket is a million times better than lugging around a wedding planning binder.

36 Trello Board Ideas to Get You Started

Not quite sure where to start? Whether you’re looking to use Trello for work, home life, school, or all of the above, here are 36 ideas that will inspire your first of many Trello boards! Work Related:
  1. Personal Tasks
  2. Marketing Calendar
  3. Social Media Calendar
  4. Newsletter/Email Calendar
  5. Blog Post Ideas
  6. Blog Schedule
  7. Lesson Planning
  8. Training Schedule
  9. Hiring and Onboarding
  10. Conference Planning
  11. Editorial Calendar
  12. Product Launch
  13. Office Holiday Party
Home Life
  1. Housework/Chores
  2. Bills and Budgets
  3. Meal Planning
  4. Tax Time
  5. Home Improvement Project
  6. Buying/Selling A Home
School Life
  1. Back to School
  2. Sports/Activities Calendar
  3. Homework Calendar
  4. Research Project
Miscellaneous
  1. Wedding Planning
  2. Vacation Planning
  3. Bucket List
  4. Life Goals
  5. Job Hunting
  6. Holiday Gift Shopping
  7. Event Planning
  8. Marathon Training
  9. Reading List
  10. Writing a Book
  11. Thanksgiving Dinner
  12. New Years Resolutions
  13. Must-Try Restaurants
Looking for more ideas? Check out Trello’s collection of Inspiring Boards!