We’ve got a problem these days that past generations would have loved to have: too much information. Now, organizing the information takes on paramount importance. It’s easy to get overwhelmed.

Emails demand to be read. Refrigerator doors and bulletin boards become graveyards for lost and forgotten sticky notes. And that million-dollar idea you had during the morning commute? Forgotten in the hectic drama of the first fifteen minutes at the office.

Ballantrae Solutions President Jocelyn Coverdale suggests tech solutions for all of these problems that are easy and inexpensive (or free!) to improve your information’s “findability”.

GTDMail
Imagine that a postal worker comes to your door to deliver your mail. You decide you don’t like most of what he’s got for you, throw most of it at the door and leave it there. You repeat this process every day and soon you’ve got hundreds of unopened letters cluttering your entrance. It sounds ridiculous, but that’s how many people deal (or rather, don’t deal) with their email.

This simple-to-use application is a snap for organizing your email. Create categories like Follow Up, Read and Action for various types of responses you might require. Or create a Snooze folder and just have the email re-delivered to you when it’s convenient or as a reminder. Achieve inbox zero.

Jott
Imagine if you could have a private secretary following you around 24/7 taking dictation from your thoughts. Turn your cellphone into a dedicated personal assistant with Jott. Register for free at Jott.com. Next, record a message for yourself or a reminder for someone else. The message can now be played back as a voice recording in Outlook, or can be automatically transcribed for you to read the note in your email.

Did I mention it’s free to sign up?

Sticky Notes
There’s something awfully strange about putting actual sticky notes on a keyboard or computer monitor. Haven’t we entered the paperless Information Age? There are a wide range of applications offering digital sticky notes that you can put on your desktop without actually adding to your paper clutter. They’re actually better than the real thing, because you can insert functioning hyperlinks and program them to pop up when you think you’ll need them.

A Wired World in Need of Organization
At the office and at home, we’re overwhelmed with information.

• 70 per cent of households have Internet access. Almost half have high-speed Internet connections.
• 51 per cent of adults think computers are now a necessity, not a luxury.
• 51 per cent of adults send and use email every day. About 30 per cent of it is “worthless”, such as junk mail or spam.
• 25 per cent of a professional’s day can be spent reading email.
• 63 million Americans do banking online.
• Almost three quarters of adults use cellphones.

Information courtesy of the Pew Internet & American Life Project