Today’s tip is about organization.

I work with a number of different notebooks, computer programs and websites. I have a hard time keeping track of what I have done in each case.

With a three-ring notebook, you can tear the pages out and put them in a binder in whatever order you wish.

With a composition book, that’s not so easy. This post explains a type of organization for bound notebooks (called the Highfive notebook in the example). The method puts the index in the back, so it doesn’t matter if you start writing information right on the first page. Otherwise, if you must have the index in the front, leave 2 or 3 pages blank at the front for the index, then start writing the information. You can number the pages, as well.

In the example of the Highfive notebook, instead of recipes, think of surnames. Each surname goes on a line and you highlight the edge of that line, and also the corresponding spot on the page where you have written down information about the person(s) with that surname. You can even color-code them if you like. Then as you go through the book, you mark each page the same way. You will be able to look at the edge of the book and see all the pages with information about Smiths, for example.

As the example states, you can mark multiple places on the edge of the page. So if you have a Smith who married a Jones, you can mark both “Smith” and “Jones” spots on the edge of that page.