Color Coding for Efficency and Organization

Have you ever struggled to keep things organized or to keep a large amount of information straight?


I've struggled with exactly that for years.  My entire life, in fact.
I've always been drawn to color-coding, but it wasn't until college that I found myself deliberately implementing it!


You see, I was taking physics, and my professor was VERY process oriented.
If you asked for help, the first thing he would ask you is, "Did you draw a picture?"
If you didn't draw a picture, you had better not try to get anything more out of him.  If you *did* draw a picture, he'd take a look at it and ask you, "Well, what about this force or that force?"


I failed my first physics test with a 46%...
I was devastated..
That's actually about the time I got my official ADHD diagnosis.  It was taking me a really long time to process the problems because so much was going on and there was so much information to keep track of!

I was starting with images like this, and as I set up my equations, things were getting lost!  So, of course, I would end up with the wrong answer!!

how many arrows in this picture?

It took a while, but I finally started doing things like this!

I ran into much fewer errors because I wasn't losing important forces when I set up my equations!  The different colors helped me keep them straight!

Have you ever had to work one of these problems??

Once I had the problem set up, I would use my red pen to circle the thing I was supposed to figure out so that it ended up on one side of the equal sign and everything else ended up on the other.

Yay for colors!!

I can assure you, I got many odd looks in class... However, I ended the semester with an A in the class!  Clearly, it helped me!

I've continued to apply color coding in other areas of my life, too.  All it does is help break up the huge amount of information that I'm trying to sort into manageable chunks!!

When I started the 21 Day Fix program, I was introduced to the "Portion Containers".  The nutrition plan breaks it down pretty simply.  Foods that coordinate with the different colored containers are listed in the nutrition guide.  If it fits in the container, it's a serving!

I can ensure that I'm getting well-rounded nutrition by making sure I get all of my prescribed containers in for the day!  No guess work! No calorie counting!  This approach to nutrition was MADE for me!!

My husband also ribs me for labeling things...  LOL

Then, I just have to get my daily workout completed.  I have those daily workouts listed in living room - where I do them. The clipboard hangs on the wall with a pen attached, and I just check it off once it's done!

Someone else has done the hard stuff.  They sorted through the information and created a well-rounded workout program and a thorough nutrition plan.  All I have to do is follow the color coding and check off the boxes!

What do you think?

Does a color-coded approach work for you?