Get Organized Now: Tools to Keep You on Track

Need help getting organized in 2009?

This undated photo provided by WeightWatchers.com shows Weight Watchers Online. Weight Watchers...

This undated photo provided by WeightWatchers.com shows Weight Watchers Online. Weight Watchers Online subscribers and eTools members can search and calculate point values on their BlackBerry, iPhone or Windows Mobile 6 device. (AP Photo/WeightWatchers.com )

(AP)

There are plenty of new tools to help, says Standolyn Robertson, president of the National Association of Professional Organizers, which sponsors Get Organized Month every January.

Some suggestions from the experts on how to keep track of everything from schedules to finances.

SCHEDULES

There are lots of products to help with organizing schedules, from Web calendars to Go Mom! planners. Most professional organizers recommend an erasable wall planner and assigning a color to each family member.

Make sure the board is in a place where everyone can see it, says Alicia Rockmore, CEO of Buttoned Up Inc. in Los Angeles. Children over the age of 8 should write in their own schedules, so the board should not be too high, she said.

Lisa Zaslow, of Gotham Organizers, is a fan of the WhoMi On-the-Wall Family Calendar, http://www.whomi.com, which has separate color-coded lines for up to four family members.

Stephanie Vozza, founder of The Organized Parent, also suggests parents use a separate personal planner. Many people make plans when they are not at home, she says. Transfer pertinent information in the personal planner to the master calendar, she said.

For coordinating with people who don't all live in the same house, such as divorced parents, use a service like Google Calendar, says Karin Stewart, president of Daily Mastery in Hoboken, N.J.

Heather Cabot, 38, Web Life Editor for Yahoo! recommends http://www.cozi.com, a Web service that helps families manage schedules, shopping, to-do lists and chores.

GROCERY

There's no shortage of help in this department, with several Web sites and gadgets promising to make shopping easier. Create a list on http://www.scottcommonsense.com. Plan menus with help from http://www.thescramble.com, a site that includes recipes, shopping lists and cooking tips. Download coupons from http://www.Coupons.com.