To-Do lists only help if you actually know how to use them or if you develop your own style for them. With this article we want to help you to better organize your work day, to be more efficient, allowing you one more coffee break or maybe leaving early today. Sounds good to you? Here we go on our way to your perfect To-Do list. 

Paper or digital

Good question, and there’s no right answer. Your preference for paper or a digital To-Do list will depend on your work day, habits and personal preferences. We recommend paper versions as we are all working too much on the computer and phone. If you write your list by hand you will automatically remember what you wrote. 

But of course use recycled paper or better: Use the last letter you got in the post that wasn’t important, the envelope in which it came in or other used papers. If you want a proper structure use a ruler or paper with lines. 

The basic rules for your perfect To-Do list

Before finding your personal method you need to respect some rules. 

Write clearly: If you use paper for your To-Do lists, write clearly. There is nothing worse than wasting time trying to remember what you scribbled down during the last phone call and now you do not know what you wanted to express anymore. It’s better to use one or two more words such as“call Tom- Meeting Tuesday” instead of just “call Tom”. 

Highlight priorities: Do not forget to assure that you will always see at first glance what is most important. Much like in your job, your To-Do list needs to have things which are important, other urgent. Urgent things first, important always comes second. 

Goals and tasks

Keep in mind that goals are bigger steps that you want to achieve. But on a to-do list, you should only write down tasks. These are things you can finish in a reasonable time, like : prepare the presentation for Tuesday’s meeting. “Becoming a millionaire before 30” is a goal, but not a task. Keep a different list or a page in your agenda with your goals of the year or 5 years, etc. 

Assign due dates

To assure that you actually finish your lists, you should assign dates or deadlines to every task. This can be “before the end of the week”, or a specific date. No matter what format you prefer, having a realistic but not too long deadline is important. 

More than one list

One To-Do list will quickly create an overload of information. Either make several separate lists between job and private life, or between different work tasks, meetings etc. With several lists or groups you will keep the overview easier. Or write in different colours, this can work for shorter lists. 

Tick off what is done

The best moment of a To-Do list? – Of course the moment when things are done. Tick them off and celebrate things that are done. Have a coffee break, or eat a cookie. 

Of course, if you always open a bottle of champagne your co-workers will love you, but this is not a reasonable way to do it ! 

Be true to yourself

Probably the most important point : do not make lists to make lists!

This means that To-Do lists can be great to keep the overview and to motivate you or not to forget something, but do not make lists just to have lists. If you write every little thing down instead of doing it, you will waste time. In the beginning you will be motivated as you can tick off many things. But in the long-term this is not a technique which brings satisfaction. 

Develop your own way

It is on you to train and see what fits best for you. Create your perfect To-Do list. Use these tips to start to find out what works best for you. Take a paper and pen and start. If you want to have templates- here you go. We prepared some different formats and styles of lists for you. Just download your favourite. And keep in mind: if you print only use recycled paper or print on used paper ! 

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We want to present to you a list to help you select your next business planner.

What defines a business planner?

A planner for business is first and foremost a tool. It is made to help you write down all your meetings, little reminders and more.

At the same time your planner should be practical in all terms, to write in but to carry with you as well.

You can select between dated and non-dated models. We clearly prefer dated ones. It sounds practical at first to start at any moment of the year with your agenda, but either you follow the traditional timing from January to December, or you are a teacher and you start your planning in September. There is nothing in between this. So select either one. A non-dated planner will only cause issues and mixed up dates. Plus: Honestly, are you motivated and do you have time to spare to write down dates ?

Space to write

Most planners are not made for business as they want to impose a day on you. For example, your day starts at 7 in the morning and finishes at 7 in the evening. However, that’s not really the case. How many days do you start much earlier or later, and how often do you still have meetings, dinners or sport afterwards? We are sure that your answer is “pretty often”. What you need is space per day and no predefined times. Like this you can organize every day as you need. There might be days you start early, others late. There might be days with only one appointment, others filled with 3 per hour.

If you want to be successful in business you need flexibility.

Empty pages

And this leads us to the next point. You need empty pages!

All of us already used our business planner during meetings, or a phone call. We quickly take notes and again we lack space. So what do we do? We write on last week’s page or in the space for the weekend? Yes, we are all in the same situation.

What you need are empty pages to make a To-Do list, a quick reminder or some notes for meetings.

Material and where the business planner is made

These three rules are valid for any kind of paper product.

Select well in terms of material. You can either select a model which you can refill or an annual one. But in both cases you should pay attention to the paper used. Only buy FSC certified paper and if possible select “FSC recycled” which means that at least 70% of the paper is made of recycled sources. 30 % are industry leftovers and are not new either. Alternatives are FSC 100 assuring that it is made of only FSC certified and regulated forests, or FSC Mix which means that 30% are recycled sources and 70% from new certified wood.

The ink is important as well. There are still inks which are made of petrol and not natural, others which are made with animal-sourced ingredients, so not vegan. The best is to find products that are transparent about their inks, certify that they are vegan and natural and if they recycle the leftover ink in the printing process, it’s even better.

Further, look where your product is made. When it comes to paper products, the biggest producer in Europe is still Germany, but France is catching up. You find great small manufacturers, so please avoid buying products without origins stated, or even from Asia.

The little extra

Of course you will also select your planner by its look, by the little additional information and more. Feel free to select what you like as you will spend the next 365 days together. We hope that you will find your new tool for business and have a successful year. Buying business planners is a ritual you do over and over again, we hope success is as well!

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We are in September and this is the moment when we all go back to the office and back to school after the summer holidays. This is the time when you will check if your kids have verything they need in their school bags and you will probably also buy one thing or another for your office desk. But when it comes to office tools the question is often the  same : “are my office tools sustainable”?

We would like to help you with some criterias and also show you some amazing products answering exactly this question.

What are sustainable office tools

As explained in our blog before about sustainable fashion, cosmetics and more  it is not always easy to know what is really sustainable. The best thing would be to have items which you can use eternally and whenever you do not use them anymore can compost without any harm. In a perfect world we would make things without harming humans, animals and our planet. But unfortunately the world is not perfect and this means we need to compromise on some things.

But you can still find innovative and new options for your business.

Reuse as much as possible

Let’s talk about your little (yellow) papers, the Post-its. These are definitely a help not to forget anything, to remind you of urgent tasks and they are super practical in usage. The problem is that the usage is so easy, that too many post it papers are used every year. They are definitely a great office tool but for sure are not sustainable. How many are used exactly every year we cannot say, but already the biggest brand producing them sells every 50 billion each year. The problem is that they are made out of new paper without any tractability, using huge amounts of water and resources to produce them.

First versions with recycled paper

Even from the big players there are now some versions of recycled paper. But most are not and none of them have real certificates and are transparent of how they are done. The company prefers to jump on the lie of recycling and says: Great news all our products can be recycled and hand over the problem to the consumer.

Little fun fact: do you know why most of the sticky notes are yellow? – Simply because when the product was created in 1974, the yellow paper was in their factory an overstock product. They took what was there. So the beginning was sustainable …. But not for long.

WhyNote reusable post-its

But the good news is that there is an alternative: WhyNote is a brand from Switzerland and has worked exactly on this problem. With one solution: the endless memo post. They simply imagined a solution which you can use and reuse again and again. You can write with a special pen on them ensuring that your message will not get swiped away. To get it off use some water and then use them again.

WhyNote is a brand from Switzerland making their Post-its with FSC certified paper. They are manufactured in Italy, in a solar-powered factory, and then packaged in Switzerland by the Polyval Foundation, which contributes to the professional integration of people with disabilities.

Their solution is helpful, easy to use and fun existing in several colours and not just yellow. They are perfect for kids and adults from creative designers to your daily office routine.

Buy local

How often do you buy a pen or a pencil which looks great but you have no information of where it comes from and how they are made? Worse, many pens are thrown away every year. Only in the USA the number is estimated to be at 1.6 billion of pens per year go to trash. And most of them are made of plastics which end up in landfill or get burned. Pens are not sustainable when it comes to office tools. The solution is to buy a good pen from one of the established brands where you can simply buy a refill but keep the pen. The investment is worth it.

But how about pencils? Pencils sound like a better solution as they are not made of plastic. But did you know that per year 82.000 trees are cut down to make them? And again: Most times they are made in Asia or other places. You do not know where and how they have been made.

ALL THE WAYS TO SAY as a local brand

As you probably know, we at Bag Affair, are eco-feminist wanting equality as much as we want to protect our planet. And we fell  in love with the brand ALL THE WAYS TO SAY. This French brand was founded in 2015 by Claire Leina together with her husband Jean-Charles Da Rocha. Both living in the South of France; it is truly a family business. Their daughter, Tess ,is for now too young to work with them but let’s see when she will design the first item.

The brand offers office supplies from weekly planners to notepads and notebooks to pencils. All of them are made in France and with amazing graphical designs. You find a wide selection for the plant lovers  to feminist messages. [No surprise that we fell in love ☺ ]

Claire designs in Aquarelle which following is digitalized to get her designs on the products. The variety of designs is incredible and for sure part of their success as today the brand sells internationally.

But their sustainable engagement is certain as well. They donate 1% of all sales to the association “1% for the planet”,  they only work with FSC certified paper or fully recycled paper. The products are not in plastic either but in bioplastic from corn which can degrade fully. Their approach is just very complete!

Our favourite collection is the one with the feminist messages where you find amazing pencils, made in France and with strong messages, check the collection out here!

Choose recycled products

Paper is probably the one big problem when it comes to office supplies. To make your office tools more sustainable you need to pay attention to the type of paper you buy. The best thing to do is to buy only FSC recycled options.

This label assures that the forests are exploited in a sustainable way without overconsumption. Further, it divides into different categories showing how much recycled paper is in the product. The Forest Stewardship Council divides in the following 3 types of FSC:

recycled: containing at least 70% of recycled fibre and only 30% new.

Mix: made of 70% new fibres from FSC forests and 30% recycled.

100 : Made of 100% new fibres but as well 100% certified from FSC forests.

Pay attention to the label with the little tree and already assure that forest management has been done in a sustainable way.

Back to work

But now let’s all return to work! Use your memo notes again and again and write your next appointments in your new agenda with made in France pencils.

We would like to thank the partner brands for sharing their story with us and we will keep you updated about new innovations they bring.

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For today’s hardworking and ambitious women, choosing the right work bag was for a long time a real challenge. Since Bag Affair launched the business bag collection, you find your bag easily. Now you only need to know what to put in the bag.  

Our list of 16 items every working woman’s bag must have:

Electronical devices

In the 21^st century we all need our electronic devices to be mobile, to be reachable and to work for any place. We guess you carry your phone anyway with you, but there are more things to carry along.

1- Your laptop charger

Your bag is your office on the move. Organised, tidy, spacious, and of course reflects your style and personality. Every business bag for women must comfortably carry her laptop, but as well the charger and basic electronics. Don’t go without as otherwise your work day might end earlier than planned.

2- USB drive

Whenever you have a presentation or not, you should always take a USB drive with you – just in case. An easy work accessory to have your documents safely backed up, or to easily and quickly hand out your business portfolio to clients, press, etc. USB’s are an interesting accessory to also make an impression. For Bag Affair, we chose a French company to make our own personalized USB’s from walnut wood, just like our Bossy wood handle. Gets the brand message across nicely ! 

3- Earphones

On a train ride or a work trip, you can use your earphones to listen to audiobooks, or interesting Ted talks, or answer phone calls while your hands are free to take notes or hail a cab !

4- Portable battery charger

As indispensable as your makeup. Yes, we can’t imagine how we ever lived before Google, but when you’re running late for a meeting, this portable battery charger is a life saver to find the right directions on google maps! Here are some tips about batteries, use, recycling and ethical practices

All-time carry-ons

No matter what bag you will take with you, there are always these things you need to have with you. You know the thought leaving your house: “Phone, keys, wallet” – like to remind yourself what not to forget? Even in a business bag you need these essentials with you.

5- Keys

Scouring for keys at least 3 times a day, fishing for them at the bottom of the bag, where there’s no light outside to see through the mess? Yeah, we’ve all been there! It’s the very reason the interiors of Bag Affair bags are designed to save working women precious time, find their belongings easily -, while maintaining a classy and professional image.

6- Wallet

You need your wallet on you at all times. Stay tuned for our upcoming wallet designs for 2020. Compact, feminine and ultra-practical. We know you always need your wallet, so finding the right size, width, capacity for your cash notes, cheques, receipts, change, cards, is super important. A wallet should also not use too much space in your handbag, but still carry your important necessities – stay tuned!

7- Breath freshener

A busy day out for work, travel, lunch, dinner meetings – it’s always good to have mint (or any flavour) fresheners handy. Bad breath is just a turn off, and not just in business!

8- Tissue

For you, or for your colleague who always forgets her things, a tissue pack is handy for just about anything. One packed without plastic will be even more perfect!

9- Reusable Water Bottle

Stay well hydrated, to stay in shape and conquer your work day, meet all your objectives while remaining healthy. We don’t drink enough water during the day, so it’d be good to have a reusable non-plastic bottle always at hand, fitting into every bag to remember that water is just as important as coffee!

Write it down

Even though we live in a digital world now and we always have our smartphone close to us, keep in mind that notes in a meeting need a pen and paper. Or imagine the moment someone asks you for information to pass on written- easier to give a small paper than leaving your phone, right?

10- Pens

Guess what? Women at work use pens too! Not simple PINK pens, but just PENS. Most importantly, women need a place to hang their pens in their work bags – all their bags! Such details are not forgotten in our business collection.

11- Notebook & agenda

A notebook compact, practical, nicely designed for your personal notes, but also for work? We’ve got just the thing for you! Matabooks from Germany makes grass hay notepads, an alternative to tree-cut paper! When creativity meets ecology, wonderful things can happen.

12- Business card holder

Of course, a business card holder for your cards, a place in the bag to tuck it in nicely. But also think about all the business cards that you collect from your business meetings or networking evening? Well you have a place for that too, to keep cards separated and tidy.

The feminine needs in a handbag

Last but not least there are items our male colleagues will never think about, but you should when packing your business bag. The small items making the day more fluid, the items you might need to save you in some situations- you know what we are talking about.

13- Spare stockings

Our own tip from experience, those stockings always need backup! You never know if just before your important meeting a piece of stocking gets ripped! In our business bags there are compact pockets made to keep such intimate items away from view!

14- Intimate necessities

In those same side pockets you can keep your “secret” intimate belongings away from view, never falling out while reaching for your wallet! Some things are better kept out of reach.

15- Makeup basics

Yes, you need that face on point, but also don’t get too carried away J You don’t need to carry that hefty Jeffery star x Shane Dawson palette with you everywhere you go (or do you!), but basic travel size make up for the lady on the go which can fit in any work bag, is always good to have to freshen up your look.

16- Zipped wristlets

Oh these are indispensable! A zipped wristlet for your make-up, another for your toiletries, or another one for your emergency pack like band-aids, safety pins or spare thread and needle. You never know if a button falls off or a wardrobe malfunction happens! So never go on a work trip under prepared!

Looking at this list you see that this is only the beginning, for sure you have more items in mind and further ideas what you need. And this is why we created Bag Affair- we are tired of seeing business women with a handbag and a business bag, with two bags just because they did not find a suitable solution for them. We want equality at the workplace and this comes also with the right tools and items to help you through the day – Bag Affair is more than bags, we make business bags for women to carry their dreams!

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