Putting Ideas in Order

By Kelly Carr
September 23, 2008

The crisis on Wall Street has offered endless story possibilities, ideas that are as fast paced as the news itself.

From major national and international news angles to important local stories detailing consumers’ struggles, it is easy for business reporters to lose track of ideas and even feel overwhelmed, but by staying organized we can keep abreast of all the intriguing follow-up and enterprise story ideas. There has never been a better time than now to implement a process for tracking your story ideas.

There are a variety of ways to get organized, but the key is to figure out what technique works best for you. The most important point is that you simply establish a system. Trust me, it will make you a much better reporter.

For years, my organizational skills were pretty scary. Each day, I would scribble little notes with story ideas all over the place, some in random notebooks, and others on the back of business cards or scrap pieced of paper. Not surprisingly, I often lost track of these quick scribbles, sometimes re-discovering a key lead I had jotted down months after the chance to follow the story was gone. I couldn’t remember important anniversary dates. Names of community members with important stories to tell were lost in my junk pile.

Tired of missing opportunities, I started writing my story ideas down on notes and sticking them on my desk. Soon enough, my desk was almost taken over in a sea of yellow. If I had to follow a story on a particular date (say the anniversary of a business opening), I put the sticky on that calendar date. Then I began to separate them into categories: enterprise, narrative, breaking, etc. Ideas were everywhere, all around me on little sheets.

Not only did the system help me remember what to follow up on, it gave me a sense of accomplishment. Each time I finished reporting on a story, I would tear down the corresponding note and throw it away. I also was inspired to keep going since I could literally see, in the notes in front of me, that there were still so many stories I needed to tell.

Sounds easy enough, right? But you would be surprised how many reporters don't have a simple system down. So many story ideas get lost, tips get forgotten and readers suffer from sub-par coverage. For business reporters, identifying key techniques to organize enterprise opportunities and track important story ideas is more crucial than ever.

Need a system? Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• I knew a reporter who used to staple sheets of paper together where he constantly jotted down story ideas. Another used note cards organized in an alphabetical system either by source name, topic or geographical location. Each time a story was finished, the story ideas were crossed off the paper ; the note card was dumped in the trash. Sure this seems simple and elementary, but both reporters rarely lost a lead and were able to refer back to story ideas from months or years earlier when something new developed. Having all your ideas organized and in one place helps to easily connect the dots in your coverage area when a big story unfolds.
• Create a notebook, binder or filing system specifically for story ideas. Separate the sections by months or dates. When you cover an important story, mark it down in the time period it occurred. And photocopy clips of your stories and file them with your ideas. This system will make tracking your coverage of a particular issue a breeze and it also allows you to plan for anniversary stories and updates.
• Go digital. Create an Excel spreadsheet to track story ideas or utilize sticky note software to post idea lists on your desktop. Or start taping voice reminders of story ideas as they pop into your mind. Set cell phone or email calendar alerts for anniversary stories or key follow-up dates.

Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism