It’s the new fad, and everyone is doing it – getting organized!Just look at all the media attention this topic has attracted. From best-selling books offering the latest tips on how to manage your time and handle your environment to the hottest television shows instilling visual reminders of what our lives will look and feel like once we are all neat and tidy.
From de-cluttering your wardrobe to whipping your office into shape, statistics do show that your level of stress decreases once you clear out and clean up. Actually, it’s been proven that organization increases your efficiency and productivity, thereby making you feel more self-confident.
Just the possibility of not losing your keys again is motivation enough for some to want to get organized. The idea of being able to find things again is like a breath of fresh air. For many of us, just the thought of being able to capture all of that lost time and actually do the things that we want to do is a major incentive to get organized.
Taking Notes
Oh, how much fun it is to make a joke out of those hyper-organized, Type-A’s who make their lists, prioritize what’s urgent versus important, and check off each completed item, task by task. But here’s the “inside scoop” as our caffeine achieving, list-making friends might say: other people may joke, but the truly organized individual reaps the rewards from those lists by breathing easy. The equation is simple: Get it out of your head, put in on paper, and you will experience less stress.
We have all had those sleepless nights where our mind races from thought to thought. How do we keep it quiet so we can fall back to sleep? The solution is easy–make a list. Putting it down on paper allows you to release what’s keeping you up to begin with, from the mundane tasks of daily living such as the dentist appointment, right up to the creative ideas you plan on putting into action for fun or financial gain. All of these things need to get out of your head where they become a kind of clutter and distraction. Think of it this way: once you put it on paper, you are halfway done getting your to-do list accomplished.
Letting Go
Just like clutter of the mind is stressful, so is physical clutter. Walking into an environment that is filled with clutter is an automatic emotional drainer. Your energy becomes lower and you begin to feel tired or even depressed.
Although the degree of people’s clutter can drastically vary, why allow an emotional zapper to take over your life? Fight back and regain control. For some of you it may begin with clearing off your desk, while others may require more time for cleaning up the entire house.
If not having enough space is one of your challenges, select tools and products that create homes for your excess stuff, such as ottomans that hide blankets and board games. In this case, out of sight is not necessarily out of mind.
Acceptance
Let’s face it, not everyone is going to be the next Martha Stewart. Some people just like it messy and have adapted to this lifestyle. But if you think that some of these tips and ideas will help you feel better, then they are worth a try. One way to find out for yourself is monitor your progress. As you begin to de-clutter and get organized, re-assess how you feel. Once you are on your path, you should start to feel calmer and in more control.
