Always Almost Organized: How to Organize your Life
Being organized means not feeling anxious, bombarded and overwhelmed by seemingly endless tasks. It results a lack of frustration and disappointment (which in this case, is not a bad thing). It leads to having a worry and stress-free life, with lots of time to spend on anything but organizing. In a nutshell, being organized means you have some sense of control over you life and the things in it. It also means that you have a little bit of sanity left. If you are one of the unfortunate already-or-almost-insane disorganized people, then read on to save your sanity today!
With the advanced technology we have these days you can record ideas or notes onto your handheld cell phone. It is quick, easy and it takes up less of your time and space than having a handbag full of post-it notes does. It’s easily accessible and you will always have it with you.
However, if you are as last century as I am, you will love keeping a notebook with you wherever you go. I am an avid list-maker. I always have a notebook with me to scribble down ideas and thoughts, and to keep my ever growing to do list handy. A notebook can be your new best friend; you just have to know how to use it.
Keeping a notebook with you will enable you to complete smaller tasks while out-and-about. If you don’t like carrying it around all day, try using post-it notes: they are ideal for making on-the-go something-to-remember notes. Stick the notes where you spend most of your time, as long as they keep staring you in the face until you complete the tasks written on them. Once complete, take them down immediately and throw them away. If you don’t, you’ll pile up on clutter.
Yes, we all have it, we all hate it, and we all want to get rid of it, but it’s not that simple. You either do not have any clutter, or you are knee deep in it. Our moods, thoughts, and feelings are all influenced by our surroundings. If you are surrounded by clutter, that is how you will feel: cluttered, anxious and bombarded with piles and piles of paper and files and everything in between.
Eliminate clutter by completing a task as soon as you get it: stop it before it starts, “prevention rather than cure”. Don’t let it pile up to form a mountain that you can’t overcome.
But when you are ready to start breaking down that mountain, start small and set realistic goals: you don’t want to overwhelm yourself. Sort out one room at a time rather than trying to take on the whole house all at once. Break a big, dreaded task down into smaller steps and concentrate on completing each step before going onto the next, and before you know it, you will have completed one of the tasks you probably hate doing the most. Goal setting is an important aspect to effective organizing and it will set you on the fast track toward anti-clutter success!
All of the above are vital building blocks in your quest toward being organized, but the foundation is to try to eliminate procrastination.
“Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin”. The essence of procrastination is very well reflected in this quote by Victor Kia. Procrastination prevents us from recognizing and taking the opportunities offered to us daily, and there is no easy way to eliminate it, except for hiring a Personal Assistant, which not all of us have the resources to do. If you are a life-long procrastinator, like me, you probably know these words all too well: “I’ll do that tomorrow, it’s not so urgent” or “I’m not in the mood for this right now”. But tomorrow turns into next week. And next week turns into next month or even next year. And next year turns into never.
Eliminate excuses and resolve reasons that keep you from living an organized and healthy life. Categorize, prioritize and organize! Set goals and deadlines and try your best to meet them. And remember: “Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein” – H. Jackson Brown.
By: Mariska van Wyk