When it comes to making time to get organized, let’s face it, it can be hard to get motivated. As much as we crave order, there always seem to be much more valuable uses of our time. Digging through piles, closets and shelves filled with old stuff you haven’t looked at (or used) in years takes time, energy and focus.
Many moons ago, I loved to cook. It was fun to experiment in the kitchen—to have a vision for something exotic (baklava) or even ordinary, like minestrone, and make it happen. But somewhere along the way, after having a child, and launching my business, cooking and all the prep involved with it became an exhausting chore.
You know what’s great about summer? Time. The days stretch, the kids don’t have homework, and the sun stays out till 9:00pm. We’re more relaxed, have more energy and more time to spare.
This summer think about using the extra time on your hands to finally declutter — to rid yourself of all the stuff weighing you down, getting in your way, and stealing your energy. Tackle just one category at a time- papers, email, supplies, books and digital files, and don’t feel obliged to do everything. Decluttering even ONE category of items will pay huge dividends is freed up space, time and energy.
First, define your treasures. Before getting rid of anything, consider your work goals and roles to assess what items will help you and those that won’t. When facingintimidating piles and drawers., ask yourself—if all this were gone tomorrow, what would I miss? Write down the list that comes to mind (e.g. original signed contracts, key contact info, handwritten notes) on a big sticky note, and post that on the wall of the area you are about to declutter. This will guide you in separating treasure from trash.
Create a No-Brainer Toss List. Minimize the number of decisions you have to make by creating guidelines for stuff you don’t have to think twice before shedding. Immediately chuck old manuals & reports that have since been updated, documents that someone else has the original of, and you can replace if necessary, printouts from the web, out of date information, duplicates, etc.
Check retention guidelines. Going through your legal files? Call your lawyer. Old payroll? Ring the accountant. Remember that 80% of what we file we never look at again. So be sure that it’s necessary for you to keep anything and everything that will take up valuable space in your file drawer. Don’t save things you “might” need someday if they are easily replaced.
Aim for a radical release. Once you’ve separated the treasures from trash…get the trash OUT. If you have objects to donate, arrange delivery to a charity. If you have large volumes of papers to shred, don’t let them sit around for months cluttering up your space (and messing with your mental clarity). You should be able to measure the space gained in pounds (removed 100 pounds of excess supplies from the storage closet)—or inches (removed 50 inches of files…).
The ultimate payoff? Clarity, “lightness of being,” and an energized space that brings out your most authentic, engaged, professional self.
Lots of people are familiar with the phrase yo-yo dieting, but probably not with “yo-yo organizing”. It’s a phrase I coined as a professional organizer, observing the tendency to approach organizing haphazardly. We procrastinate until we can’t take the mess, and then dive in with a huge burst of determination, only to abandon the project halfway through when we run out of steam.
Sadly, being “partially” organized doesn’t last—the unfinished portions create blind spots in your system and doubt in your mind about what goes where. Before long you backslide into the same state of chaos you began with, feeling demoralized. Just like yo-yo dieting.
While it’s easy to see the benefits of being organized, it can be hard to justify the time it takes to create a system. It always takes longer than we think. We experience decision fatigue. We feel antsy to get back to life.
Yet, the very PROCESS of organizing —the journey of sifting, sorting, deciding and discovering, is highly beneficial. Organizing is an act of studying, uncovering and curating knowledge–often reacquainting you with vital information that had receded from your memory. In one famous study on retention, participants only remembered 54% of what they’d read the day before, and only 21% two weeks later. Organizing is powerful.
Patrick is a family lawyer who understands that a large part of his job is what he calls psychological warfare. He knows that when he spends time upfront preparing his cases well—i.e. taking lots of notes, typing them up, printing them out, categorizing them and filing them in a binder with clearly labelled tabs for each aspect of each case, he’s positioned himself for success. Walking into a courtroom, organized binder tucked under his arm, he’s aware with great quiet confidence that he’s already swayed the conversation. Especially when he sees the opposing side pull out a sloppy accordian folder crammed with sticky notes and yellowing legal paper. It’s not just the artifact itself –his smart binder— that creates the power, but the very actions that went into assembling it. He has all the facts top-of-mind and can recall details much more quickly than his disheveled, disorganized opponent.
Lonnie was a newly appointed senior executive for a Cosmetics company who inherited a closet full of her predecessors files, with no baton-passing. The company needed her to hit the ground running, so she couldn’t make the time to sort through all the files that’d been left behind. She worked in chaos for months, piling her own stuff on the desk and surfaces, worried she was missing some critical piece of knowledge. Finally, she made the time to clear out her predecessor’s files, sifting through every document to make sense of it all. She unearthed valuable reports and contact info, eliminated obsolete material, organized the information and gained true insight into how the job was done. For the first time since starting, Lonnie felt energized, confident and on top of her job. She gained a bolt of clarity on the unique contribution she could make. The process unlocked her creativity, confidence and contribution.
As knowledge workers, we are paid for our ideas, our ability to make good judgements, to be thorough and on top of our game. Ending the yo-yo organizing cycles takes time, yes, but the journey itself will yield huge payoffs, every step of the way.
Decluttering is essential to clear the decks to make an energetic space and to make room for our current and future works. Click on the video below for tips on how to successfully declutter!
It’s what on inside that counts—but appearances sure make a difference. I learned this the hard way several years ago. Okay, it could’ve been worse, but my ego took a hit: Before releasing my first hardcover business book, my agent suggested I get a makeover.
After the initial sting (was there something wrong with the way I looked?!), I went to see a stylist. I was shocked when he suggested I upgrade my perfectly-professional-but-generic suits to designers like Armani. How could I justify that expense? But he made the case that owning even 3 designer suits would serve me better that 15 lower priced ones. Taking a pure leap of faith, I went for it.
To my genuine surprise, upgrading my wardrobe transformed my business. In those elegant threads, I had a whole new presence. Whether walking onto a stage to give a speech, or into a client meeting to close a deal, I was stunned at the attention and respect I seemed to command before I had even opened my mouth. When we look better, we feel better, and carry ourselves better. The suit—and the confidence and energy it gave me—projected a powerful message, Here’s a competent, successful person you can trust.
The results were tangible. My revenue tripled in a matter of a few years. I attracted bigger deals. I won more successful clients. The Armani and Chanel investment paid for itself many, many times over.
Wardrobe isn’t the only tool in our arsenal of making a good impression. Both being organized and looking organized can impact our professional success. My clients view their organizational tools and systems as confidence building “battle gear.” Trial lawyers who appear in court with elegant, high-end binders containing all their case material arranged within perfectly labelled tabs make a tremendous impression on the judge, opposing lawyer and jury. There are accountants who, organized binders in hand, have intimidated auditors with their preparedness; I’ve even heard of the right organizational tools shortening audit times because the accountant looks so in control.
As professionals in the knowledge economy, we’re responsible for synthesizing and referencing a massive amount of information. Our clients, bosses and colleagues are relying on us to take care of them. When our knowledge is contained in beautiful, visibly organized materials, it projects to everyone in the room “I have you”, “I’ve got this.” Nothing feels better than when a client or boss trusts us, and nothing feels worse than being second-guessed.
For better or for worse, presentation matters. And sometimes, in suits, binders, and life, spending a little extra on the “Armani” option pays big dividends.
