It's About a Level of Order

The Other Side of Organized
Finding Balance Between Chaos and Perfection
by Linda Samuels, CPO-CD

I recently read the book The Other Side of Organized by Linda Samuels, CPO-CD (http://www.theothersideoforganized.com/). I was totally sold on this book when I read the back cover, where Linda explains that organizing is “about finding a level of order that’s comfortable for you”.

Right on Linda! I have long believed that people are not born organized, but we are born with a certain level of comfort with order. Some people are comfortable in the chaos that clutter creates. They may be more creative and/or relaxed in this type of environment. Then there are some people who are more comfortable with less clutter and the order that being organized creates.

As life circumstances change, so might your ability to deal with your surroundings. That’s when working with a professional organizer can help get you back on track.

Play to Your Strengths

I am a pretty organized person. I like things that way. With organization being one of my strengths, I manage our household. My husband has average organizing skills. He does fine in the everyday, but is happy to delegate the household management to me because he realizes it one of my strong points.

There is one organizing task that he does far better than me. It is packing the car for a trip. I don’t know why. I am a very visual and space oriented person, so it amazes me that I can’t pack the trunk with the same ease that I can pack the dishwasher.

Packing the car is one task that I gladly delegate to him. I make sure everything makes it to the car, and then I step back and let him do his thing. It amazes me every time. He manages to get everything in with ease.

It’s nice to know that that responsibility is his and I don’t worry about it. That’s why I say, play to your strengths! Do what you are good at and delegate the things that frustrate you or trip you up. By delegating the packing of the trunk I can start a trip out feeling great and with all my stuff packed nicely in the trunk!

Time Management

We are all so busy that projects and chores stay on our To-Do Lists for days, maybe weeks, at a time. What are those tasks that never make it to the top of your list? Are they things that you don't want to do or don't know how to do? Where are they on your list of priorities? Be honest with yourself. Give yourself permission to delegate those To-Dos to someone else. Can you trade some chores? Maybe a friend would hem those pants for you in exchange for your driving her kids somewhere. Is there a fellow employee who would "trade" tasks with you to get those jobs done in a more enjoyable fashion?

By scheduling the items on your To-Do List on your calendar you are more likely to complete them. I think of it as a small promise to myself. Breakdown larger projects into smaller chores. Spread out those chores over several days, and in no time your will see progress.

Be conscious of time wasters like watching television, talking on the phone, and surfing the Internet. Try to limit yourself by setting a timer or by keeping an eye on the clock when doing these things.
Don't forget to schedule some time just for you, to learn something new, read a book, or just relax. We are so busy these days that scheduling downtime is a must.

Work at making small changes and be prepared to juggle things because time is always moving and so will your schedule.

Procrastination

I heard from fellow organizer, Tara Donohue Rudo, these sobering statistics about procrastination.

• An average employee has 37 hours of uncompleted work on their desk.
• Executives spend 7.8 hours per week in meetings and 108 minutes daily reading and responding to emails.
•  An average employee spends 3 hours per week sorting through piles in their office.
• They also spent 6 weeks per year searching for lost documents (1 hour per day).

 Thanks Tara.

A Question of Priorities

This made me laugh!

 

 
It's from Arca Max Publishing.

Paper Shredding Event Coming Soon!

There will be a Paper Shredding Event at PC Recycler, Saturday, February 13, 2010, from 10am to 2 pm.

PCRecycler, Inc.
4005 Westfax Drive
Chantilly, VA 20151

Now is a great time of year to purge your files of unwanted and unneeded paper. In order to complete the task, remember to shred any items with personal information, including social security numbers and banking information. While sorting you may find that you have a lot more paper to shred than time to do it. There is a quick and easy answer.

PC Recycler has partnered with TrueShred to offer paper shredding drop-off. So, bring your medium sized boxes (Regular Bankers Box) of sensitive papers and for just $10 per box watch the shredding process while you wait.

Events are held the second Saturday of each month, rain or shine, from 10:00AM - 2:00PM. Events are held at PCRecycler, Inc., 4005 Westfax Drive, Chantilly, VA 20151. To learn more about electronics recycling, visit www.pcrecycler.net or you may call TrueShred at (888)750-TRUE.

PCRecycler, Inc. performs the following services for clients throughout the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area:

• Computer/Electronic Recycling
• Hard Drive Shredding (On-site or Off-site)
• Tape Shredding
• Degaussing
• Data Destruction to NSA standards

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