Archive for reasons for disorganization

Why Am I Always Disorganized?

Posted by Carolyn on
 January 21, 2009
  ·  No Comments

When working with a new client, one of the first challenges I face is to understand why the client is disorganized. Our first visit together is an assessment session which helps me to understand the issues that they face and why they face them. Understanding reasons for disorganization is key to overcoming it. Without an understanding of the underlying isssues, it is very difficult to help an individual, family or business implement systems, structures, process and particularly behaviour changes to achieve a greater level of organization.

Julie Morgenstern, in her book Organizing from the Inside Out, offers a clear and simple discussion of the causes of clutter. She describes the three levels or reasons for disorganization and points out that “everyone struggling with disorganization suffers from at least one Level I cause, but may also be suffering from some Level 2 and 3 causes as well”. I have summarized them here for you so that you might have insight into your own reasons for disorganization.

  1. Level 1: Tehnical Errors. These include the simple mistakes in your organizing systems, such things as items not having a home, inconvenient storage, more stuff than storage space, or complex, confusing sytems that are too complicated for you to use.
  2. Level 2: External Realities. These include factors in the outside world over which you have little or no control. Understanding how to manage these factors will help you to create realistic expectations for yourself. They include unrealistic workload, the speed of life and technology, life or business in transition, uncooperative partners or limited space.
  3. Level 3: Psychological Obstacles. These include hidden, internal forces that keep you disorganized no matter how much you might wish to be otherwise. Understanding these issues can help you either work around or through them to seek greater organization. They might include a need for abundance, craving the thrill of creating order from chaos, having unclear goals and priorities, being afraid of success or failure, feeling the need to retreat, having a need for perfection or distraction, and having sentimental attachments to items.
Organizing Challenges
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What’s Holding you Back?

Posted by Carolyn on
 January 21, 2009
  ·  No Comments

When working with a new client, one of the first challenges I face is to understand why the client is disorganized. Our first visit together is an assessment session which helps me to understand the issues that they face and why they face them. Understanding reasons for disorganization is key to overcoming it. Without an understanding of the underlying isssues, it is very difficult to help an individual, family or business implement systems, structures, process and particularly behaviour changes to achieve a greater level of organization.

Julie Morgenstern, in her book Organizing from the Inside Out, offers a clear and simple discussion of the causes of clutter. She describes three levels of reasons and points out that “everyone struggling with disorganization suffers from at least one Level I cause, but may also be suffering from some Level 2 and 3 causes as well”. I have summarized them here for you so that you might have insight into your own reasons for disorganization.

  1. Level 1: Tehnical Errors. These include the simple mistakes in your organizing systems, such things as items not having a home, inconvenient storage, more stuff than storage space, or complex, confusing sytems that are too complicated for you to use.
  2. Level 2: External Realities. These include factors in the outside world over which you have little or no control. Understanding how to manage these factors will help you to create realistic expectations for yourself. They include unrealistic workload, the speed of life and technology, life or business in transition, uncooperative partners or limited space.
  3. Level 3: Psychological Obstacles. These include hidden, internal forces that keep you disorganized no matter how much you might wish to be otherwise. Understanding these issues can help you either work around or through them to seek greater organization. They might include a need for abundance, craving the thrill of creating order from chaos, having unclear goals and priorities, being afraid of success or failure, feeling the need to retreat, having a need for perfection or distraction, and having sentimental attachments to items.
Organizing Challenges
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Stressing over Garbage

Posted by Carolyn on
 December 18, 2008
  ·  No Comments

Clearing out a client’s office with them, particularly offices with lots of paper, can be an illuminating experience. Not so much for me, but for the clients.

Typically at the end of the day, we end up with several bags or boxes of recycling mostly paper. There are usually another couple of bags or boxes of garbage. Finally, there is an inevitable collection of material that belongs to other people in the company and will be distributed accordingly or taken to a supply/equipment/archive store room. The end result is a calm and organized work space the even feels more productive, 4 – 6 bags of recycling and garbage in the hallway and a stack of stuff that is doesn’t belong in the client’s office.

When clients are confronted with the debris in the hallway, the illumination begins; “I can’t believe I was so stressed about so much stuff that turned out to be not worth keeping or not even belonging to me!” Bingo.

Take a look around your office. Cluttered? Messy? Paper got you stressed?

I highly recommend a clear out and overhaul. You may be surprised at how much stress you are spending on garbage.

Office Organizing
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What’s Your Organizing Personality Type?

Posted by Carolyn on
 November 19, 2008
  ·  No Comments

Are you visual person susceptible to the noise of many different items of different sizes and colours on a shelf?

Are you a tosser who like to “toss” items into a storage bin/basket/file/drawer?

Are you auditorily inclined? Do you find yourself talking to yourself all the way through the next year’s budget preparation complete with a “There, that’s done for a year!” when its complete?

Much the same way we have preferences in the way we process information and respond to new opportunities, we all have organizing personalities. Your organizing personality is related to your learning preferences and generally falls into the categories of visual, auditory, or kinesthetic. There are however, many other ways to organize. Some people have a tendency to organize by time.

Understanding what your personality will help you to tailor your oranizing systems and process to match your personality. A mismatch wil lead to systems which don’t get used and process which fall apart with the resulting disorganization that ensues.

To determine your personality, whatch and listen to how you organize at your desk. Do you talk out loud (auditory)? Do you like to sort your files by colour (visual)? So you like to sort by date? Do you prefer all your surfaces to be clear but don’t care about the inside of your drawers or cupboards? Do you need everthing out where you can see it (visual). Do you like to get up and file or toss things in your office (kinetic)?

Organizing Strategies
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A Clear Vision for your World

Posted by Carolyn on
 November 11, 2008
  ·  No Comments

It seems the longer I work as a professional organizer, the less organizing is about the stuff and the more it is about stuff behind the stuff.

What is your vision for your life? What is your vision for your home? What is your vision for your favourite place in your home? Do you have a vision?

If we don’t have a clear understanding of what we desire for ourselves it is very hard to get there – sort of like that preverbial trip, not knowing where you are going and no map to get there.

Before you start your next organizing project, develop a really clear vision of what the space, room, area, corner or cupboard will look, feel, smell, sound or function like when you are done. If you are more kinetic than visual, try imagining what the space or place will feel like and how you will function in it. Likewise, if you are more auditorily inclined (listening) try describing outloud how the space will look, feel or function.

Start with a clear vision – its much easier to know when you get there.

Organizing Strategies
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