Do you ever find yourself getting frustrated and overwhelmed at everything going on in your life? Maybe some of that frustration comes from feeling like you're not as organized as you would like. Whether it's trying to remember where you put your keys, or forgetting which folder you put a file in, the sense of frustration that comes with feeling like you're wasting time that could otherwise be productive and help you get your work done is only natural.
In modern life where there's an ever present pressure to increase efficiency and be more productive, the demands on our time don't seem to diminish. A response to this might is to want to rebel and completely switch off, but this doesn't get us closer to getting our work done, and can affect the quality of our downtime. Better to try to optimize our time devoted to work, so that we can fully enjoy our downtime.
Whilst it's a common argument that a bit of chaos is helpful for creativity, it's best to keep that chaos confined to whichever space you've designated for your creative endeavors. Otherwise that sense of frustration can easily develop into self-criticism which can negatively affect your mood to the point where you no longer want to continue with the task you'd set out to get done. I often find myself falling into this trap, which is why I've started looking for any help I can get when it comes to being better organized. Here's a few ideas I've picked up along the way, some of which might be useful for you too.
A Place For Everything - …and everything it its place, is a phrase that you may have heard once or twice before. Many chefs know the French equivalent of this phrase as 'mise-en-place', and in the context of kitchens refers to knowing where exactly every item is positioned. The concept behind the phrase is maintaining order over chaos by having a designated place for each item, which avoids any wasted time hunting for items.
More broadly, this concept refers to having a well prepared work environment before commencing your work, which helps to ensure optimal performance and even avoid accidents. The key to making this concept work is to immediately put items back in their designated place when you're done using them.
Depressurize - our brains didn't evolve to be flawless computers or faultless databases, yet we often prefer to try to remember something rather than just write it down. By writing it down, you can leave it for later and get on with what you were doing, without having the pressure of trying to remember every idea you want to revisit later on.
Once you've captured a thought, you never want to ever lose that information and have to try to recall it. This means going with the most secure way of capturing that information, and ideally one that is automatically backed up. Meaning that writing it down on a device is more secure than on paper, and a backup of that data on the device is more secure again.
You might even want to take consider using note taking apps that have been specifically designed to take advantage of cloud-based data retention. Just make sure that it uses a logical folder system, a good search function, and a naming convention that makes sense to you. Accessibility is also key, so if you much prefer using paper, then consider keeping that notebook with you at all times, so as to never lose an idea.
Avoid Clutter - at the risk of oversimplifying, it could be said that the more things you own, the more time you'll spend maintaining them in an organized way. So if you find yourself surrounded by a bunch of things you rarely use, then in might be time to reconsider if they're actually adding value for you. If it's not particularly useful or brings you some kind of joy, then it might end up putting an unnecessary burden on your time.
Label Well - try to make a habit of labeling things that you're not going to use frequently. That way, you won't have to spend time straining your brain to remember the purpose of that item. For instance, perhaps you have items stored away in drawers that you don't expect to use for a while and their purpose isn't immediately obvious. The time taken to label them could save you more time when you later need to use them. You'll thank yourself later.
Essentials Check-Up - regularly checking up on your basic essentials is a good way to stay organized. Basic essentials are the must-haves in your life that keep things ticking along. These can include things like food supplies, rent or mortgage situation, academic or career goals, and relationships. Basically anything that is critical to your physical and emotional well-being. Rather than assuming everything will be fine with regard to your essentials and likely being caught out by being inattentive, a little more attention in these areas can go a long way. Think of it as regular maintenance or a check-up.
Because these essentials can cause a big disruption if they go awry, it's well worth checking in on them regularly to see if any of them might need a little more attention. Establishing this routine will also help with anticipating any upcoming changes that could affect the status of these essentials. Once you've made a routine of this check-up, it'll start to come naturally and require less conscious effort. If you're unclear of what your various essentials might be, then jotting down a mind map is a good way to help visualize them.
Contingency Plan - contingency is just a fancy way of saying back-up plan. The power of this can't be understated, as it can mean the difference between being able to achieve your goals and getting completely stuck. Making a contingency plan can be as simple or as complex as you want, and can range from stocking spare parts or food items to having a second option in mind when doing your task planning.
If any of these ideas ring true for you, then hopefully they'll go some way to enriching your life by helping you to spend less time overall on organization. The benefits of organization are not always immediately obvious, but over time you might find yourself looking back gratefully knowing that the time you spent on organizing yesterday has saved you more time today.