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Escaping The Clutter Trap - 5 Steps For Increasing Productivity And Decreasing Stress
   
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Complete Self Acceptance
One of the most important parts of Personal Mastery is 'Self Acceptance'. This is much more than the usual 'self esteem' issues that we hear about, although that's a part of it .....
Do you feel overwhelmed by all the "stuff" in your life? Magazines and journals youve never finished reading, clothes you never wear, e-mail you havent responded to, or photographs you intended to share with friends or colleagues? Are you embarrassed to invite people to your home or office because they will see the way you live or work? Do you rush around when someones coming to hide the evidence?One of the most important parts of Personal Mastery is 'Self Acceptance'. This is much more than the usual 'self esteem' issues that we hear about, although that's a part of it .....
Is clutter putting a strain on a relationship thats important to you? Do you argue with your spouse about what to keep, or spend time reassuring your colleagues that you know what everything is?
Do you waste time looking for things you really need documents you already created, or the keys or receipt you had in your hand five minutes ago?
Is your home or office just too crowded? Does clutter take valuable space and leave you feeling overwhelmed? If you answered "Yes" to any two or more of these questions, you are caught in The Clutter Trap a state of cumulative disorder which diminishes your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, or financial health. There are more than a few people reading this article right now who are feeling distressed by the clutter in their lives. There are more than a few whose relationships are drained by arguments about clutter. There are more than a few who would panic at a letter from the IRS announcing an audit. "But wait," you may be saying.
"Isnt clutter the inevitable condition of living in a complex world with never enough time, never enough space. Always too much to be responsible for?"
Or maybe youre saying, "Im creative, and creative people are just naturally messy."
Or "Ive got more important things to do than worry about clutter."
Heres the truth! Clutter is NOT inevitable. It is NOT synonymous with creativity. It is NOT a precondition to life on earth in this time. You arrived on earth without clutter and you will certainly leave without clutter. The question is how you live in between!
Lets put it another way: To know if you are organized, ask three questions:
1. Does it work?
2. Do you like it?
3. Does it work for others?
Tonto's Lament
Most people answer Yes to the first question, hesitate on the second, and will admit the answer to the third is No, but rationalize by saying it doesnt really make any difference. But does it? What will be the results if something happens to you, or to one of the people in your organization? In reality clutter, and the resulting inability to find the right information at the right time, can, and often does, have a negative impact on everyone who lives or work in that environment.I approached the cell where they were holding Tonto. I had some feeling of fear at theprospect of being locked up in a 6x8 cell with the man who shot the Lone Ranger. Theguard asked me if .....
Our mission is to assist individuals, families, and organizations to create and sustain a productive environment so they can accomplish their work and enjoy their lives. What is a Productive Environment? Think of this way: Its an environment in which everything supports who you are or who you want to be. The more clutter, the less likely you, or the people around you, will be able to find what they need effortlessly. Weve developed a program called The Productivity QuickStart which guarantees a ten percent increase in productivity, based on the premise that your ability to accomplish any task or goal is directly related to ability to find the right thing at the right time.
During the past 25 years, weve distilled a five-step process you can use to create and sustain a productive environment which we call The Productive Environment Solution:
1. Design your vision.
2. Eliminate your excuses.
3. Commit your time.
4. Select your tools.
5. Maintain your success.
Notice the common word in those five steps? Your! The key to escaping the clutter trap and creating a productive environment is linked to discovering and implementing what works for YOU not what worked for your mother, or what your colleague thinks you should do. In other words, organizing is an art! Design your vision
Have you ever noticed how much you seem not to notice about your everyday environment? Look around your office and youre likely to see many things that have become invisible to you on a daily basis because you trained yourself not to look at them.
Clutter is postponed decisions. The first step to creating a productive environment is to decide what you need to foster your best and highest experience. It is impossible to even define our own clutter if we do not hold a clear picture of who we are, or what we are about.
A photographer had on-going dreams about living in a white tower with glass windows, while her real home was buried in clutter accumulated over 30+ years. When we focused on her love of the arts, letting go of the unsightly clutter became less painful, and even freeing.
Eliminate your excuses
Banish all temptation to blame the condition of your surroundings on circumstances or people around you. I dont have enough space often proves to be inaccurate after one of our office clean-out days. Choose to work with what youve got.
A book agent discussing the idea of a book on the subject of clutter commented, Some of us are just slobs. Only if you want to be. Creating a pleasing and productive environment requires a process. If you honor the process, you will succeed. While its impossible to force someone else to eliminate clutter, weve never met anyone who couldnt get rid of their own.
Commit your time
Recognize that the time you invest in creating and sustaining a productive environment will pay returns every single day of your life in your personal and professional life.
One association executive recalls arriving at work every day for five years chastising himself because there was no room in his office to hold a meeting. Finally, in desperation, he hired an organizing consultant to help. In six hours, the boxes hed paid to move to three different offices were replaced with a small conference table.
How long is this going to take and how much is it going to cost? is the first question asked by potential clients. The answer: The longer you wait, the longer its going to take and the more its going to cost.
Select your tools
Find the perfect equipment to match your style of operating and arrange it efficiently and aesthetically. Barbaras father often told her "half of any job is having the right tool." Of course, he really meant, "using the right tools." Many people, for example, fail to invest the time or get the training to use the organizing tools that already exist on every computer.
One client had Post-it notes stuck all over her office to remind her of places to go and things to do. She swore that she could never use a calendar. "I just hate those ruled lines and the thought that every hour of every day needs to be so structured. We found a unique calendar with a red leather cover and lots of open space on the pages. Within three weeks she called to say she didnt know how she had gotten along without it. "It doesnt control me I control it! Shell never convert to a Palm Pilot, but she finally found the tool she could love. What you love, you will use. What you use, streamlines your life and work.
Maintain your success
A major excuse for not getting organized is It never lasts anyway! Heres good news. Once you accomplish the first four steps, maintaining your success is not difficult.
Remember those three questions earlier in this article? Does it work? Does you like it? Does it work for everyone? This ever- changing world requires asking those questions frequently. If the answer is No, it doesnt mean what you did in the past was wrong. The situation has just changed. This five-step process is most powerful when it becomes a way of life.
Do you have difficulty getting rid of clutter? How much of your clutter is there because It might be useful someday.! Several years ago, a colleague made a statement that influenced our work today significantly: Sometimes overresponsibility becomes irresponsibility. How much could that unused furniture or equipment benefit a nearby school or a community service group? What about that cane from your broken ankle eight years ago? What about that flute nobody has played for thirty years? Its much easier to let go of something when you know someone else will benefit.
How often we hear But my real problem is other peoples clutter! How do I change them? One client complained, At work people give me stuff I have to keep. I dont have a choice, and at home, other peoples stuff drives me crazy.
The shortest path to frustration and failure is trying to change other people. Your most powerful path to sustained success is to start with yourself, and let those around you be affected by observing your increasing calm, focus, and productivity. If all your tactics of the past have failed, perhaps its time to try a new approach. Tell yourself a new story about the amazing level of power and control you have over one person in the universe you. Say to yourself I dont allow anything to rob me of my freedom to create the results I want in my life. In other words, change what you can (you). Accept what you cannot change (everyone else), and waste no energy fighting the difference. Through the years, we have discovered an interesting phenomenon. Emotional loss, such as the death of someone close, loss of a dream, or frequent loss of physical belongings, can often impact peoples desire to hold onto physical things. One woman who had been fighting with her husband over his clutter for years got dramatic results when she told him, You know, I never really understood how much you want to keep all this stuff. Lets figure out how we can keep it. She came a few days later to find the garage filled with boxes he was donating to a local thrift store.
Very few people are truly impervious to their environment. Most of us just pretend we are. We make promises to take care of the clutter later. In the meantime, we walk around as incomplete, diminished versions of the fully resourceful, fully generous people we could be. The world needs the best you have to give and if your best is smothered in clutter, we all lose. Its a great campaign. Were all in it together. Good luck.