The Organization Fanatic

by Jackie Damrau, Contributing Editor

Many of you who know me know that I am super-organized. Or, do I just give you that impression? Many of us are super-organized at work but maybe not so organized at home. I am probably more organized at work (can't stand desktop clutter) and partially organized at home. While growing up, my parents always told me, "A place for everything and everything in its place!" This aphorism has never steered me wrong. Even so, I've fallen victim to missing keys or cell phone on occasion.

Have you ever had a bad day on your way home from work, when you forget something important? This happened to me one evening many years ago. I forgot to pick up my son from daycare. I drove to the local McDonald's, looked in the back seat to get him out, and realized that I had driven past the daycare and hadn't stopped to pick him up. Needless to say, I had to go back and get him. What happened to my organized brain?

Organizing your Life

Organization is the key to a less stressful life. Now life will always have its ups and downs, trials and tribulations, joys and turmoil. However, you can put a small amount of organization into your life by adopting some of Regina Leeds' (author of "The Zen of Organizing: Creating Order and Peace in Your Home, Career and Life") suggestions:

1. Eliminate every paper you do not need each day.
2. Schedule 15 minutes at the end of every day to file papers.
3. In the office, allow yourself a section of your file drawer for personal categories, so those papers won't accumulate on your desk.
4. Clean out your files one by one in an organized fashion. For instance, sort through one file a day and by the end of the month you'll have cleaned at least 20 files.
5. Purge files from your system when they are outdated. Do this at least once a year.
6. Archive files that are inactive, but important. Keep those in storage binders or on CDs that are clearly identified and labeled. It will make it easy to find and access the material if you need it later.
7. Prioritize! It's better to accomplish three very important projects in a day than to finish 20 low-priority tasks.

Leeds also says that we should ask ourselves this question: "Do I keep this, or do I get rid of it?" At home, this is probably an easy decision. At work, the decision may be more difficult. My advice on disposing of files at work is to follow your company record retention policy, if one exists. With companies like Enron in the news recently, many have instituted a records retention policy. Become familiar with yours and stay organized.

You can even use this question when looking at your wardrobe or storage shed. Do you have any really outdated clothes that you will never fit into? Why are you saving them? Will you ever get down to that size? If you do, will that style be in vogue at that time? And storage sheds: do you store every box for your computer, TV, and other appliance in your shed? What are you doing to do with them? In today's disposable world, it is almost better to go get another appliance than to send it back to the manufacturer for repair. However, that is a personal decision that only you can make.

Recommended Filing System

Leeds recommends establishing a filing system to help organize the multitude of paper you encounter at work. She says that you should have three Active To Do files: Immediately, Next Week, and Low Priority. Then every time you pick up something from your desk, your mailbox, and so forth, you make a decision by asking yourself: "Do I throw it away? Do I keep it for reference? Is a decision pending about it?" The moral: File it right away, take action on it, or throw it away. No mess, no fuss!

Source: "The Resolve to Be Organized." January 22, 2004. Avery Dennison "Great Results" Newsletter, Vol. 5, No. 1 (www.avery.com/newsletter)