Orderliness. What a difficult word. And to achieve this orderliness is even much harder. And the reason for this is because lots of myths have grown around keeping the household and workplace in order, which should have long been dispelled.
Good orderliness doesn’t center around putting the papers into the multi-colored folders with lots of labels, and thinking thoroughly through your everyday routine. The important thing is that your everyday routine should not interfere with your life, cause strain or internal resistance.
People have different attitudes to disorder in the space which is surrounding them. We need to live on a level that we are comfortable with. Organized people does not necessarily maintain the ideal order in all things. So it’s high time to ruin some myths concerning the order in your life and work. Below listed are the wrong ideas which prevent you from living better.
Organized means immaculate
There is no one omni-purpose way to create order that would work for everyone. You should live with knowledge of what things you have, their location, and think through a system of interworking with the things inside your home. How many exactly things you have and in which state they are, has nothing to do with anyone except for you. Striving for perfection prevent some people even to start cleaning. Nothing can be perfect, that is why get out of your mind the desire to become immaculate. But it is possible to become much better.
It is accomplishable to deal with everything at once
Try to imagine that over the years you keep putting your photos into a box. And now it is overfilled. If you come with the albums to this huge heap of unsorted photos with the desire to sort it out, the problem will not be solved within one-two hours. To get started, try to sort them out by year, or any other criterion (travels, holidays, events, etc.). Then you will have a chance to deal with sorted stacks, and there is no necessity to do this within the same day. This can be applied to any heap/backlog/jumble.
Lasting forever!
Setting the storage management system or sorting out a heap of papers is a single action. But maintaining order requires a change in your habit of life. Such order should be imposed not only in a room.
To have order the new furniture is needed
Convenient and thoughtful storage system will definitely help you to maintain order, but if you decide to buy some new furniture before mastering the organizational skills and learning how to keep everything clean, then expect the same mess in this furniture as everywhere else.
Begin sorting out things with a single area within one room. It is advisable to remove things that prevent from maintaining the room’s functionality.
When the room will be filled only with things which you need, sort these items by categories, and consider how it is more comfortable to use them. If it will be necessary buy special containers, holders, racks or furniture. Considered by someone solutions will not teach you to be tidy. Furniture should be built into your system of space organization, rather than trying to live according to the orders of the wardrobe.
The same applies to the new equipment. Robotic vacuum cleaner will not hang a shirt in the closet, dishwasher will not load a detergent into itself, microwave oven will not run to the store to buy food. Gadgets make life easier. But not more.
Order is difficult and time consuming
To maintain order is easier than you think. If you know the difference between a jacket and pants, then half the job is done. Just sort things and find the right space for them. The right system will help to keep every thing in its place.
And when the disorder reaches a critical level (that is, you will feel uncomfortable), you can quickly return the house to an acceptable condition. In a well-thought-out house placement of things into right places takes not more than five minutes.
Start now. Take the thing that you’ve just used, and put it in place. This very second. Complicated? Why do not you put it in place? What is the reason? Typically, the reason lies in a fact that it is inconvenient. Your task is to think through the placement of things in such a way that your things will “jump to places themselves”.
Being organized is a natural talent
No, genes are not important at this question, all you need is time.
Orderliness can be learnt. Of course, someone has an aptitude to it, as to mathematics, for example. But people learn math, so that means you can also learn the science of orderliness.
All this doesn’t work for me
We do not like changes, even if these are changes for the better. Therefore, an inner voice whispers that we can not maintain order because it is boring, difficult and does not in any way help living better.
When this happens, tell yourself that you deserve the best. The order is in your hands, and even 10 minutes will be enough. Do not think in terms of “all or nothing”. Make small steps every day. And tomorrow will be easier.
Nothing will work if your system will be not convenient for you personally. It depends on many factors, all the way to what is your height. It may be hard for you to bend down every time to throw garbage in the trash can, and it’s better to push it out from under the table. And if you find it difficult to reach the top shelves, use them as storage space for season clothes to climb on a stool twice a year.
These are obvious examples, but the same principle should be applied in other cases, when you choose a location for each item.
Well, who cares about the mess if I know where to find everything
Like it or not, people form an idea of you, looking at the work desk and your home. In addition, it’s better not to risk leaving some of the papers and documents in plain sight. When finished working with the documents, think about where to put them: to the folder, into the box or in trash can. At the end of each working day, spend 15 minutes to sort out the table, then the next morning it will be in order.
I need a precise plan
No matter where you are writing a plan for the week: on your smartphone, on a napkin or in a diary. Do not expect that everything will work according to your plan.
There is no creative atmosphere in perfect order
If you decide to draw a picture on canvas which one would help you to find new ideas: a pure canvas or used by someone? To work in a mess – it’s like to write in someone else’s rough draft. Too much will interfere with the flight of thought. Unorganized space distracts from work, takes away time to find the desired object. Why to waste precious time and energy on orientation in the chaos, if it prevents to succeed? Creativity flourishes when you use a blank canvas and a well-organized space.
Order is not a static state, it is a process. Remember this, and everything will work out well.