Your Organizing Coach

Tricks to Motivate You

I answered a question on Linked In today about whether it's possible to become more disciplined. My answer wasn't really about discipline though, because that word turns me off. It makes me think of following rules, being punished if I don't, rigidity and fear. Ick.

So my answer was about motivation instead. And tricks. Fun ways to get yourself to do stuff. 

If the end result of your work is something you really, really want, it's not hard to get motivated. If you don't want the result, why bother? Whatever project you're putting off, trace it back and find out what the original motivation was and whether it's still valid. 

If it's valid and you still don't want to do it, pay someone else to do it! Or, try some of these tricks.

• Work on your project for just two minutes. Use a timer. If you get inspired, keep going. If not, you got two minutes worth done, more than you had before.
• Imagine the day is over and you're looking back over what you got done. What will make you feel like you got something really worthwhile accomplished? Then, do that thing.
• Make a "Not To Do" list. Put anything that you're not getting around to and that can go undone without the planet exploding. Keep the list somewhere safe. This tells your brain that it can forget about those things and relieves you of that mental clutter.

  What tricks do you use to get yourself going and stay on task? 

Rabbit out of a Hat from laneesque's photostream.

The Four Poxes Upon Productivity

I'm starting a new four-part series that will include the Packrat Factor, Procrastinators R Us, Prioritizizing and Paperphobia. Each post will discuss a different obstacle to being productive. Keeping too much stuff, not doing stuff, not knowing which stuff to do first and not knowing where stuff is are all common problems.

The Packrat Factor
This just in: Stuff is not the problem, you are. When you keep doing something that you know doesn’t work for you, well, the problem is all yours to solve. Stuff isn’t going to go away. In fact, there’s more right now than there was a minute ago. Ain’t it grand?

Instead of trying to figure out why you collect stuff, which leads straight to the land of rationalizing and excuses, let’s pause and consider the effect of all this stuff.

A confession: I had to stop writing this article to clear off my desk because I couldn’t focus on it. Now all I see is my coffee cup, my pencil jar, my notebook and the view from my window. Better!

If you can think clearly and act decisively while surrounded by stuff, you don’t have a problem. If you can’t do those things, the good news is, you don’t have ADD, you just have too much stuff. Everyone thinks they have ADD. What they really have is an unwillingness to detach from stimulation.

Show appreciation.

Become an admirer rather than an owner. The world is full of wonderful things that you don’t currently own. Make that world larger by merely appreciating things you see and not buying them. If you need visual stimulation, go window shopping or indulge in glossy magazines (for best results, find a bookstore where you can sit and read the mags. Do not buy them and take them home).

What about stuff from the past?
Distinguish between things you’ve kept just because you’ve had them forever from ones that have strong feelings attached to them. Memorabilia isn’t just old stuff, it’s personal old stuff that you’re attached to. If you’re not really attached to Great grandma’s tea cozy, get over feeling that you have to keep it.

Re-evaluate every year or so. Over time, things can lose their appeal and relevance. Decluttering is a constant process and it’s also an iterative one. Things that made the cut this year might not in three years.

What about stuff that’s valuable or was expensive?
So, you’ve made some mistakes, bought some things you regretted later. Or you just don’t feel like you’ve gotten your money’s worth out of them yet, even though in your heart of hearts you would never miss them if they were gone. If you keep these things just because they’re “valuable,” you are letting things be in charge of your life. You’re letting their importance dictate what to do with them. Turn it around and be ruthless in judging their value to you, right now. 

Pass it on.

If that thing really is important, why is it in a moldy box somewhere in your garage? Again, be clear about its current value to you. Then set that thing free to find a new owner who will truly appreciate it. There, doesn’t that feel better?

Let the chi flow.

Just as a room crowded with furniture and stuff prevents people from circulating in it freely, a packratted home prevents energy from flowing. This may seem woo woo to you, but you can feel that it’s true whenever you go into a stranger’s cluttered home. Moving energy around is one reason we go out into nature to refresh ourselves. Nature is well designed, purposeful and balanced. It’s not cluttered up with inessentials. It evokes feelings of harmony and serenity. Your home can be that way too.

I need a lot of stuff that inspires my art.

Have faith in your creativity. What you need is already here for you. If you’re a visual artist craving stimulation, get out and find it. Go to shops with wonderful wares, visit museums, walk in nature. Inspiration is everywhere. Also, “inspiration” is the breath you’re taking right now. Even though you have a trove of treasures, don’t you find that some of them inspired you at first, but when you didn’t use them, their glow faded? Whatever you’re creating now needs the fresh energy of today and what you find here.

Trees from jumpinjimmyjava's photostream

Meditating Improves Concentration

My meditation practice is coming along. I don't do it everyday, but I'm still getting some benefits out of my semi weekly sessions.

One of the benefits is that I'm getting more used to the idea that I will be distracted while I meditate. The goal is not to remove distractions, but to gently set them aside. Thoughts pop into my head and I acknowledge them and release them.

This is really helpful for concentration. When I sit down to write, sometimes I get stressed out when my mind wanders elsewhere and I'm not getting enough words on the page. But when I a) notice more quickly that I've gotten distracted and b) am nicer to myself in disengaging and going back to work, well, the whole day goes better.

You will be distracted. Accept it! The idea is to get past distractions faster so you can get back to what you were doing. 

Candles from LDCross's photostream.

Build Your Own Organizing System

I don't follow a particular organizing method or recommend a specific system. My clients all have their own unique needs, ways of thinking and taste. The challenge is to come up with something that works with the least amount of fuss and bother.

My friend and fellow entrepreneur, Erin Saul, has developed her system by trial and error. The visual aspect is important to her, as is being able to see a whole month at a glance. It's not, as she says, "elegant," but it does the job and she likes it. I asked her to share it with my blog readers, so here's her description:

When I quit the day job to run two businesses from home, it took me a while to get organized in a new way. I finally came up with a weekly schedule that would apply some kind of — if not routine, then maybe STRUCTURE to my week. But with the way my mind works, it was difficult to find some existing method of keeping me on track. I tried a couple versions of some productivity software, but they didn't really work. I had to make it myself.

It's rudimentary, but it made sense to me. And then I found that it didn't work... but it sure was a good idea at the time!

Instead, now...  I'll admit it: I keep three calendars:

1)  The TO-GO PLANNER, which is a dual week-at-a-glance/month-at-a-glance color-coded piece of brilliance I found at The Container Store, and which I take EVERYWHERE with me. The MONTHLY part is what I use when booking events with clients and hang-time with friends. The WEEKLY pages have a timeline/appointment section and also a color-coded section which corresponds nicely to my 'Business 1', 'Business 2', and 'Personal'. I can make more granular notes of what to do when, and see how my day is weighted. This weekly part informs my DAILY to-do list...

2)  I make a separate DAILY to-do list on a 3x5 index card, which fits in my pocket, and which I can access easily and frequently throughout the day to check on my progress, and add more things that need doing, as I think of them. Part of that to-do list is the MAKING of it, which is when I consult the WEEKLY color-coded part of the TO-GO PLANNER I carry around with me. That's when I try to make sure everything matches.

3)  The BIG WALL CALENDAR is mostly for fun, but keeps my head in the game when I'm in my home office, planning my days and weeks and months. I'm a visual learner/rememberer... so the color-coded stickies are for visual reference: Do I have enough pink ones to achieve my goals? Do I have everything done far enough in advance of the yellow events? Did I send birthday cards? And, maybe most importantly, this is where I can see days that have NO events, where I can spend the day on those pesky tasks it takes all day to do (like taxes!).

I realize that this all seems like the OPPOSITE of a simple, elegant system... but it works for me. Digital calendars and PDA solutions don't help me because I can't get a good VIEW of a day, week, or month the way my mind needs to see it. When my head starts swimming with random, disorganized things-to-do... that's when they slip through the cracks, and when I start getting cranky. I've learned these things about myself... and also that I'm one of those bizarro organize-y people who just love calendars. This way, I get to use three! The key is to find something that works for you and to be diligent about it. I also found that I love routine. When I get to start my morning making my daily to-do list with some hot tea, that grounds me. Then I'm off and running toward a productive day!

Erin's company, Namaste Mofo™, designs and sells T-shirts with "irreverently reverent yoga slogans" on them. The company motto is that all human beings are complex and can honestly embrace holistic ideals and still be totally punk rock. She rocks!

Use Email to Stay Organized

I asked my friend David over dinner one night how he manages to keep on top of all his projects at work. I don't always talk about organizing with friends, but I often discover new ways to do things from them, and that's always fun. He said that he uses his email program.

How does that work? For each project he opens a new email and starts typing in bullet points for all the tasks that need to be done that day. The emails are automatically saved as drafts and he can quickly cycle through them to see at a glance what's happening. He continues to add to them during the day, including notes from conversations and other emails. So he ends up with an outline of all project activity for the day.

He sends the emails to himself using the date and project in the subject line and then keeps them in the appropriate project folder. Sometimes they're also mailed to other people working on the project, saving him the step of copying information from other sources. And he has a chronological, easily accessible log of project activity.

I like this idea because it's simple and fast, it uses a program he already knows (no learning curve) and the information is easily transferred elsewhere, including to other people.

Juggler from jayniebell's photostream

Try the Easy Way First

I just spent 45 minutes trying to figure out why my Palm wouldn't sync up to the computer. It worked fine a few days ago. I haven't changed anything. What's up with that?

I Googled my question and got some ideas. None worked. Went to the Palm support site and got some more ideas, which sent me back to the Internet for more inquiries, hoping to narrow down the solutions. No help there. Plug it into a different port. Open and close programs. Nada. Back to the Palm site, then some Macintosh help sites. By now I'm kind of irritated.

Okay, I'll just reset the stupid thing, I decide out of exasperation. Still not working. Might as well restart the computer too. That's the last trick in my book. Success!

So, what's the lesson here? Sometimes, it's not worth discovering what's wrong if you know a fast way just to solve the problem. I have no clue why the hotsync didn't work. I'd like to know, but what I'd like more is to be able to get back to work. I need to remind myself to cut to the chase and just solve, or overcome, a problem and let go of my desire to understand it.

Does this happen to you? Do you suddenly realize that you've spent an hour troubleshooting instead of circumventing and getting on with it? I think it's natural to attempt to solve a problem that's right in front of you, but it's worthwhile to stop and consider whether you can make progress without actually solving it.

Detour from ngader's photostream

How Do You Spend Your Time?

For clients with time management troubles, I have recommended occasionally that they keep track of what they do all day. It may be startling to find out exactly how much time you spend cruising around the internet or caught up in cross currents of email, but the idea isn't to make you feel bad. The idea is to find out what you're actually doing with your time so that you can change it effectively.

Keeping track can be as simple as having a pad ready to jot down notes at timed intervals. David Seah has an elegant, easy to use version that shows time graphically since you fill in a bubble for each time increment. You can see it immediately; the more bubbles, the more time spent. His tool, the Emergent Task Timer, is available as a free PDF download on his site (which has tons of great productivity information, too).

Benefits of time tracking:

• Find out what you're doing when you're wasting time
• Find out how long you spend working on specific tasks; makes it easier to plan for them in the future
• Get an idea of when your high and low productivity times are during the day
• Discern patterns to tasks that you can use to your advantage. Email flurries at certain times of day can mean that others are most easily contacted then, for example
• Find patterns of work time followed by down time. You may find that some aspects of your work need more downtown to recover from
• Make sure you're taking productive, refreshing downtime; don't count more email checking as an actual break

A key to getting the most out of tracking your time is to do it now, or starting tomorrow morning. Don't wait for a less stressful week, or one with more interesting things going on. Print out enough sheets for the rest of the week and just get started. There won't be a better time.

"Time Disappears" from jtravism's photostream

Is Being Neat and Organized Overrated? Costco Wants to Know.

Costco, a place that sells an enormous number of items you can spend time keeping organized (or not), is running a survey in their online magazine titled: "Is being neat and organized overrated?"

Now, it always drives organizers crazy to hear those two adjectives used together as if they mean the same thing. They don't. Why is that such a hard concept to grasp? My dad was one of those people who have tippy-looking stacks of paper all over the room. But he knew what was in the stacks. He was a writer and was inspired by having as much material as possible to look through when he was working.

If he had been a piler who was also disorganized, he might have discovered some really interesting things to write about in those piles, but he also would have missed his deadline. Being an organized piler meant that he could meet deadlines and have fun reading obscure articles about incunabula that could inspire future writing.

The Costco article quotes David Freedman, author of A Perfect Mess, who proposes that you have to be messy to be creative. He cites the discovery of penicillin in a messy, disorganized lab where mold had grown on some sample dishes.

That's nice, but the ancient Greeks, among others,  had already noticed that mold could inhibit bacterial growth, and there's been a steady, scientific study of the subject since then. At least two scientists discovered penicillin before Fleming did, in the traditional way of being curious about phenomena they noticed in the world around them. They did not have to wait until an accident occurred in their labs. (Mold picture courtesy of the PBS website.)

It's probably a safe bet that once Fleming made his accidental discovery, he applied the scientific method to it. That involves a lot of experimentation and analysis that has to be kept and presented in an organized fashion. It's hard to get published in a scientific journal if you've misplaced your lab results.

Bottom line: being organized is about finding stuff when you need to, but that doesn't mean it's labeled and shrink-wrapped and lined up on a shelf. It means you know where it is and can get to it without breaking your neck falling on that old guitar.

So, what's your vote?

Be Productive in Your Own Time

Do you live your life by the clock so you can squeeze everything in? Do you anxiously consult your watch while working toward a deadline? Most of us have to live by a schedule part of the time, whether it's work, school or events. But when you don't, try leaving the watch on the bureau and forgetting about its constant ticking.

Susan Sabo proposes having a "watch out" day or evening on her Productivity Blog. Remember what it's like to do something because you're prompted from within. This is a way to tune into your internal clock. Without the pressure of time, you may find that you're more productive. Ideas may come more easily.

You might also find yourself lollygagging and daydreaming and feeling unproductive. However, your creativity and thus, your productivity, also needs that kind of time, or timelessness, to really shine.

Dawn in Norway photographed by Maikun.

Goals vs. Tasks

You need both goals and tasks, and they're easy to confuse. A big reason that people don't get things on their to do list done isn't that they procrastinate, but that the list entries aren't really do-able.

Does your to do list look like this?

• Design the book
• Increase sales this month
• Find an accountant

These are actually all goals, not tasks. A goal is reached via a series of tasks. Once you identify a goal you need to figure out what the first thing to do is. Do that, then figure out the next thing. And so on.

Here's a real to do list based on the list above:

• Narrow color schemes down to 2 choices and create palettes
• Contact top three clients this week and remind them of the new products
• Ask Maya and Rob if they can recommend an accountant

Notice that to do's are much more specific. They are active, they have deadlines and they involve particular people. As soon as they're done, they're replaced by the next logical step, for example, schedule a meeting to present the color schemes, or follow up the client calls with mailed brochures.

If something is languishing on your list for weeks on end, it might be a goal. To find out, just ask yourself, well, how do I design the book?  You know the answer already; you just need to put that on the list instead.