Links and Resources for the Chronically Disorganized
Submitted by Merlin on May 6, 2008 - 7:30am.
I’m still in a de-cluttering mode these days (more on that soon), so I was intrigued by this resource, which arrived this morning via Mrs. Folders.
While primarily a trade group for “professional organizers,” the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization site has some handy documents and links to help with identifying and solving pathological problems with clutter and hoarding.
If you can tolerate the site’s gruesome ardor for PDFs, you’ll find some informative and eye-opening stuff. From their fact sheets page:
- Are You Chronically Disorganized? - The obligatory self-test. Mmm…yeah, I am guilty of #17: “Is it difficult for you to part with things even though they have outlived their usefulness?”
- Time Management for the Chronically Disorganized - “Remember that you are procrastinating if you work on a trivial task while a more important one remains undone.”
- Tips for Communicating with the Chronically Disorganized - “Avoid what does not work…Don’t say: ‘Just do it!’”
I really liked some of the Tips for Overcoming Procrastination for the Chronically Disorganized Individual or Household (excerpted):
- Remember that it is motivation that gets you started and habits that keep you going. Resolve to get started.
- Delay until you have enough information but not all the information. Have the courage to make decisions with less than 80% of the facts.
- Break up your projects into small pieces and avoid “all or nothing” thinking.
Good stuff. The Now Habit, anyone?
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Woah. Mr. Mann. I thought we were in this together. I’ve been a silent admirer of 43 Folders and will certainly continue to visit your site, but as a Professional Organizer, I’m just a little shocked that you aren’t more informed about what we ACTUALLY do. Emily pretty much said it all, so I piggy-back on her comments. Perhaps it’s just the term “professional organizer” that gives people the wrong idea? You wrote: “the bone to pick is with a culture that increasingly encourages us to think that a closet consultant and a trip to The Container Store is a valid substitute for a more profound realignment in thinking — about how we live, how we consume, and how we make our peace with deeply ingrained, emotional habits.” I’m pickin’ on that same bone, Merlin. It’s like you’ve just written copy for my business model (and most of my colleagues’). Sure, we love The Container Store, but if a trip there is necessary at all when working with clients, it’s the very last stop on the organizing train. Be well. Thanks for the forum.
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