Monday, February 24, 2020
A time management coach's tips on getting better organized
www.fastcompany.com: As a time management coach, I clearly care about organization. On a daily basis, I work with goal-oriented individuals trying to find the right balance. That being said, you may be surprised to hear that being overly focused on organization can be counterproductive. I explain with these five tips to living more peaceful and productive lives.
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I completely agree that being overly organized can be very counterproductive. Sometimes you spend more time planning than doing. It feels like being productive but it is just a productive way of procrastinating (I do this all the time with my bullet journal). You need to get things done and if you are spending all your time planning to get it done guess what. YOU WON'T GET THE ACTUAL THING DONE. You have to find the balance between organization and actually working towards the goal. There are a lot of different methods for organizing projects, tasks, and goals which I was happy to see mentioned in this article. I really found the section about saying no very helpful. Sometimes the best way to manage your time is by not filling it with obligations that you find uninteresting or not valuable to your time (you spend more time moping overdoing the task than spent putting effort into accomplishing it). I fully agree that being organized is a lifestyle and a HABIT it isn’t a one time deal that you can plan to do once or twice a month, it is a constant activity you have to maintain. Everyone manages their time and priorities differently, just because someone is organized doesn’t always mean that they will produce the best work or be better than those who have a different style of preparation (or lack thereof). I really enjoyed reading this article and its nice to be reminded of the tactics included in this article. (mostly common sense)
I’m actually not surprised to read that being too focused on organization can prevent productivity—I often find myself too busy making lists about the things I need to do than doing the things I need to do. The first tip is a good reminder (even though I already knew) to focus on the most important things and putting a sticky note of those top three things on a computer or desk as a constant reminder. The second tip was kind of useless, because it was more of a statement on “people are different”, so I got nothing out of that. For the third tip, I thought the closet organization metaphor was really great (maybe it’s because I love cleaning, but it resonated with me a lot). It’s true that everything later on becomes easier when you get stuff out of the way first, so saying no allows you to focus on the other things that you already have. Granted, things coming at you could be amazing opportunities, and then you find other ways to get everything done, but it’s a good general rule to keep in mind.
I really like this article because it highlights five key things that I think everyone refuses to see when encouraging other people to get organized or get back on track. The two overarching ideas that stuck with me the most were “There is no ‘right’ way to be organized” and “Even if you’re organized, you’re not perfect”. The first one, really stuck out to me because I think as people we get caught into thinking there is one right way, when in all actuality that is very far from being true. There are so many different ways that you can do one project and get the same results just with different paths of getting there, and it all boils down to the fact that we are different people with different ways of processing information. The second one stuck out to me because I feel like I get so caught up in the idea of if I recalibrate or recenter my organization I will get the rest of my life on track, and that is not always the case. Yes, it is refreshing to reorganize and get everything together, but it doesn’t mean mess-ups won’t happen and it certainly doesn’t mean that all of a sudden everything will get done. It just means the process for solving problems will be easier.
Time management has never been hard for me, as I automatically create a list of things to do in my head. However, my problem is I always forget something on that list. I have recently started using a weekly planner and sticky notes with daily to do lists to keep the tasks I have to do organized. After reading this article, I realize that I might be spending too much time on organizing my time than actually getting things done. This stems mainly from procrastination. Sometimes, I do not really want to do a task, so I spend a good 30 minutes organizing my next week with all the tasks and projects I need to do. This helps, but it also wastes time. Also, I can only plan so many of my weeks ahead before I run out of weeks. I like how this article addresses the need to stay committed to being organized. In the past, I start the year out with weekly planners and to do lists, but slowly, I stop writing in my planner and become slightly less organized. Hopefully this semester will be more organized for longer.
The biggest point this coach made is that there is such a thing as trying to over organize everything. David Boevers always says that if you spend more time organizing the thing than doing the thing you’re doing it wrong, but I think that she’s right that organization is about figuring out what works for you. She also said that saying “no” is the best organizational strategy which is something I hear all the time, but I like staying active so I’m a chronic over-scheduler (just like many of the people here at CMU.) I like the advice of committing to whatever your system s instead of attempting to copy someone else’s. The author is saying that the two important things to organize are tasks and time. I’m happy with the way I plan my schedule and budget my time, but taking care of tasks is something I haven’t streamlined quite as well.
The biggest reason why I liked this article so much is because it showed a perspective that I had never actually heard anyone talk about: being overtly organised can backfire and is not the solution to all unforeseen problems. This is such a breather given that almost every time when someone is lacking behind or struggling,, a point that is always brought up is that being organised is the way to be or will solve all your problems, which is just not the case.
The coach in the article highlights a couple of things which make so much sense when one thinks about them. Like when he talks about there is no right way to being organised, which is so true given that everyone has a different method of being organised and that that they should not necessarily be called out for not following which is deemed to be the way.
I agree that focusing too much on trying to be organized can hinder you more than help you. I’ve been in situations where I start to try to get things perfectly organized, laid out, and planned, when in reality all of that organizational prep work was really just me stalling/ procrastinating on actually starting my work. I keep thinking that perhaps if I’m more organized and get more and more details down, I get the task done more easily and with less mistakes. For me, I’ve found the right level of organization is usually making a simplistic list of all of the things that I have to get done, (along with the due dates), putting them in order, and clearing off my workspace. I like how they say that “there’s no ‘right way’ to be organized”, and that “even if you’re organized, you’re not perfect.” It gives me a reminder that human mistakes happen and that I shouldn’t let something small shouldn't derail my lifestyle.
It took me a very, very long time to realise that overorganising was a major issue of mine. I would spend hours making long, detailed, itemised lists of things I needed to do; I would create this notion that my to-do lists could only be in one journal or planner or paper plate or whatever; I would make the same list on separate platforms (i.e., in a journal as a “rough draft”, on a nice piece of printer paper with colour coordinating highlighters, and then on the computer because - you know - everything looks nicer typed) which would take me the same amount of time as actually completing at least one or two of the bigger tasks on my list. It has taken me a long time to deprogramme myself to not automatically go into this form of “productive procrastination” and I still find myself having to keep myself on the daily from reverting to this behaviour.
I have been saying this for years!!! I cannot ever manage having a fancy planner with a color code and detailed lists. It has never worked for me. I would spend so much time trying to make it look pretty that I wouldn't have enough time to actually do the work I was trying to plan out! I learned this ridiculously early on, particularly because of my struggle with OCD in early high school. I avoided any mention of organization/planning like the plague because it would send me down a spiral that would end in a panic attack/not-so-good thoughts. I'm obviously doing much better now, and I've found a great middle ground for myself. I don't keep a planner, but I don't avoid lists either. I have a simple to-do list on my computer with tasks that I cross off whenever I'm done. Keeping an overly-simplistic digital list has done me wonders. I don't spend hours trying to make it look pretty, but I also don't forget what I have to do (and it's very satisfying crossing off my tasks when I'm done with them). I hope that other people who maybe struggle with the same thing I did will find a method that works for them too.
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