I've been giving a lot of thought to the tangible benefits of getting and staying organized. I see them in my own life, and in my clients' lives every day, but I wanted to share a few of them here.
- Save time: always know where to find things.
- Save money: never have to buy duplicates of things you already own but can’t find.
- Improve your financial situation: no more late fees or dings on your credit score for not paying bills on time.
- Increase efficiency: make lists so you only have to go to stores once to get everything you need, group errands geographically and use the Internet to cut down on trips to faraway places by having things delivered.
- Increase your sense of calm: lessen the day-to-day chaos in your life and focus on the things that are most important to you.
- Decrease friction with people you live with: when there’s a sense of organization and a place for everything, discord over people’s stuff (usually) goes away.
- Broaden the scope of your physical and mental world: when we feel held back by disorganization and chaos, we use it as an excuse not to redecorate the apartment that is stuck in 1988, or not to embark on a creative project we’ve been thinking about for years. No more excuses. Do it!
- Give loved ones security: having your end of life wishes written down, your estate planning finished and a plan for how to dispose of your property after your death lessens the stress that your loved ones will have to endure during that difficult time. Do you really want to leave a house crammed top to bottom with stuff for your kids and grandkids to deal with one day?
- Make emergency situations easier: when you’re prepared for emergencies with important papers, information and objects located, backed up and insured, those difficult times will be less so.
- Increase happiness: if your neutral mode for going through life is an organized one, it makes it possible for the ups to go higher and the downs to dip shallower. Try it!
Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com
Here's a great article on a similar theme that was mentioned in a few blogs this morning:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.womansday.com/Articles/Shelter/Organizing-Cleaning/12-Reasons-to-Unclutter-Your-Space.html
It's more action based and has some great ideas.
I think of myself as relatively organized, but your list pinpoints some areas for improvement, as well as some motivation for being even more organized. Thanks!
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