ORGANIZING TIPS FOR WORKING WOMEN: Three Steps to BEING Organized

If your life is full or clutter, or you’re disorganized now, and you want a fast way to “get organized,” there’s another way! Learn a three-step process that will leave you “being organized,” and learn how my “E.A.S.Y.” method provides a fast way to deal with your stuff.

What do you do when you can no longer see over the stacks off stuff or walk in your office or home without tripping? You say to yourself – GET ORGANIZED! Translation: put stuff away, throw stuff away – just get it out of sight! The problem with this Band-Aid® approach is that it’s a temporary solution. The idea is to learn how to BE organized, not just to GET organized.

Getting organized is an event – a one-time sweep that may last anywhere from an hour to a week, but not much longer. Then everything comes creeping back out, often times worse than before you started.

Being organized involves having systems in place that accommodate how you think and how your habits carry you through the day. It must be intuitive to you so that it can be a process that is long-lasting.

So how does a person BE-come organized? Simple…use the READY, SET, GO system to get back to square one (a.k.a. organizational bliss). Only ten minutes a day of maintenance will keep the party going.

This three-step process is instantly applicable to anyone who needs to be more organized.

READY…
Getting Ready is when you figure out why you do the things you do. For example, if you are a perfectionist, you might realize that you work incessantly on things that are not important. It only makes YOU feel better but adds nothing of value to the project. Once you recognize your perfectionist tendencies, you can take action to change them. Take a risk and turn in a report after the second draft (not the eighth).

SET…
Getting Set is when take a look at your space, time, and goals. Taking the time to sketch out what the space will look like when it’s done, creating a plan that includes a realistic time schedule, and defining what success will look like are critical, yet often overlooked. Next, you need to plan out how you will achieve success – what steps need to be taken and in what order. Schedule them in your day planner and voilà – you have a plan!

GO!
Since “clutter is nothing more than unmade decisions,” sorting is always difficult because we want to micro-sort. To eliminate this dilemma, use the E.A.S.Y. system. If you use the E.A.S.Y. system initially to become organized, you can then use it daily for ten minutes to maintain. There are only four things you can do with a piece of paper as you sort:

Eliminate – trash or shred
Act on it – requires action
Send it Away – does not belong to you or in the space you are organizing
You File it – needs to be filed away

It’s very simple and doable.

What are the results? You will:
* Get home from work on time
* Spend more time with your family, not your computer
* Find what you're looking for...every time
* Feel great, accomplished
* Create a work flow rather than a clog
* Feel more confident in your work
* Experience stress-free living and breathe more easily
* Find plenty of space on your desk to accomplish your tasks

It’s not about organizing, filing, throwing things out, or mere tips and tricks. It's about experiencing a whole new level of existence, a way of life that breeds efficiency and power in the workplace and ultimately in all areas of your life.