I’ll admit it…I’m messy. Although in some ways I am very organized because I have to keep track of a lot of things. Thank heavens for notepads, journals, to-do lists, and calendars! I FINALLY cleared most of my desk last night after MANY days of struggling. Some days, I didn’t feel like facing it. I filed away papers so I could concentrate on a task I’d been putting off. As for organizing the file cabinet itself, I moved that chore to another day. I also have hobbies that I enjoy. I picked 2019 to finish most projects–if not all.
Sometimes, managing the paper load is the toughest obstacle. I’ve read Barbara Hemphill’s Taming the Paper Tiger and similar titles over the years, using the organizational ideas that worked for me. Trouble was, nothing stuck long term. Sometimes, life happens. Despite good intentions, keeping your environment in perfect order is impossible. But it’s important to keep trying. Having a place for everything is a good start. Sometimes i will clip a newspaper or magazine article or two if I find it useful. Just don’t let the collection get out of hand.
One of the great gifts of pitching a story to my editor several years ago about people with disabilities getting organized was interviewing Cris Sgrott-Wheedleton, owner of Organizing Maniacs. After the story was published, I remained on her mailing list. I learned that the company offers an ” Organizing Maniacs Book Club.” I read at least one on that list, and fond I wanted to keep other suggestions for later reading. Here they are , in no particular order. I hope other readers find as much inspiration from this list as I do.
When, by Daniel H. Pink
Finish, by Jon Acuff
Spark Joy, by Marie Kondo
Rest, by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
Junk, by Alison Stewart
Brain Rules, by John Medina
The 5 Love Languages, by Gary Chapman
Peak Performance, by Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness
Here’s to Not Catching Our Hair on Fire….Oh, Look! A Chicken, by Stacey Turis
Mindset, by Carol Dweck
Buy-ology: Trust and Lies about Why We Buy, by Martin Lindstrom
The Power of When, by Michael Breus
Delivered From Distraction, by Edward Hallowell and John Raley
The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, by Margareta Magnusson
Add-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life, by Judith Kolberg and Kathleen Nadeau
Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives, by Tim Harford
Carrie's Bookshelf 