Disorganized Success - At What Price?

Many of you are successful and busy professionals in either your own company or a corporate firm. Some of you are successful despite the fact your world teeters on the edge between organizational disaster and "pulled through again" as you live with your organizational struggles.

Disorganization can be very, very stressful. Living in fear that the rest of the office, business or corporation will discover how disorganized you really are is a stress that few professionals can withstand for very long. You may have tried to be more organized and failed. Perhaps you have been disorganized all your adult life. Perhaps your disorganization permeates your private life as well as your business life - but at home the world may be a little more forgiving.

What price is your disorganization costing your life? Stress? Someone else's time to find things? Rework? Redo?

Perhaps now is the time to consider getting help before the stress takes over or the balance of your life tips in the wrong direction. The National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization is a research based education organization for professional organizers and other health care providers who are interested in chronic disorganization. The group provides resources to the public and a referral program. In the United States, the National Association of Professional Organizers also has a referral program. In Canada, the Professional Organizers in Canada can help you find an organizer with special skills in chronic disorganization in your area.

Don't pay the high price of disorganization. Your life is too valuable.

Disorganization - Scarey Stuff

It doesn't happen very often but today is the day I put in a plug for the industry. On the afternoon of the scarey night and just one week before the Canadian national association for professional organizers - Professional Organizers in Canada - starts it annual conference here in Toronto, what could be a better time?

Being disorganized can be stressful and very scarey. Maybe you or someone you know consistently pays their bills late, if at all, because they either can't remember to pay them or can't find the bills. Have you ever added up the late fees incurred by those last payments?

This is just one example of the cost of disorganization and there are many more. Costs can be evaluated in money, heartache and physical or emotional stress. If you or a loved one is constantly or chronically disorganized either at home or at work, you already know how painful it can be.

The good news is that there is help. Both the Canadian association Professional Organizers in Canada , or POC, and our American affiliate the National Association of Professional Organizers, or NAPO have online directories to assist you in finding an organizer in your area. In addition, the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization, or NSGCD, has resources available on its website for the public looking for information. With NSGCD you can also look up the certificates that a professional organizer may have earned if they are pursuing education with the study group. Here is a list of the certificates that I have earned.

It may be spooky out there tonight, but living your life ought to be joyful, not frightful.

Top 5 Series - Strategies to Increase Organization in your Business

You've been working diligently to increase your personal organization. As the paper clears and the dust settles, you realize your staff are also working in a cluttered, ineffective environment. It's time to change the culture in the office from "No one really cares since these aren't public offices" to "We are proud of the professional environment in which we work". These strategies will help.

1. Set the standard yourself. As head of the organization, directorate or department, your leadership sets the tone. If your office is a pile of disorganized papers, you give your staff the impression you don't care what the place looks like. Why should they? I know, I know. You can find anything you want in the office right? Are you sure? How long will it take you? And if you don't show up tomorrow is that the way you want your leadership role remembered?
2. Start talking about professional presentation and image at meetings. Add it to performance appraisals to make staff accountable.
3. Ensure that every staff member has immediate access to a blue box for recycling; right beside their desk in place of a garbage can wouldn't be tool close.
4. Ensure that every staff has the tools they need to be organized in their work space. Do they have reasonable access to appropriate filing space? Do they have a desk that works? Is there a book shelf or alternative for holding company policy manuals or obligatory preventative maintenance reports? If you aren't sure what is missing or why an employee is so disorganized, consider having a professional organizer conduct an assessment of the work space in question. There may be more complex organizational issues that the employee is struggling with.
5. Schedule a semi-annual clear out day. The rules for the time are simple. Everyone participates in a clear out of their work space on this day. No other meetings or activities are booked. Order lunch for the gang.

Leadership is something we do, not something we study.

This blog is the result of turning dreaming into action. Many years ago, I had the privilege of reporting to a man who, when he learned of my ambition to someday pursue a PhD in the study of leadership, motivation and education, responded that leadership is something we do, not something we study. My path since that moment has taken an interesting turn. The journey has included formation of my company, Wellrich Organizers, almost three years ago and a sojourn through more academia as I pursue certification in chronic disorganization with the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization. A focusing of the education, experience and knowledge gained thus far, professional organizing has proven to be the melding of three knowledge arenas which have long held my interest, study and passion namely education, management and psychology. So here goes....I invite you to join me.