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Home >> Lifestyle: Organizers: The Cost Of Disorganization...Can
You Afford It?
- The Cost Of Disorganization...Can
You Afford It?
- By: Patty
Kreamer
For many, being organized means
a place for everything and everything in its place. For others,
it means nothing. The true definition of being organized is being
able to find things when you need them, not 3 weeks later.
But if you ask me, being organized
means saving BIG money...period. Simply put, time is money. If
you waste time all day long looking for things, you are wasting
money.
If you spend just 5 minutes
of every hour of an 8 hour day (how often do we only work 8 hour
days?), looking for things, that adds up to over 4 weeks per
year (166 hours). Many times, we
spend hours looking for something. It adds up fast when you take
each employee's hourly rate of pay and multiply it by 166 hours
per year.
For example: $15/hour X 166
hours X 10 employees = $24,900/year thrown away! OUCH.
The worst part is (yes it gets
worse!) that most small business owners and managers average
even more wasted time...as much as eight weeks per year! So what
can be done to eliminate most of this wasted time?
Get READY...
For starters, if you are not
as organized as you'd like to be, you have look inside yourself
and explore WHY you are not organized. By revealing your nature,
you can learn to work with
your habits instead of against them. Over the years, we develop
excuses, obstacles and reasons to avoid getting organized. Here
are a few examples:
* You might need it someday!
* If you can't see it, you forget it
* You have too much stuff!
* Your stuff needs a home.
* You grew up with clutter.
* You have too much to do!
* Not enough storage space.
* You are very sentimental.
* You have had major changes in your life.
Get SET...
Second, you have to take the
time to look at your space and map out what you want the space
to look like when you are done before you touch the first piece
of clutter. In this step, you will need to:
* Do a Needs Assessment
* Define the activity for the room
* Use Logic
* Make a drawing of the room
* Make a list of what you will need
* Have a realistic time schedule
* Have the URGE TO PURGE
GO!
Finally, you get to declutter
by sorting and putting away in a methodical fashion.
Most folks skip the Ready and
Set steps and just start to tear into the clutter but don't develop
any long lasting systems. This Band-Aid(R) will only last a short
while before you have clutter creeping back into your life.
In order to make the paper
clutter go away, a simple process is necessary. When it comes
to papers and office clutter, I recommend the E.A.S.Y. system.
There are only four things you
can do with a piece of paper.
Eliminate it
Act on it
Send it away
You file it
If you create four piles that
correspond to the E.A.S.Y. system as you sort, decision-making
becomes more concise and narrow.
The bad news is that getting
organized takes time and commitment. It has to be on your list
of priorities for it to really become achievable.
The good news is that getting
organized is simple if done methodically and it pays off. Not
only does organization provide a less stressful work environment,
but it also boosts morale, increases productivity and positively
affects the bottom line.
Can you afford to be disorganized?
Could you stand to be more organized? Schedule the time to declutter
and soon you'll be inspired to continue because you'll feel like
a huge weight has
been lifted off your shoulders!
Here's to simplifying your
life!
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Author: © 2007, Kreamer Connect, Inc. |
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Patty Kreamer, owner of Kreamer
Connect, Inc., is a professional organizer, speaker, and author
of ...But I Might Need It Someday! and The Power of Simplicity,
now available at http://www.ByeByeClutter.com.
Sign-up for the new e-course
Making Life Simple... Again! at http://www.ByeByeClutter.com/MLSAHome.htm
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ARTICLE POSTED
February
21, 2007 |
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