190 - The Cost of Clutter & Disorganization

In this week’s podcast, I take a look at the cost of clutter and disorganization in our lives. I think we all know that there is a cost benefit to leading a more organized life, but did you know that it’s not just a financial benefit? A disorganized and chaotic life can bear many costs… let's look at the different costs that disorganization causes in our lives and the steps that you can take to make a difference. 1. Financial Cost Buying twice, losing things, items getting ruined, misplacing coupons that eventually expire… I don’t think anyone would argue that there is a not a financial cost benefit to being more organized. 2. Mental Cost It can be mentally draining trying to remember all of the things that we are responsible for… getting the laundry started, doing the dishes, getting the kids ready for various activities, etc. We are constantly trying to remember and stay on top of things. The Sunday Basket™ is a HUGE help here. Personally, I like to make notes and jot down ideas all through the week and then go through them all together on a Sunday. I find 50% of the items in my SundayBasket™ are notes to myself. 3. Time Cost When disorganization creeps into your life, you lose time. You lose time looking for things. You lose time doing things on a whim. You lose time just trying to escape from your cluttered and disorganized situation by watching TV and playing on your phone. The funny thing is that while you know you are losing time, you don’t have time to figure out where you’re losing it. There is NO TIME! If you had the time, you could do a time study and really get to the bottom of how you can save time, but again… who has time for that?! I have done a time study twice and it was very depressing seeing the true reality of how much time I spent driving in my car and watching TV. We have a lot of demands on our time and, if you’re not proactive in how you manage your time, you end up doing things on a whim and putting out fires. 4. Emotional Cost There was a study that concluded a direct link between families who have more clutter, disorganization, and unfinished projects in their homes with mood and cortisol levels. Basically, the conclusion is that there are health benefits to being more organized in the household, and the risks of not doing so include depression and a less satisfied marriage.Here is a link to the study. It’s important to note that there’s no right or wrong when it comes to home organization. Just like there is no perfect weight for a woman, or no perfect way to feed a baby, everyone has a different level of home organization that is right for them and makes them happy. Irronically, the more progress you make in some areas of organization, the more frustrated you get in other areas. This is completely normal and it just signifies a new level of organization that you expect. You have raised the bar and you now need to stay above that bar for your own peice of mind. So how do we make the change we want to see? YOU need to take action! It’s really important to understand that you are in the driver’s seat and the change that you require will not just happen to you, but rather by you. You need to make it happen . Don’t wait for someone to come rescue you because, believe me (I’ve been there), that will not happen! There are two things that you need to do to help bring about the change that you want: 1. Change your mindset – Bring about the mental transformation to live a clutter-free, organized life. You are already doing this right now by reading this newsletter and listening to my podcast. 2. Physical change – For this, I have an exercise for you to do! To do the exercise, you need to listen to the podcast episode and hear me talk you through it. Trust me. All I will say is listen to the podcast episode when you are at home and have a piece of chalk handy!   P.S. Registration is now open for my 100 Day Home Organization Program where I am with you every step of the journey to help you get your home and your life organized. Every week, I am there to encourage and motivate you, share stories, and help you reach your goals. You will make fast and lasting progress because of the way the program has been organized. You will also be with a group of like-minded ladies who are all on the same journey as you, taking action at the same time as one another in the same living spaces. Let me teach you how to expand your mind. I will show you how to be more productive,more proactive, and how to plan. You will take back your home and have time to live the life that you are supposed to live. The 100 Day Home Organization Program is an investment, but it’s an investment in yourself. It will make home organization your new priority. You will start to see a reduction in all of the other costs associated with disorganization and clutter. Register now! Registration ends on August 28th for the next session starting September 4th. And for those of you already registered... Congratulations! Please pass this on to ONE person you would love to do the 100 Day Home Organization Program with you! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/190