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Organized Mind - Reducing Mind Clutter

The following article is a summary of a program I did on Achieving the Organized Mind - Reducing Mind Clutter.  It highlights some of the key points that will be in the book Achieving the Organized Mind - Reducing Mind Clutter soon to be released.

by Bethany Brown
Tribune Staff Writer
Citizen Tribune Morristown TN
Desks aren’t the only places where clutter tends to collect according to Mary Pankiewicz, certified professional organizer in chronic disorganization and ADD specialist. Minds pick up a good amount of clutter as well.
 
From her role as a speaker, author and consultant, Pankiewicz spoke to the May Women in Business luncheon for the Morristown Area Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, May 26.
She informed Morristown business-women that a key to reducing stress is reducing “mind clutter.”
 
The seminar was interactive with women listing personal and business related motivations for reducing mind clutter. Personal reasons include having more time for things a person enjoys such as time with kids, gardening, journaling, reading and even sleeping. Business reasons include being able to leave work on time without taking work home, not going in to work on weekends or going to bed with a list actively running through one’s head.
 
Pankiewicz also instructed attendees to list the “life layers,” or major events, either happy or sad, such as weddings, babies, moving, promotions, health problems and raising teenagers.
She said people have to come to a point where they recognize that “wherever I’m at, you know I’m not going to beat myself up anymore.” Letting go of that guilt, she explained, is the first step in moving toward organization, since an individual may recognize that some major organization projects will just have to wait until certain life layers are out of the way.
 
One way to help get clutter out of one’s mind, according to Pankiewicz, is to do a “mind dump” onto a white board or a piece of paper, listing all concerns at home and at work. That method helps to prioritize things, and allows the person to scratch things off the list.
She explained that in making a list of things to do, only the first step of a project should be listed in order to make the task more doable. “How do you eat an elephant?” she quoted the old adage. “One bit at a time.”
 
But in developing a method to get things done, Pankiewicz said it’s most important to understand oneself. One person may prefer technology to keep him or her organized, while another hates technology. Knowing whether someone is visual or not, what has worked in the past and where the best place is for a person to capture and park ideas are all important factors for someone to understand how he or she works best when it comes to getting organized.
 
Finally, Pankiewicz zeroed in on focus time as a key to becoming organized.
“It’s not wrong to take an hour just to finish items,” she said, evaluating the major problem of American workers as the fact that they have so many unfinished programs hanging over their heads. The concept of focus time says that and individual can take 15 minutes uninterrupted to complete what it would take an hour to do with interruptions.
 
While being flexible, Pankiewicz advised to pick a time for focusing each day. During that time, email alerts and phones are turned off, doors are closed with signs that communicate it is a bad time to interrupt. Pankiewicz emphasized the importance of establishing that sign as serious so that employees won’t disbelieve it and walk into the office anyways, but also not abusing it and putting it up when not really focusing. She even advised leaving the office and going elsewhere to accomplish work if circumstances allow. This helps with another barrier to organization, being too connected to phones and email and other electronic devices and applications.
 
She also advised standing to work at times, since more blood flows to the brain, allowing for better decision making. The presentation focused on many little habits that change the organization of the mind, allowing people to accomplish more and more efficiently. But habits may be hard to change. “We like our habits, even if they don’t serve us,” she said with a smile.
Pankiewicz works with clients face-to-face and by phone consultation to help them get more organized and is the author of “Clutter Free & Organized.” She is working on a second book. For more information about Pankiewicz and her business and for tips about getting organized, visit www.clutterfree.biz  or contact mary@yourorganizdmind.com
 

Contact info:

Call Mary Pankiewicz today! - 423-581-9460, 865-607-9460, or 888-835-6335

Email Mary Pankiewicz - Mary@OrganizedMindCoaching.com to schedule a get-acquainted phone call.

Mary works with clients in person and on the phone throughout the US. She lives in upper east Tennessee, which allows her to conveniently work with clients in Knoxville, Johnson City, Kingsport, Bristol, TN and Asheville, NC.  She frequently travels to Amelia Island, serving Jacksonville and North Florida.

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