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Step 1
Accept the fact that clutter is inevitable. The mail comes almost every day. There is no escaping it, so give yourself a break and don’t stress over it. Just put the Dustbuster down and slowly back away. Don’t spend hours a day straightening up when that time may be better spent with family or on other more productive endeavors.
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Step 2
Don’t overschedule yourself. Give your date book some breathing room. Non-structured time can be much more creative and relaxing than knowing where you'll be every second of every day. Then, when something unexpected comes up, you can be flexible enough to fit it in.
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Step 3
Don’t overfile. Loose papers on a desk can actually be more conducive to creativity, leading you to make connections you may've missed before. If you file them away, you can forget about them, rather than laying them aside to glance at later, where they may spark a undiscovered connection. And don’t stress about moving files around on your computer desktop either. The search function is easier and faster than dragging things from one file to another.
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Step 4
Organize a lot instead of a little at a time. The authors say it’s more efficient to organize things in one big shot than in pieces as they come along. Then, when you go through papers to file them, you’ll be more apt to remember where you put them.
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Step 5
Don't forget that one man's trash is another man's treasure. Collecting can be fun and rewarding, financially and otherwise. So if you feel a particular object or set of objects is important or reminds you of a meaningful time or event in your life, don't feel guilty about keeping it around. It brings you joy. So what's wrong with that?
