Organize + Energize: 10 Ways to Avoid Distractions and Stay Focused

Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Kristin MacRae, GoLocalWorcester Organizing Expert

How many times have you made a plan to get organized? How many times did you begin the same project and 3 hours later you found you have made no progress and are in a bigger mess than when you started? Most organizing projects fail in the beginning stages because people lose focus and get distracted.  

Here are 10 ways to avoid distractions and stay focused:

  • Make a plan. Mark your organizing project on your calendar just as you would schedule an appointment.  Choose a time of day to tackle this project when you are at your best.  You can look forward to this project and give yourself time to get motivated and have a solid plan of how you are going to attack the project.  
  • Set a time limit. Block off 3 hours for your organizing project.  If it will take you more than 3 hours, schedule a lunch break in between. If you organize more than 3 hour straight, you are setting yourself up for burnout and stress.
  • Disconnect. Before you tackle your project, make a conscious effort to not answer your phone, check your texts, email or social media. Shut down from everything. You will be amazed at how much work you will accomplish. 
  • Limit interruptions. If you have children that need to be tended to, make a plan to have a babysitter watch them during your project time. If you are tackling this project during office hours, make your staff aware that you are not to be interrupted unless it’s an emergency.
  • Focus. Once you start organizing, it is going to be easy to veer off and do other things.  Focus on the task at hand. Try not to jump from task to task. Breaking your project down into small tasks will help you stay focused. 
  • Don’t leave the area. The biggest mistake people make is leaving the area they are working in.  If you leave the room you are working in, you will get distracted, lose focus and your project will take you longer or you may not finish at all. Instead of picking up an item and moving it to another area of the house, keep a bin of items that need to be transferred other rooms. Disburse the items when you are finished.
  • Make quick decisions. Don't spend too much time deciding whether to keep something. If you can't decide, put it aside and move on. Save it until the end.
  • Don’t get stuck. If you are organizing paper, try not to read full articles or get started in reading magazines. Rip out articles that are important to you and move on.
  • Don’t involve too many people. Sometimes it’s better if you tackle this project alone or with another person. If you involve too many people, the chances of you getting distracted and losing focus will be very high. Once people begin in conversations, they stop working get distracted and the projects take twice as long. 
  • Reminisce later.  It's ok to reminisce with sentimental items, but don't let it zap your time. Decide whether to keep or toss and then move on. After you get organized, re-visit the items and reminisce about them. 

Without distractions, your project will take you half the time. You will have finished with more energy. You will be motivated and energized to continue and move forward with other projects.

Kristin Carcieri-MacRae, the founder and owner of Organizing in RI, has always enjoyed finding creative ways to streamline the environment around her. She has appeared on air on Patricia Raskin's Positive Business Radio and her articles have been published in the Rhode Island Small Business Journal and New England Home Life. Kristin's CD, Organizing Basics, is a 1-hour guide for the person who wants to get organized but doesn't know where to start. She is also available for organizing workshops. Tune into her weekly radio show, Organize, Energize! on Mondays at 8:30am on http://www.talkstreamradio.com.

  • Spices

    As you take all of the spices out of the cabinet, check for expiration dates and smell for potency. Categorize and itemize your spices to how you utilize them. Contain them in a spice rack that fits the space where they are kept. Don’t purchase a spice rack until you are finished organizing. You want to measure the space and make sure the rack fits and holds all of your spices. There are a variety of spice racks out there. Choose the one that best suits what you need it to hold.

     

  • Makeup

    How many items do you touch in the morning to find what you need?  You want to be as efficient as possible in the morning and having your makeup organized will be a big time saver. Do you have difficulty deciding what to keep or toss? When is it time to throw away makeup?  Aline Sarkis, a Providence, RI-based makeup artist, states lipstick can be used for 2 years or until it starts to smell like a crayon. Mascara is good for 2-3 months. Eye shadow is good for 2 years and foundation is good for 1-2 years. Aline also states that some makeup and skincare will be marked with an expiration date of 6-12 months. Begin counting once you start using the product

     

  • Women: Purse

    Depending on the size of your purse, and what you keep in your purse, this may take you a little longer than 10 minutes. Empty the entire contents of the purse on a table. Declutter, categorize, and itemize the contents. Break this process  down and take it one category at a time. Develop a system going forward so the inside of your purse doesn’t look like a cyclone hit it. Contain receipts, gift cards, money, and makeup.

     

  • Men: Wallet

    It’s time to empty all of the receipts out of your wallet. Do you also store receipts and random items in your car? While you are tackling this project, head over to your vehicle and declutter the center console and glove compartment.

     

  • Underwear drawer

    If you aren’t using drawer organizers, you should start now. They are very inexpensive and will maximize the space in the drawer. How many of you wear the same item over and over again? With drawer organizers in place, you will be able to see everything you own and can categorize and itemize. Nothing will ever get pushed to the bottom of the drawer again.

     

  • Under the bathroom sink

    If you haven’t taken everything out of this area in awhile, you may find some scary items under the sink. Empty the contents, itemize, and categorize. Throw away anything that you can’t recognize. Contain items in containers that fit the space like a puzzle. Once again, utilizing containers will maximize the space and allow you to store more items. Develop a simple system where you can locate items and locate them quickly.

     

  • Pets

    Ninety percent of my clients have a pet. It’s time to organize their belongings. Medicine, leashes, bandanas, clothes, dishes, food, etc. Take this time to also organize any paper work related to your pet. Set up a filing system for your pet. Keep their medical records, rabies and vaccination information categorized in these files.

     

  • Junk drawer

    Nobody says you can’t have a junk drawer. Junk drawers can be organized. You just have to think about if you need everything in this drawer and if there is a better place to store the items. Remember, store like items together. If you have tools in the junk drawer, maybe you should keep them with the tools in the basement.

     

  • Office supply drawer

    So many people have office supply drawers that are out of control. Money is wasted on purchasing duplicate office supplies. It’s very difficult to figure out what you need to purchase if items are scattered all over the office and are disorganized.

     

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