Start and Finish the Job. I just read a book called Speed Cleaning by Jeff Campbell. He claims to be able to reduce weekly housework to less than 45 minutes and I'm eager to try out his techniques. A basic philosophy he uses is already familiar to me because I use it in my organizing work. It may be familiar to you too. This is the principle of outlining a project, gathering the necessary tools and then working on it until it's finished.

This is a very simple methodology but it's very hard for many people to do. Often the current task reminds you of something else and it's hard to exclude this task from your project, or it's hard to refrain from doing parts of the project that involve leaving the area (putting things away in another room, for instance).

In his book, Campbell keeps reminding the reader not to leave whatever spot she's in until the job at hand is completed. Even if your scrubbing pad is getting disgustingly dirty, don't stop working to go to the sink and rinse it; that's a waste of time. Campbell's technique is all about efficient use of motion and time. Organizing should be this way too. Cleaning is a task one can be easily distracted from because it's not much fun. Sadly, organizing can be this way too.

Start Here. So why does Campbell's method work so well? He tells you where to start. In each room there's a specific place to start. He understands that it's important to get to work and keep working and that people can be derailed by something as simple as deciding what corner to clean first. Sound familiar? This ranks very high among the problems my clients deal with (I wrote a whole article about it in June). Another reason it works is that he tells you exactly what to do when you're in that spot, whichever spot you're in. This means you have a set list of tasks to check off so you know when you are done and can move on to the next thing. Organizing is not always quite as cut and dried as that, but generally speaking if you're clearing out a drawer, you're clearing out a drawer and nothing else.

Stop Thinking! The main reason I think his system works is that you learn it and pretty soon come to memorize it. This is good not only because you can do it more quickly without looking at the book, but you can work more quickly and efficiently if YOU AREN'T STOPPING TO THINK ABOUT EVERY LITTLE THING. It's become a habit. I've hammered away in previous issues at the notion of habit building to ease your organizing. What if you spent a few minutes every night contemplating the pros and cons of brushing your teeth? Or if you stopped to decide whether or not to put groceries away when you return from shopping? Not only would you waste a heck of a lot of time, but you'd be completing overloading yourself with unnecessary to-dos. Tooth brushing isn't on your to do list because you just do it. You don't have to think about it. Isn't that nice? The time it would take you to think about it is probably more than the time it takes you to do it.

Speed Organizing. The good news is that organizing can be that way. Not all at once, most likely, but you can build up to it. Make it a habit to put your keys down next to the front door every time you come in. It may take you a few weeks if you're totally unused to it. You have to set up a spot that's convenient, not a fussy little hook or a drawer that would take you two hands to use. It has to be a spot you can drop them onto or into as you're running past to answer the phone. In a few weeks you'll be doing it every day. And then, magically, you won't even think about it anymore. It won't be a burden to remember to do it AND you'll always know where your keys are. You can do it. Just start.

Take Care,
Claire