By Mike Johnson
Yesterday, I invested an hour eliminating piles in my office.
I’m generally neat and tidy – clutter makes me anxious.
But over time, unresolved notes, lists and paperwork piles up.
I’m a fan of handling paper just once.
Look at it, deal with it, file it or trash it.
But the trickiest stuff sometimes sits.
And sits.
And sits.
I find it amazing, that I can be fully retired, free of all responsibilities, yet someone I don’t even know, can force me to dance with their paperwork.
Update credit card information.
Reply to some insurance inquiry.
Renew or upgrade some service.
I imagine 5% of the world never responds.
Especially grizzly old geezers who are off the grid.
I’m not yet 100% that guy, but I share his DNA.
Anyway, a clear desk and orderly space feels freeing in a hundred ways.
Order clears your mind.
A clean area is inspiring.
Especially when you return to it fresh the next morning.
It feels like a clean school desk where you lift the top and the inside is stocked with new, unopened school supplies.
You’re ready to take on any new task or chase any new learning.
So clear the decks.
If you haven’t dealt with that paper in a couple weeks, you likely never will.
Move it along.
My biggest piles are idea notes.
Things that pop into mind or appear during daily research, that I want to tinker with more deeply.
But don’t.
So they pile up.
I eventually put them into an idea folder.
In a drawer.
Out of sight.
Every so often I pull out that folder and play.
I find that I enjoy that play the most -- or any other activity -- when the desk and office are cleared of all clutter.
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