So how is your organizing coming along? I hope you are doing well and getting things accomplished.

The energy of the new year brings about many possibilities for self-improvement, but challenges that you have encountered before may again prevent you from achieving a life that is clutter free. Old behavior that at one time may have helped us and supported us may no longer serve our higher good. Looking at our old behavior will shed some light into what we need to give up in order to break through to a new level of conquering clutter.

Celebrating 10 years of being an organizing consultant this month, I have noticed one common factor that prevents many clients from moving forward: It’s adrenaline. This sense of feeling alive, energized and on the go makes one feel important and takes away feelings of inadequacy or inability when you’re trying to get organized. When adrenaline is produced in the body it has numerous effects, such as dilating the blood vessels and stimulating the heart rate. Who knows what it does to the mind — and in turn to the overall pattern of wanting to change your life. It becomes a false sense of accomplishment and of being in control of your surroundings.

I recently went to the office of a successful real estate agent in San Francisco.  The office manager had called me in and said that the agent needed to improve her work habits or they would have to let her go. Even though this agent was successful, her bad habits were affecting the office. Her clients were never allowed in her office, only the conference room. Her support team was anxious and tired of working late every night.   

When I arrived in her office, everywhere you looked were plans, legal files, books, coffee cups, etc. There was no flat surface space available. When the woman met me, she was resentful, totally uncooperative and angry that she couldn’t spend her Saturday with her family. I was ready to leave until I brought her into the conference room to discuss what was working and what wasn’t working. She calmed down and shared with me her dilemma.  

I discovered that she had never learned any organizing skills. She always had an assistant to help out and because she was very bright, hardworking and demanding of herself, she always delivered. Now everyone around her was urging her to change her habits, her assistant wanted to leave, and she was having very little quality time with her family. She thought this was the price one pays for success.

It is quite common for adrenaline junkies to mistake frenzied activity with productivity, and when you are highly stressed from your job, you would sooner avoid  admitting this, run around frantically, feel alive and then become exhausted or worried. When I was able to organize her space and work with her assistance rather than against it, she could slow her mind down and have the quality of life she so desired. She began to see that how she was living was certainly going to take its toll on her health and mental well-being. She needed to change and when she saw how easy it was she was along for the ride.

Looking at your behavior will help you gain insight on how the organizing process is coming along. What you think is good or what has served you for a long time may not be the best thing for you. Be open to the numerous possibilities that await you and see what it brings. Getting started in this process and tackling a little at a time will ensure that you are making the changes that ensure a better quality of life.

Lanna Cairns is the author of  “Organizing for Your Brain Type” and “Every Child Has a Thinking Style.”  Her Web site is www.organizedworld.com. E-mail questions to info@organized world.com or Call 524-9896.