There can be benefits to Attention Deficit Disorder (as with most labeled disorders). ADD is the quality that allows you to switch subjects quickly, to not be confused when the person you’re talking to changes the subject of the conversation abruptly.

If we aren’t practicing mindfulness, in addition to experiencing ADD, it’s common for people to “disassociate.” Disassociating is the experience of thinking about something other than what’s happening in the present moment. The mind tends to be full of things like craving, anger, regrets from the past, or fear of the future, for example. It’s the human experience. The opportunity is to see what our mind is doing: then to notice and adjust, as my sister puts it. We become aware of what we’re thinking – and bring ourselves back to the present moment. Doing this will help us connect our head with our hands and stay more organized.

Being mindful can help us be more aware of our attention (or lack of it) as well as our intention.

In the last 15 years or so, a lot of information has been coming out about the power of intention: of getting clear on what we’re thinking about, focusing on, and working to create in our lives – and drawing those people and circumstances to us who will assist our process in the most beneficial ways. It requires both our attention and our intention to prepare ourselves and be organized and ready to meet new opportunities. Being aware, clear, focused, and organized allows us to grow and evolve into our full potential.

Being mindful also relates to how we organize our time. Many folks struggle to effectively manage their time. Actually, to be accurate, we don’t manage time, of course, we manage our actions and the tasks we carry out in the time we have. This seems like a small point, yet it’s an important one to understand in order to have better “time management” skills. As we become more conscious with our thoughts, our actions and the tasks we carry out  become more organized and our “time management” skills increase.

These are the ways that being more mindful helps us be less distracted and more focused. Cultivating mindfulness in our lives can help us get and stay organized. 

I often write about my five simple steps to organizing, here’s how mindfulness relates to them…

People get disorganized for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it’s because their plates are too full, because they’re managing too much. Sometimes it’s because too much comes in their life and not enough goes out. The solution is Step 1 of my five simple steps to organizing: remove what doesn’t belong. 

There is another reason people get disorganized. They aren’t connecting their head with their hands. They put things here and there without thinking about it. The solution is Step 2 of my five simple steps to organizing: put things in categories, and Step 3: ask yourself, “Where will I look for this first next time?”

Use mindfulness and try “uni-tasking” rather than multi-tasking. As often as you can, practice doing one thing at a time and putting as much of your presence, your awareness, into that one thing.

We’re encouraged to multi-task because that’s supposed to make us get more done, quicker. I’m not so sure this is the case. Often when we move faster, we make more mistakes. Sometimes multi-tasking and moving too fast causes accidents.

Just as multi-tasking doesn’t necessarily cause us to get things done faster, uni-tasking doesn’t cause us to slow down. On the contrary, paying attention and being focused can have the effect of speeding things up. One reason is because we’re less likely to get distracted. And this world offers the potential for A LOT of distractions.

Doctor diagnose folks with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). It’s easy to lose attention and get distracted – and this is one of the things that makes getting and staying organized challenging.

More on this subject on Friday’s post….

Step 3 of my five simple steps to organizing is to ask yourself, “Where will I look for this first, next time.”

I’ll stay with the example I mentioned in Tuesday’s post: exercise. Since doing some form of exercise – like taking a daily walk for 30 minutes – is one of the “big rocks” in my life, I keep my tennis shoes where I know I’ll look for them. I also keep an extra pair in my car, just in case. That way I always know where to find what I need to support one of my goals: good physical health.

Step 4 of my simple steps to organizing is to work from general to specific.

How this relates to your big rocks is that you need to keep an eye on the big picture, in terms of time and tasks, so you don’t get hyper-focused or drawn into the details for too long. For example, if your goal is to create a new business venture, don’t spend four to six hours a day focused on TV. Or if your goal is to organize your office, don’t spend two hours organizing one drawer.

Always be aware of how much, where, and on what you’re spending your time. A common organizing mistake is for people to get into the details too quickly and spend too much time on them. Then they end up frustrated and overwhelmed when they pull back and review the big picture again. The details can be very important, they just need to be attended to at the optimal time and most effectively.

Step 5 of my simple steps to organizing is to keep closest to you what you use most often.

As a small business owner, one of my goals is to keep my bookkeeping organized and up to date. It’s really important to me, so it qualifies as a big rock in my work life. I make the bookkeeping part of the equation as effective, organized and close at hand as possible to facilitate it getting done in a timely way.

This is how I suggest combining the important things in your life – your big rocks – with my Five Simple Steps to Organizing Your Life.

From time to time I talk about my five simple steps to organizing your life. The big rocks and the five simple steps are related, here’s how:

Step 1 of my five simple steps to organizing is to remove what doesn’t belong.

Whether you’re organizing your office, your closet, or reorganizing your emotional life, it’s crucial to clearly identify your big rocks, because these are the items and activities you don’t remove. These are the items you keep firmly in place – and plan other things around. What you remove are the smaller rocks, sand and water.

Step 2 of my five simple steps to organizing is to create categories.

After removing what doesn’t belong, put the things that remain in your life (or office, files, or closet) into categories. By identifying the category each item you keep belongs in, you’ll better understand and define your big rocks.

For example, if exercising daily is important to you, it represents a big rock in your life. So each day you’ll plan to do something in that category. Here’s how that works for me: the other day I cleaned my car – top to bottom, inside and out. It was fun for me. It’s something I enjoy doing for myself, and it also counted as my exercise for the day. It was a big rock that counted in double categories – caring for my car and exercising.

See you on Friday for the continuation of Big Rocks and Five Simple Steps to Organizing.

Identifying the “big rocks” (important activities) in your life is an especially beneficial activity if things have recently changed for you. Transition can be disorienting, it’s also a great opportunity to reassess your big rocks (small rocks, sand, and water!). It’s a time you can make new and significant choices about what’s important.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting.”? Are you satisfied with what you’re doing and what you’re getting?

In this day’s world it’s easy to spend a lot of time on activities such as Facebook, surfing the Internet, and watching TV. These may be good choices for you, depending on your lifestyle, values and needs. However, if these activities are not bringing you what you want in your life, make new choices. I encourage being aware of where your time goes. Don’t just burn time out of boredom or because you’re avoiding something else. (Although this might be fine too – again, just be aware of what you’re choosing to do!) 

Managing email is an activity that is a “big rock” (time consuming activity) in many of our lives. In fact, it can turn into the “sand and water” in the mason jar – if we’re not careful. Checking, reading, responding, pondering, categorizing and retrieving email all take time and energy. For tips on handing email see: Effective Email Organizing Strategies Part 1 and Part 2.

I encourage you to notice where your attention goes and what your intention is. It’s not necessarily what we do, it’s how much we do it, and how we do it – if we have a good attitude or a bad attitude – that makes a difference.

It’s always helpful to know what your big rocks are, however if you are in transition, it’s an especially good time to reassess them. If you don’t know exactly what your big rocks are, you’re probably not making them a priority. Once you know what those activities are, you can organize – or reorganize – your life more effectively. 

Do you remember the Harry Chapin song “Cat’s in the Cradle” from the 1970′s? It was about a man who was always busy working and never had time for his son. The son watched and admired the father and then created the same lifestyle – he never had time for his son.

I mention this song because for most of us, work is the biggest rock in our lives. We live in a time in history and in a society where work can be all consuming. We may be tethered 24/7 to our electronic devices, and work while on vacation. It’s important that we think about what constitutes the other big rocks in our lives – and plan to put them in our schedules so that work doesn’t overshadow everything.

In identifying the big rocks in my life (in my last blog post), I listed things that are important to my health and wellbeing. As a small business owner and writer, there is always work to do. In my former life, I was a Type A workaholic. I worked long hours and put work before my health and wellbeing.

In recent years I’ve been making an effort to create a more deliberate and organized work/play balance. Though I still love working, I’m learning to balance it with taking time to care for my health, develop new skills I love, and also be available to assist family members.

Here are a few big rocks to consider putting – or putting back – in your life:

-  cooking – rather than always eating fast food

-  reading – for learning and leisure

-  enjoying – deliberately taking time to marvel at the beauty and wonder of the world… whether this world is in you (meditation is great for that), or around you (children and pets are especially helpful for this one).

What are other things you used to do that have gone by the wayside? Painting, crafts and jewelry making are activities that come to mind. Or some folks enjoy garage sales and flea marketing…  

You may want to build specific times into your schedule for health, fun and leisure activities, or just become more aware of those activities that bring balance. Either way, it’s good to have a clear understanding of what constitutes your big rocks.

See you for the conclusion of Organizing a Life on Friday …

The students set about the task. In not much time at all there was a lot of noise and laughter as they worked on the assignment. Some of them got a lot of the rocks in their mason jar, while others ended up with more of a mess than anything else.

Finally the teacher stopped them. He walked around the room and looked at the students’ projects. Then he gathered them around and showed them the most effective way to get the materials in: he took one of the big empty mason jars and filled it with the largest rocks first. Then he put the smaller rocks in. Next he poured some sand in. Finally he added water. Now the jar was completely full.

The understanding behind this story relates to how we manage the tasks we carry out in the time we have. To be the most effective in organizing our lives, we first need to identify our big rocks and get them in each day. Do you have a clear understanding of the big rocks in your life?

I’ll share mine:

1. I walk a minimum of 30 minutes a day, 6 days a week. Walking is comfortable for me and makes me – and my dog – feel good.
2. I write an hour a day (minimum), 6 days a week. I love writing and am developing my skills as a writer as a new career, so this is definitely a big rock for me.
3. I meditate an hour a day and have done this for the past decade. I notice that I greatly benefit from this practice, so I keep doing it.
4. I do an Energy Medicine routine daily. It only takes about ten minutes, however it’s a really valuable few minutes a day, so I make sure and get it in. Even though it’s a small amount of time, it’s a big rock.
5. I take one yoga class per week, and stretch about 10 or 15 minutes daily.
6. I assist family members in various activities as the need arises. I make sure and structure my time so that when they need help I am available.

See you Tuesday with a continuation of Organizing a Life…    :)

Most of us are very busy. We work, go to school, manage projects, and assist our family members and friends. We care for our world, participate in community activities, and take care of our health.

And some folks are not as busy. Some are retired and encounter the opposite scenario – there is time to fill. One way or another, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, our time is consumed with various activities.

And this leads me to the story of the instructor who taught a valuable life lesson about time and tasks using various sized rocks… 

One day a high school philosophy teacher had his 30 students participate in an unusual activity. Instead of sitting at their desks while he lectured to them, he invited them to come into a lab. There the students found that the teacher had laid out various materials for them to use to carry out a project. There were 30 sets of rocks of various sizes sitting on big cookie sheets. Next to them were big glass mason jars. Placed in various locations were buckets of sand and water.

Mystified, the students looked at the various materials, then to the teacher, wondering what he was up to. The teacher told his students the project was a simple one: put as many of the rocks into the jars as possible. He told them to have fun and experiment.

To be continued Friday…     :)