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Personal Environment: What's so Funny About Order, Organization & Cleaning?

thinksimplenow.com — I believe that we are a product of our environment. The physical environment in which we spend our time affects how we think and feel. I know the environments in which I feel especially creative and relaxed. Personally, they give me the most effective amount of a creative energy boost. Clutter in my environment negatively affect my performance.

Who dugg this? Made popular Nov 30, 2007

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  • CompIsMyRx, on 11/30/2007, -0/+11It's not filth, it's a very complex filing system. To the outsider, it may appear to be random, but remove an item and it will be noticed.
  • inactive, on 11/30/2007, -2/+10I'm lucky that the love of my life has ADD. I have OCD. She will leave windows/doors, cupboards/cabinets open. She'll forget where her keys are, or forget to place that dirty dish in the dishwasher or sink. I go around and close those windows/doors, or cupboards/cabinets. I always place keys on the key-rack, no matter where I find them, and I place every dish in the dishwasher after it's used... No, not out of anger or to make a point... Out of love. :)

    Complimentary mental illnesses FTW!!!
  • Danoz, on 11/30/2007, -0/+7I came same realization as the article writer about a month ago. I had way too much ***** in my room and i had lost the remote for my stereo 3 months earlier and i couldn't find it in there, it was a giant mess.
    Anyways it took me an entire day to clean it properly, i threw out alot of junk and things i haven't worn or used for a long time. (side note: i have/had a bad habit of keeping boxes for everything, boxes for motherboards, camera's and useless junk... i'd lose the thing i bought but still have the goddamn box for it)
    Now its much easier to clean it as i make the mess. i might spend 2 minutes a day cleaning and its still perfectly clean. its a much better way of living.
  • rhinopig, on 11/30/2007, -3/+8Then why is it that often the most creative and intelligent people (einstein, erdos, musicians, etc.) practically live in there own filth (both environmental and hygienic)?

    Hint: It's because they are busy thinking about the fun and important things, not uesless things like 'i need to clean'.

    But I guess some people have trouble filtering the meaningful from the meaningless (I'd be interested to see a study comparing a persons cleanliness/OCD with they're scores on a stroop test, for example.)
  • mhlcoaching, on 11/30/2007, -1/+5I just renovated the environment in my bedroom and I sleep so much better! Good article!
  • superdoofus, on 11/30/2007, -1/+5Meh. I manage quite well without realm-based/biased dictum...as do many others not afflicted with OCD.
  • evildeadguy, on 11/30/2007, -0/+3Dugg for Elvis Costello reference
  • inactive, on 11/30/2007, -0/+3Every minute obsessing over "cleanness" could be spent on work.
    But on the other hand the 30 second rule does save time and eliminates a lot of junk.
  • mal1964, on 11/30/2007, -0/+2Reading it was easy.
  • webcure, on 11/30/2007, -0/+2Thanks.
    I had a few in here that asked where the original title went.
    I liked this title, and I like the song 'What's so funny about peace, love, and understanding' as well.
  • artsyave, on 11/30/2007, -0/+2hahaha.. that's very cute! Thanks for sharing! :)
  • theWrkncacnter, on 11/30/2007, -0/+2Peace, love, and understanding.
  • artsyave, on 11/30/2007, -2/+3How to Cure PackRat-itis!
    I used to be quite a pack rat. I seldom threw anything away. I loved to take home everything I could get for free, such as promotional items from work, or odds-and-ends donated from friends. It became a mountain of just Stuff. The stuff not only cluttered my living space, but also my inner space.. and fogged up my mental clarity.

    Once I realized this, I started to take clutter seriously. By making a conscious effort to regularly organizing various parts of my home.
    Keeping the surfaces clean has been the most effective technique. So simple.
    The little things really do add up and make a difference.
  • Zoshchenko, on 11/30/2007, -0/+1Hire a professional organizer. Go to the NAPO website to find one near you: http://www.napo.net
  • selfobsessed, on 11/30/2007, -1/+2All the things my mom still tells(yells) at me to do.

    Although it doesn't work in my room, I have a habit of going and cleaning other people's homes, including friends and family.
  • Sepherade, on 11/30/2007, -0/+1just like an empty white sky on a grey day, depressing. Give me loud happy music and colourful clutter any day, its the difference between a neat regimented garden and a meadow full of wildflowers.
  • 89992, on 12/03/2007, -0/+1Very similar to eastern ideas of Feng Shui.
  • Gambit89, on 11/30/2007, -0/+1Sounds like you're hinting about The Cave:

    http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2006/07/10/a ...
  • SeaHunt5, on 11/30/2007, -0/+1I agree with Adam. I liked the original title much better. The new one is confusing. I thought I had made a mistake and hit the wrong key. Sure some of the concepts are not new but we have to remember there will always be people younger than us who are just learning.

    RhinoPIG, what you wrote became meaningless as I read all the misspelled words, lacking punctuation and poor grammar.
    Yes people, it has been medically documented that a clean, uncluttered environment greatly improves the ADD patient, lowering stress and improving concentration. Dr. Kathleen Nadeau supports it. So lay off the people who feel they have found some relief from these suggestions. You seem to be looking for justification of your own "filth". One of the reasons I subscribed to LifeHacker was the multitudinous articles on refining things, programs, systems, personal actions. It is all focused on improving the techniques and technology we already have.
  • BeagleBob, on 02/22/2008, -0/+0You could not be more right. Thank goodness my wife is an expert organizer and I have to say that I have learned from her. Our environment also boost our creative abilities, adds to our health and over all happiness. Keep up the good work. BeagleBob
  • inactive, on 11/30/2007, -1/+1I'm so OCD that I point out my own spelling mistake. The usage of the word "complimentary" that I want is "complementary," not "complimentary." :)
  • adamtait, on 11/30/2007, -1/+1Wonderful article! I feel lost in the pile of stuff surrounding my desk..... if only I could get someone to follow me around and clean up after me!
    I liked the original title... how come that didn't make digg?
  • Nevarius, on 11/30/2007, -1/+1Not exactly new, but good never the less for peeps that don't know. Not to mention useful for people with ADD, OCD or any other mental defect for structure and its mood lifting effect.
  • larcher01, on 11/30/2007, -1/+0how do you spell "condescending?"
  • larcher01, on 11/30/2007, -3/+1as per IpsoPhatso87 above - I am the ADD, and my wife is the OCD... and it totally works, although she sometimes thinks te scale is a little tilted.
    here's something for all you clutter-bugs....
    www.eradicatedcarbon.com

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