How To Be More Organised In The Midst of Chaos

Life is hectic. The older I get, the more I’ve come to expect life to be busy and to get even busier. Both my work and personal responsibilities increase the kinds of activities I am engaged in, add to that any goals and ambitions that I am pursuing, sprinkle it with unexpected challenges and suddenly the 13-15 hours of my day becomes a back to back struggle to complete and finish. That’s why I’ve made it mission to increase my level of organisation in the midst (of what can be) chaos.

Have a time and place for everything, and do everything in its time and place, and you will not only accomplish more, but have far more leisure than those who are always hurrying.” Tryon Edwards

Every task we engage in on a regular basis must somehow be synchronised with the rest of our lives. We can no longer wish away what we don’t desire to do, as though it will simply disappear, like a dream we cannot remember. Our activities must be scheduled and we must endeavour to see their completion during a specific time and space.

I have the benefit of working from home which means that I can choose my working hours. I also have the responsibility of caring for two children and managing all administrative and financial matters pertaining to my household. This is no easy feat. I suppose climbing Mount Everest would be effortless in comparison. It means that my time has to be planned to precision if I want to stay organised, and so slotting my duties in at particular times enables me to stay on track. So for instance, laundry is now best executed on the weekends, blog writing in the mornings, work during the day and the majority of phone calls I dial when I am mobile. There is a rhythm in which I had to find myself in and even if it’s just for a period of time, this is the beat that I am now dancing to.

Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” Albert Einstein

The more pressurised we become, the more we are cornered into making a single decision: fight or flight? Do we contend with the situation and hope to win by pressing on in the face of adverse circumstances or do we find a way out and quickly before we are gobbled up by the big green hairy frog. Let me use a simple illustration – the laundry.

Laundry never ends and the more members in a household, the more complex it becomes. Socks suddenly become divorced and after a long fight, the coloured clothes start bleeding – it’s guerrilla warfare. The process of sorting, washing, drying, folding and ironing can become truly intimidating. I recently won the war when I grabbed the opportunity to wash and fold absolutely everything and from there I developed a system. I realised that each stage of the laundry needed it’s own time and attention and could be completed in bite-sized chunks. So the laundry cycle now starts on a Friday and 3-4 washes later it ends on a Monday morning with daily maintenance scheduled during the week.

It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.” Leonardo da Vinci

I’m so inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci. Famously known for painting the Mona Lisa and The Lord’s Supper. I’ve only recently discovered that he didn’t know his biological father and because of that he was forbidden from learning Greek or Latin. Also, because he didn’t know his father he couldn’t aspire to become a doctor or a lawyer. But despite this handicap, he is cited as one of the greatest genius’ of all time. Why? Because his didn’t let his handicap control him or decide his limitations.

What type of chaos have you been experiencing recently? How has it hindered your ability to just get things done? Or are you also benefiting from changing the way you used to do things. I would love to hear from you. Feel free to email me or leave a comment below.