Can Reading Impact Your Job Performance? - Calldrip
As we get older and life gets busier, reading quickly moves down on the priority list. Then as...
At one point or another we have all walked into a room that has been completely overrun by stuff. Pictures covering walls, objects spread across the floor, and some type of item to be found at every turn. We may feel anxious, uneasy, guilty, overwhelmed, exhausted, or frustrated without fully recognizing why. When we are bombarded with excessive stimuli our senses are forced to work in overdrive to compensate for the chaos. Our mind will not allow our body to fully relax because in the back of our head there is work left undone, and it doesn’t take long for someone to either remove themselves from the situation or change their surroundings to bring some serenity back into their lives (i.e. declutter).
Now take this same disarray, and digitize it. Does it feel any different to you? The truth of the matter is, most people don’t recognize the toll that digital clutter plays on their psyche as easily as they do with physical clutter. Yet digital disorder has the same effect on your brain as the physical chaos. Such unfinished business stays in your consciousness and makes you feel disempowered, fatigued, or hopeless. Computer files, notifications from Twitter and Facebook, or anything else that alerts you with a ding, light, or nudge fights for your attention and makes it more difficult for you to focus on the task at hand. New York Times best selling author, Mark Hurst, puts things into perspective when he said: “When you have to-do items constantly floating around in your head or you hear a ping or vibrate every few minutes from your phone, your brain doesn’t get a chance to fully enter creative flow or process experiences. When your brain has too much on its plate, it splits its power up. The result? You become awful at filtering information, switching quickly between tasks, and keeping a strong working memory.”
Although clutter has been shown to negatively affect your performance, it is your perception of the clutter that truly matters. If you are happy with your space and able to easily find what you need when you need it, then you are adequately well-organized. Researchers have found that some people need more of a mess in their surroundings than others to feel inspired and get work done. Take for example, Albert Einstein or Steve Jobs. Both extremely successful in their own rights, and both have what most would consider a cluttered work area. Compare them to minimalist Graham Hill, founder of TreeHugger who gave up his million dollar mansion for a 420 square foot apartment that only has the bare necessities. Or Adam Baker, founder of Man vs. Debt who sold everything he owned to pay off consumer debt and travel the world as a family, fitting all of his possessions into two small backpacks.
There is one phrase that sums up this minimalistic attitude perfectly, and that is:
dealing with less is much easier than trying to organize more.
In order to keep your digital clutter to a minimum, take a look at 10 common areas of excess and how to simplify them.
Bonus Tip – If you are not careful, social media can take over your life. There will always be something new you can consume, someone new to follow, or something new to tweet. Set a limit, whether it is how many people you follow on Twitter or the number of groups you join on facebook. Unsubscribe to blogs that are no longer updated or relevant in your life. By limiting the amount you are taking in allows you to actually enjoy more of what you consume and keep up with the people you truly care about. And an added bonus? You are spending less time plugged in and more time living.
Whether you opt to take each point and get totally organized with it before moving on to the next, or whether you choose to do it all at once by participating in a digital detox for a solid week, getting your digital life under control is crucial for your well-being and success. Find a system that works for you and keep up with it.
Michelle is the Content Marketing Manager at Calldrip. When she's not producing great content she enjoys reading, running, traveling, and spending time with her family.