Out of Chaos an organizing newsletter

It’s Like Winning

A few weeks ago, a friend wrote me a note saying the most wonderful thing: “I like to complete things. It’s like winning.”

Me, too. But one of the most common problems I see in my work are projects that are started but never finished. It doesn’t matter whether you pulled out the Windex and then the phone rang, or you started collecting tile samples and then stalled on the bathroom reno project: Having a bunch of incomplete projects laying around can add up to more clutter.

I know a lot of my clients are visual people, and they think that if they put the Windex away they’ll never clean that mirror, or if they put the tile samples away they’ll never take the next step on that bathroom makeover. But I’m here to tell you, there are other ways than tripping over your projects to make sure you stay on track.

Don’t let a five-minute distraction throw you off. If the phone rings, make sure you return to your task as soon as you hang up, so you can cross it off your list. (Or, don’t answer. If it’s urgent, they’ll leave a message and you can call back.) Depending on who called, you might be able to do your task while you’re on the phone. Because completing the work, even if it’s as simple as cleaning the mirror, is like winning, and it feels good to finish something.

Bigger projects can get put on hold for all kinds of reasons—budget issues, permit problems, disagreement or paralysis over key decisions. Analyze why you got stalled and either get moving or be honest and decide to stash the related clutter because you aren’t going to do anything for at least six months.

You can handle all kinds of in-between projects the same way—jig-saw puzzles, college searches, filing, shredding, half-knitted sweaters, laundry. Ask yourself the tough questions: Why am I putting this off? Do I want to do it? Will I ever do this—and if so, when? Can I put it away and add the next step to a list? Should I just throw it away or donate it?

When I work with clients to tackle a heinous task they’ve been avoiding, they always tell me it wasn’t as bad as they’d feared. And now that it’s done, they feel great. Because my friend was right—completing something is like winning. So assess your half-done projects. Many of them will probably be easier to finish than you think. The rest might not be worth finishing. You might be able to pitch them, or at least pack them away for another time. And in my book, less clutter is definitely winning.