4 Ways To Break Your Habits Of Disorganization
Have you ever heard the phrase “a messy desk is a sign of a highly creative person”? This kind of research gives some of us, as visionaries and eager high achievers, a sense of comfort and justification regarding our inherent disorganization.
Though, its comforting influence leaks beyond our physical desk…
We tell ourselves that it’s okay to push off cleaning up our CRM or that improving our processes can wait until we get through this big marketing push or any other number of excuses when it comes to organizing things in our business.
The idea of a streamlined, organized business can sometimes feel so far-fetched that we don’t even want to try to start walking toward it. Albeit, we must take those baby steps.
We know that organization can have positive effects on our business and that disorganization can domino into several adverse effects. So, why do we treat disorganization like it has a neutral impact?
What does disorganization do to our business?
Lowers productivity & time management skills
We are easily impacted by the processes and habits we have in place. And productivity efforts that aren’t backed by efficient processes, easily obtainable information, and overall streamlined operations, can fall as easily as a house made of straw. Disorganization is honestly the big bad wolf that will come knocking every time we’re trying to accomplish something on time. Instead of being able to focus on the task at hand, you’re wasting time trying to find the information you need to move forward.
Hinders goal progress
Goals are similarly impacted by how productive and efficient we can be. Furthermore, the organization helps us clearly understand the vision and mission driving our goals. This helps clear away the “mind clutter” that can lead to mission creep and adding on new goals before accomplishing previously set ones. When we’re disorganized, it is difficult to (a) stay focused on our goals and (b) clearly understand if we’ve accomplished a goal, are making steady progress, or are way off course.
Dilutes employee motivation
Teams succeed with clarity. When everyone knows who is doing what, where they can find easy answers to their questions, and what the next step they are responsible for is, then teams can operate like well-oiled machines. When those factors are muddled by disorganization, then teams struggle to complete projects effectively and can fall into drama and tension which ultimately affects their motivation and the quality of their work
Increases workplace stress
After two years of opening and closing offices during the pandemic, I think we can all agree that there is no reason to add to the list of workplace stressors when we don’t need to. Disorganization in a business can act like dust and clutter in a home. It can only be ignored for so long before it results in complaints, eye-roll-fueled headaches, and anxiety.
Damages client relationships
Beauty is on the inside, right? Eventually, the exterior facade that everything is great will fade as disorganization demands a spotlight. Clients will feel that a business’s inside (operations) are “ugly” and that can lead to distrust, annoyance, and a damaged reputation for an employee and the company brand.
There’s more to an organization than just feeling good about how neat things are. It’s a protective barrier to real, negative impacts in the short-term and the long term. If you’re wondering how to create your shield of organization grab “The Organized Entrepreneur’s Guide” for 5 simple steps to get started.
What can we do to avoid this and stay organized?
Embrace software to leverage an automatic organization
Fully utilizing software like task management boards keeps projects, tasks, deadlines, and more information neatly organized and easily accessible for teams. We recommend Monday.com
Assign process and system owners
Giving specific team members ownership over a process or system creates accountability. Specify who is responsible for ensuring that a process stays streamlined and that team members follow it. This allows quality expectations to stay high while also creating deeper ties for the employee decreasing the likelihood of turnover.
Kindly enforce the organization's expectations
Beyond process ownership, creating expectations for where and how files should be stored is important. Without some kind of consequence, then team members are not likely to follow through. Consequences do not need to be heavy - for example, if you have a specific nomenclature you want to be followed for all client files and you receive a file that does not follow this, ask the team member to rename it and properly file it in the shared folder before you review it.
Create regular check-ins for the organization
Even if we create expectations, there are going to be missteps. What’s important is that we don’t allow those to continue for too long or we will get to a point where we don’t have the mental energy to address it. Block out time for yourself or your team to clean files, CRMs, task boards, etc. so that you never fall too far behind.