Katie Explains

I’ve spent much of my life envying people who seem to have it together — organized, on time, cautious, well-dressed (and without cat hair, lint, dandruff, etc. upon their clothes). The kind of people who have no problem working first and playing later.

As much as I have tried, (watching television WHILE I write this for instance) stray hairs are upon my clothes and I have never been able to be the strictly organized, on time, "work before play" person I have so much envied.

Turns out, those super “together” people I’ve been jealous of were born with innate abilities for discipline & order. It comes EASY to them because if they don’t do these things, they get anxious and annoyed. Life becomes hard. These people (my sister for instance) are uncomfortable being messy. They aren’t happy unless they are crossing things off lists, making sure their outfits are put together, their world ordered, filed away, clean. It’s simply who they are.

Not me. When it comes to being organized and together, I’m usually described as lazy, disorganized, forgetful, spacy, etc. And it’s mostly true. But I’m also mostly organized, usually on time, careful, stylish, and have an innate ability to finish projects at the last minute with great results. What I’ve found, and others discovered long before I was born — Jung, Meyers, Briggs, Benzinger, Kiersey, Bates, Native American Mythology — is that, um, people are just born different.

We all have different personalities and preferences, and when we learn what they are and to follow and accept them, we can then put aside our preconceptions of that organized, prompt, well dressed example of perfection, and become a realistic version of being organized and “together” that works for us.

Yes, I like to watch TV when I do my “homework” and I do it late at night and not in the morning when my sister is hard at work and I’m often still sleeping. Yes, I don’t know where EVERYTHING is in my house, and I could stand to go through my closet again. But I know where my important papers are, I have a list of essential numbers taped to the inside of my kitchen cupboards, and I’m living the busiest time in my life (two kids, a new business, a writing career). It’s a very busy, very full, and very enjoyable life. And when I’m being myself, it’s easy.

So, when it comes to finding organization solutions for your home and your life, implement systems that work for YOU. If writing things on your hand helps you remember things, then do it, convention be damned. My sister saw Richard Branson (the gazillionaire) on CNBC the other day and he had a reminder written on his hand. Know and accept who you are (the real you, not the one you envy). If you do, you’ll find solutions come easier to you. It’s not magic, but when it’s done right, your life will sparkle with Pixie magic. Trust us. Life should be easy.