[transient]

I have a serious issue that I need to address. I don't have time in 45 minute sessions to work on this topic with my therapist, and online guides / tips don't rub off on me. It makes everything seem so easy when it's not!

I can't get organized for the life of me! And I'm procrastinating my life away
My memory is getting worse over the years due to cptsd & other MI's, and it's messing with my ability to set and complete goals, such as getting organized / cleaning my room, making steps towards better self care etc. My memory is actually so bad that I can forget about certain people's existence until a memory pops up randomly (something that plays a part in this is that I have no true friends where I live, and the ones I do have are back in the state I used to live in, or are online. so it's kinda "out of sight, out of mind"), I have trouble remembering what I ate the day before, what day it is, if I just said something out loud or if I thought it, etc.

• I can make to-do lists and immediately forget about them. Even if I put them somewhere I can see it, I'll see it but I won't notice it and form the connection that "oh! I have to do these things today!"

• Even if I do notice the to-do list, a lot of the times I'll think "I don't want to do this right now, I'll do it later", or I won't have the spoons to do it.

• my to-do lists pile up and I have a ton of them hidden under papers, 90% of them I haven't even crossed one item off of it!

• I have papers all over the place (on my desk next to this computer, on the table with my plants next to my desk, on a TV tray, and in two stackable containers in my bookshelf) and two mostly empty binders and dividers to put them in. But I cannot get the willpower to put the papers where they belong.

A few things that play into my procrastinating & not being able to get organized are:

• My mindset and whether I'm ready to cope with looking through my things to see what needs to be thrown away.
  I am poor, but it was worse growing up, and I keep a lot of things I don't need "just in case". ★★ It's been observed that hoarders are more likely to be in the poor demographic, because when you don't have a lot of money, you keep more things than the average person in case it can be of use later.

• The amount of different colors in the room affects me (the more colors the easier I get upset / unable to focus, etc). My room is really colorful with the amount of things I have in here. I'm an artist (not currently creating because I can't do it in a messy room!) so I have a shelf of supplies, and my paintings are very colorful. ★ I just took them down, though, so I can put them up when my room is organized

• I read somewhere that procrastination is a form of self-defense when you're a perfectionist and are afraid of the outcome you create. That's definitely part of my issue.

• I end up looking through my things instead of actually organizing and throwing unneeded things away. If I find something that's related to a painful experience of mine in any way, I automatically want to stop organizing.

There are certain things I procrastinate more than others, and that's things related to self-care. I also put off making therapy and doctors appointments for a few reasons, and I put off attempting to make certain baby steps towards being an independent young adult. I procrastinate contacting my friends back (due to social anxiety) so badly that sometimes it can be a few months before I contact them, and a lot of the time I simply forget.
It's been 3 ½ years since I dropped out of high school and got a GED, I don't have a job or go to college, and though it's not within my ability to right now anyway, I put off looking into what type of college it would need to be, and I put off taking the steps towards working up to getting a job (i.e. working on anxiety and paranoia in public).
My aunt also gave me an idea to make my own money so I can leave my toxic household, which is to write and illustrate children's stories. I loved the idea and want to do it, but like a lot of my hobbies, I procrastinate them. I have ideas for stories but I procrastinate writing them so badly that in 2 years of wanting to write a book, I've only written a terrible short story. I procrastinate making art even if I have the space and ideas. This all makes my free time quite unfulfilling.


My goals right now are to get my room organized and to get better with not procrastinating, small tasks first. If anyone has any tips that have worked for them, I'd love to hear what you have to say! If you're like me and you have some similar issues, feel free to talk about it.
I'm going to try to update in this thread- if I don't forget about it, that is.

[CANDC]

I find procrastination is related to the amount of energy I have. Doing exercises or yoga and maintaining a health diet keep me on track.
I have a list of the 10 most important things I want to do this week. I work on number one until I finish it or the day is over and break them down into subcategories if necessary.
I had a serious illness that I thought I would not survive. But I got it through it because I did not procrastinate any more. When I realized this could be my last day on earth I learned about motivating myself.

[Revu2]

Transient, I really appreciate this thread. I have lots of tips that I work at weaving into my own decluttering project at the moment.

Creating a system for keeping what is essential. For instance, I am going thru paper files (p-files) and folders from my years as a consultant. I did some great work, and I find flipping through a binder better for inspiring current ideas than searching my computer files (c-files). Also some of my c-files are in an old format (appleworks and clarisworks) that is no longer 'supported' so getting to them is a bit of a pain. Therefore, I made some rules:
A. I keep just one copy of my best work.
B. Put this copy in a plastic sleeve and place in a binder for organizing later.
C. Everything else can go.
D. The goal is to reduce a 10-inch p-file stack to 2 inches or less in line with the 20/80 rule: 20% of something contributes 80% of the benefit.

Another tip: some things are simply outmoded. These are the easiest. I look through beloved articles clipped long ago briefly one more time and say my goodbyes.

With the internet, there are so many things that people are willing to share that you don't have to keep it around "until it may be needed." There are book sharing site like paperback swap, local tool libraries, public libraries, etc. People say they would like to come see my library. I say they don't need an appointment, it's the university library just down the road from my house.

For my own project: I have one shelf, and two long file drawers on deck. I am a bit more inspired to get to them. This is also therapy for me as I find writing or talking about my strategies sometimes makes them even stronger.

[Kehinde]

Try setting small daily goals

[hvert]

Set a timer for five minutes. Like, when you think 'Oh, I should go through those papers,' the minute you think that, take the five minutes right then and there to go through the papers.

Eventually you may progress to 10 or 15 minute chunks. Just take baby steps.

Exercise helps also -- i am not sure how or why, but when I was taking 2-3 30 minute walks per day, I somehow got more done than when I don't walk at all.

What you said about the colors was interesting -- I think I've noticed something similar in myself but I haven't thought about that before. For me, having a clear, uncluttered room is much more peaceful. I wish I had just one room like that...

[Perna]

I would do something simple first, like find all the old to-do lists and throw them away. Don't stop to read any other papers, just glance at each piece and identify if it is a to-do list or not and then trash it (don't read it either!). You can make to-do lists as good or better than previous ones any day of the week so the old ones are just trash now.

Pile things "neater". Grab a pile and separate it into other piles, magazines in one, books in one, notebooks and office/art supplies in one, bills in one, stuff you want immediately/daily in one. Think a little bit about each pile but not too much. For example, do you notice a pile of previous work that goes together? (I just took a class and had classwork but the class is over now) Do you need it now? Stick that pile on a shelf or in a bag/box/drawer.

Put the books away on a shelf or in front of a bookshelf, closer to other books. Grab the magazines and quickly page through, not stopping to read, tear out the pages that you cannot live without, put them in the bills/immediate/daily pile and throw away the rest of the magazine! There will be more magazines with the same old same old. Any pile of "supplies" put near your other supply shelf, etc.

Now look around and make sure you have "paths" to all parts of the room You should be a bit cheered because things should be starting to look a bit more organized. Just grab single piles or "like" objects and deal with them.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by Perna

I would do something simple first, like find all the old to-do lists and throw them away. Don't stop to read any other papers, just glance at each piece and identify if it is a to-do list or not and then trash it (don't read it either!). You can make to-do lists as good or better than previous ones any day of the week so the old ones are just trash now.

But...but... i was gonna make a collage out of all my old to-do lists. Also my old weight loss prediction schedules...

[transient]

I'm going to have to use all the advice everyone gave me, thank you!

I stopped putting off calling and making appointments today, I have them scheduled and I'm a little proud of myself for it.

I've noticed that I procrastinate when I have lower energy levels, too. Unfortunately it tops 100 degrees a day here, so the only excercise I can get is in the pool. Even then, I've been to sick to go swimming.
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[hvert]

Hankster --- there is someone here who DID make an art project out of to-do lists! I loved her exhibit - it included temporary tattoos of a random to-do list

Transient, congratulations on making your appointments -- and I hope it cools down there!!

[transient]

I don't know what's wrong with me. I know what I have to do, and besides not having the energy, I just don't do it. I can't do it for some reason. It could be the psychotic symptoms that are coming around again, but even then, I've been like this when I was in a depressive cycle and not a psychotic one. I'm angry at myself for not being able to do it, and I'm tired of living in a room that I hate because it's so messy!
I need to re-arrange my room because the flow is terrible and my plants aren't getting enough sun.

Today I got about as far as taking off my dirty sheets and putting them in the hallway.

[hvert]

Move the plants to a sunny spot first. You don't have to rearrange the whole room to do that -- just a little part of it. Hopefully you can just put them on the window sill or stick a table or chair in front of the window and put the plants on it?

I find that when I have a big task, like 'put the garden to bed,' I never get started because it is so overwhelming. If I make it a smaller task, like 'pick the tomatoes that are left and pull the plants,' then I can do that because it only takes 30 minutes or so.

[SmileHere]

Ohh how I can relate!

I've been putting off organizing the attic. I just have soo many things there! (old art and art supplies too, books, clothes, old Granny's pots and pans...) And need to make it into a livable place again!
The tricky part is changing the purpose of the two rooms - one used to be a bedroom and the other a computer room, now it would be vice versa. Ahh!
Maybe just needed to vent!

What was really helpful before was Julie Morgenstern's book Organizing from the Inside Out. She speaks about finding a 'home' for everything. And that even if it seems cluttered, it may be organized, if you can actually find things (sometimes I couldn't lol).

I also have files and boxes of past interests... (I'm a scanner/multipotentialite - person with many interests!)

Yay for baby steps and doing what you can!! How has this gone, Transient?