When I’m not doing anything else, I’m cleaning up
— @gtdguy
I don’t usually work in a neat fashion. Whether I’m writing an essay, arranging flowers, or making guacamole, I wind up strewing stuff all over the place. If you were to walk into my office while I was working or thinking about something, you’d likely see notes, books, and files strewn around somewhat randomly; a mind-map on my computer screen; and doodles and words scrawled on my whiteboard. When I really get involved in something and my creative juices start flowing, it’s likely to look like something exploded in the middle of it. I have a singular focus, but the process doesn’t seem orderly until it’s done. My best work happens that way. Yours will too.
But if you’re already in a mess, you’re not free to make one. If you have a desk piled with unfinished, unclear work; if you’re trying to repair something in your garage with tools and incomplete projects strewn everywhere; if you’ve got a thousand unprocessed emails on your computer; or if you’ve just got a lot of issues and situations on your mind, you’re going to be laboring under a serious handicap.