Time Management Tuesday: Okay. Let's Go Over This Purge Business Again

We're on Day 13 of this year's October purge. As you can see, we're not quite halfway through the month, and the dreck we don't need is piling up.

What Does Stripping Your Environment Of Unnecessary Material Items Have To Do With Managing Time?

Last year I wrote about the Environmental Disorder Leads to Self-Regulatory Failure study. I found the following quote related to it: " ...people who sat by a messy desk that was scattered with papers felt more frustrated and weary and took nearly 10% longer to answer questions in a color-and-word-matching task, in comparison with those who were seated by a neatly arranged desk."

Okay, you may say. That's a good reason to purge my desk. But why the whole house?

Because many writers work in our homes. Many writers also have day jobs or families or both. We don't have all the time in the world to write to begin with. If our extended environment is causing frustration and weariness, impairing self-regulation, that's going to impact how effectively we can use our time.

There are all kinds of of nonwork-related reasons for getting rid of material things you don't use. But we only deal with time here, so I'll pass on that.

I have fifteen more days of stuff to get out of this place. We haven't gotten to the big stuff yet.