True Confessions Wednesday: Loving My Styles?

True confession #9: I don’t always love my styles. No, I am not renouncing everything I’ve been saying all along. I’ve learned to embrace my styles, to utilize them, and to create strategies that work with them. All of these things have contributed to me being much more organized with much less effort.

But, when I am overwhelmed and time is short, I revert to their less useful side. I start to drop and run. Instead of trusting my well-crafted lists, I allow reminders to collect in piles because there is a certain solace in seeing what needs to be done and an even greater satisfaction in putting it all away just so when the tasks are complete.

Still, it frustrates me that things aren’t perfect, leading me to overlook a not-so-obvious fact.

Every style has both flaws and attributes.

On the plus side, my I need to see it personal style has led me to take color coding to a whole new level while recognizing my drop and run organizational style has removed my guilt over not using tools like binders and file cabinets well. More important, understanding my styles has brought me to a larger conclusion: that things like binders and file cabinets are simply tools. I they don't work for me, I’m not broken. I just need a different tool.

This is true for the other styles as well. Those with a cram and jam organizational style are great at utilizing space – especially small spaces — and consistently putting things in the same place.  Learning to transfer those concepts to organizational systems that don’t leave things squished and smashed and torn allows cram and jammers to put what comes naturally to work.

Those who put things in safe places (those with an I know I put it somewhere organizational style) have the basic concept of putting things away and need only to become more methodical in that practice. People who embody the I love to be busy personal style often manage time very well; working toward managing their space with the same efficiency and utilizing small pockets of time to do so polishes that strength. Finally, those with an I love stuff personal style have the gift of seeing treasure in mundane things.

When piles abound or we can't remember what safe place we put something in or our things are wrinkled and torn from being stuffed into a too-small space, it's hard to embrace our styles with acceptance and gratitude. But, the more we work with our two-sided styles instead of trying to fight against them, the easier it becomes to be thankful for them, warts and all.

And the better organized we become.