3 Keys Thursday: 3 Key Elements of STYLE

In yesterday's post, I talked about the personal and organizational styles. Part of who we are and what we do naturally, they can be stumbling blocks or building blocks. Once we know that, we can embrace them, but we also need to know what to do with them.

The personal and organizational styles guide the way we organize by helping us choose the tools that work and flipping existing habits into helpful ones, but they don't provide a specific process. For that, we need a different kind of STYLE.

While each of these letters stands for an important piece of the process, three of them are also an important part of the organizing by STYLE philosophy. Whether you're an organizing by STYLE veteran or you're just starting out, the first three skills are key to embracing your styles rather than fighting them. Why does this matter? Because beating ourselves up is not only unhealthy, but it wastes time and energy that could be spent on actually making progress.

For those who are new to this approach, these three keys, combined with our personal and organizational styles, build the foundation to a system that works and is sustainable. For those who've  been doing this for a while, they can be a troubleshooting guide.

When I see something I need to improve (yes, that happens regularly), it's often one of these three keys that leads me to a solution. If I start with successes, I begin by assuming I'm doing something right, even if the system isn't working. Something this simple is energizing and opens the door to problem-solving; okay, if this part is working, but this part is not, what does that tell me about the changes I need to make? It may not happen all at once but, over time, it defines a blueprint for change.

Often, we get overwhelmed by the mere idea of getting organized. We have a life change or make a New Year's resolution, but we don't know where to start. We might even see the successes, but they seem so small compared to work we need to do that we're tempted to quit before we start. If we take small steps, the task not only seems less daunting, but also builds in more successes along the way. Success breeds success and soon, we're seeing progress.

Finally, the (relatively) simple task of deciding yes, it has a home and defining where that is reduces clutter not only in the moment, but on a long-term basis as well. I don't know about you but, at my house, homeless items make up about 90% of the clutter. If something is worth keeping, it's worth creating a place for and, once we know what that place is, we're more likely to put it there.

Whether you're a regular reader or have landed here only because you're on Day 2 of your 2020 New Year's resolution, don't forget that this is a process. Just as we won't lose those pesky 20 pounds overnight, we won't get organized that quickly either. The good news is the we don't have to do it all at once. If we use our styles as our guide and take small steps, building on our successes, we'll get there. Even better, we'll get to a place where we can maintain what we've created because it's built on what works for us.