| You have attention deficit disorder or someone close | | | | joys of cooking blowfish in 6 months, you probably |
| to you does, or you probably wouldn't be reading this | | | | won't. Get rid of it, or get another bookcase. |
| article, right? Let's talk a bit about organization, ADD, | | | | Then, tackle those sticky papers. Get a small notebook |
| and how you can avoid the dreaded "stuff | | | | that will fit on your desk beside you. You can buy |
| everywhere" syndrome. | | | | inexpensive books or whatever you like. If you really |
| The most notorious place for attention deficit induced | | | | like the book, your ADD brain will use it. But any note |
| clutter is in your bedroom. Clothes are probably | | | | that you have to make during the day should go into |
| scattered over most of it, shoes may be piled sky-high, | | | | that book--everything. Telephone numbers, quick notes |
| and what's a laundry hamper? Right? We know how | | | | to yourself, addresses. So make sure it can open flat |
| this feels, and had the same kind of problems, but we | | | | and that pages can be turned back. Your attention |
| learned that if you can create an ADD-friendly system | | | | deficit may drive you to that purple suede journal, but if |
| to handle the clutter, life will be much smoother for you | | | | it's like a hardback book, it won't work well. Get |
| and for your loved ones. | | | | something that's more ADD convenient. |
| If your bedroom is large enough, buy three big trash | | | | Then, either at the end of the day or the next |
| cans, about the 30 gallon size. If you can buy them in | | | | morning--whatever works, but make it a |
| different colors, that would be ideal, but in lieu of that, | | | | routine--transfer what needs to go into your address |
| what if you just spray one white; one a dark color, like | | | | book to your address book. Use a desk calendar, too. |
| navy blue or black; and one red? | | | | Write all of your appointments into the calendar and |
| Every day when you take off your clothes, decide | | | | keep it directly in front of you every day. You can't |
| whether they should go into the bin for white clothes, | | | | make any mistakes that way, and all of your notes will |
| the bin for dark clothes, or the bin for colored clothes | | | | be in one place if you need to refer to them later on. |
| and then, just throw your stuff into the appropriate bin. | | | | No more ADD panic over where you put that |
| How cool is that? They'll already be separated when it | | | | important phone number! |
| comes time to wash them. Plus, there's the added | | | | As for the papers. Gather all of them, and you'll have |
| benefit of not walking into your bedroom and tripping | | | | to take time to sort them into piles: important, not quite |
| over a pair of underpants. | | | | as important, and throw away. Because your attention |
| For shoes, you can do the same kind of thing. Buy | | | | deficit won't do well with the boredom this will create, |
| open-ended (veggie-type) bins so the shoes are easier | | | | get yourself a timer. Set it for 5 minutes. Go through |
| to see, maybe one black, one brown, one colored, or | | | | your papers for 5 minutes every morning, then stop. |
| just one, period. (It depends on how many shoes you | | | | Don't go one minute over. Take 5 minutes a day to file |
| have, but we ADD people are always collecting.) Here, | | | | your papers in hanging files in a file cabinet or box. |
| it's the same principle. You'll be able to just toss your | | | | You'll be amazed at how much you get done in that |
| shoes into the bins, instead of leaving them all around. | | | | short time. Before you know it, your paper stack will |
| Let's move to our ADD-littered office. What's | | | | be gone. |
| everywhere, even on the floor? Books? Papers? Are | | | | But you'll be adding to the piles every day. Get three |
| there sticky notes all over the computer monitor or the | | | | file bins for papers and just toss papers into one of |
| hutch above your desk? How do you help your | | | | the bins as they're received. After a while doing this, it |
| attention deficit brain remember your appointments? | | | | will take less than 5 minutes to clear things up each |
| Books need bookshelves, and people with ADD need | | | | day. How great will that be? |
| plenty of space in them to store their books. Have one | | | | People with attention deficit really don't like clutter, they |
| as close to your desk as possible and be sure not to | | | | just have trouble dealing with boring things like filing, |
| overload the shelves. If a book won't fit, get rid of | | | | hanging, and putting away. Give yourself an |
| another so that it will and don't let your attention deficit | | | | ADD-friendly system and follow an ADD-simple |
| get in the way. ADD people tend to the pack rat | | | | routine. You'll be a much happier person for it, and your |
| syndrome, too. If you haven't used the book about the | | | | non-ADD family members will love you. |